Transportinfo.org.uk - today's transport news in the uk, hand picked for you each morning

Sunday, 22 November 2009

BBC News

• Dutch car maker plans move to UKA luxury sports car maker based in Holland says it plans to move its luxury car assembly plant to Coventry.

The Guardian

• InterCity dreaming is more than just railway nostalgia The east coast line's fortunes have been revived since it passed from National Express to state ownership, raising hopes of a return to network integration last seen in the days of British Rail

The Observer

• Food waste to provide green gasBiogas sourced from food waste and sewage is to piped into British homes under a new 'green gas' tariffRotting leftovers, wilted salad and even sewage are to provide a new source of

The Telegraph

• Network Rail boss takes humble approach to getting back on track The new chairman of Network Rail has admitted that the company is widely perceived as "arrogant", needs fresh blood at board level and must address its controversial bonus scheme. Rick Haythornthwaite, the former Invensys boss who took over in July, said he wanted to see Network Rail serve "a leadership purpose in this industry".

Times Online

• National Express investors woo former boss Phil White SHAREHOLDERS in National Express, the troubled bus and rail group, have sounded out Phil White, the former chief executive, about coming back to run the firm. The revelation comes just days before investors vote on a controversial £360m rights issue.
• Blood, Iron and Gold: How the Railways Transformed the World by Christian Wolmar When Thomas Arnold, the celebrated headmaster of Rugby, saw the first train thunder past his playing fields in 1839, he observed that the feudal world had gone forever. In this epic account of the astonishing spread of the railways, Christian Wolmar shows that the iron horse changed far more besides. Rail transformed everything, forever: from empires and capital markets to war, holidays and the very taste of milk.
• Cycle Guy: Long arm of PC Pedal The police came in for mockery recently over a draft manual for constables on two-wheeled patrol. The 93-page, two-volume document included advice on such rudimentary skills as braking and cornering — and there was even the suggestion of a “risk assessment” before cycling without a helmet, should officers be working undercover.
• Cycle Doc Q. For years I have been using waterproof trousers for commuting to work by bike — and they have always been useless. They take ages to put on and make me so sweaty that I sometimes wonder if I might just as well have got wet with the rain. Have you any better ideas?

ATOC

• FRANCHISE REFORM WOULD GIVE PASSENGERS AND TAXPAYERS A BETTER DEAL - ATOCTaxpayers and passengers would benefit from reform of the franchise system, ATOC Chief Executive Michael Roberts, says in a speech.

Network Rail

• NETWORK RAIL SUBMITS PLANNING APPLICATION FOR BIRMINGHAM GATEWAY PROJECT

Journal Live

• Government accused of underplaying impact of aviation tax on airportsTHE Government has been accused of hugely underplaying the impact of increased aviation taxes on regional airports.

Liverpool Echo

• Merseyrail offering £1 return fares for Christmas shoppersCHRISTMAS shoppers can take advantage of a £1 return fare on Merseyrail trains.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Warning of lengthy work on the Cromarty Bridge ˜blow™ for northPlans to carry out lengthy work on a second major bridge in the Highlands came as a œnasty surprise, an MSP said last night.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Prize for Leeds bus driver who puts his passengers firstPassenger praise has seen a Leeds driver named the best on the buses.

Northants Evening Telegraph

• Plans for parking permits in Wellingborough scrappedLong-awaited parking permits promised to residents living on streets plagued by train station commuters' cars have been scrapped as the roads are too narrow.
• Accidents cost county £165m last year: Campaighners have called on the council to rethink proposed road safety budget cuts as the Evening Telegraph reveals collisions on county roads last year cost more than £165 m

Peterborough Telegraph

• New attempt to solve A14 subsidenceWork is to take place in January to permanently solve subsidence problems on a busy section of the A14.

Sunderland Echo

• Drink-drive campaignA ROAD safety show aims to warn about the dangers of drink-driving as part of a week-long campaign.

Other News Sources

• VIrgin Trains gets record complaintsVIRGIN trains receives twice as many complaints per passenger as any other rail operator in Britain. The staggering statistic means Sir Richard Branson’s company gets more complaints than the combined total of 14 of the country’s 19 rail firms.
• Campaigners angry as London Midland announces peak-time fare rises TRAIN passengers in Birmingham are set to be hit with further price rises in the New Year. Rail company London Midland, which was recently reprimanded by the Government for poor service, is set to charge more for those wanting to travel during the afternoon rush hour, between 4.35pm and 6pm.
• Vision for future of rail services from Norwich Rail operator National Express East Anglia has set out its new vision for the Norwich to London mainline, including cutting journey times and introducing new trains. But its proposed improvements will not come into play until 2014, by which time the company could have lost its franchise.
• Arriva train plan could derail Wrexham and Shropshire service to London PLANS by Arriva Trains to put on a `spoiler’ service between Aberystwyth and London could put the fledgling Wrexham and Shropshire service into London out of business says Owen Paterson MP.
• London Midland profits under pressure from remedial measures Transport Minister Lord Adonis has required London Midland to submit a remedial plan to ensure it can run a reliable Sunday timetable. The demand was made as a result of the cancellation of the company’s entire service on September 6 when staff refused to volunteer for work, after an agreement with the unions to pay double time for voluntary Sunday working expired.
• Leather given top job at GMPTEThe leadership of the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE) has been confirmed on a more permanent basis, with David Leather, the current interim chief executive, being retained for at least two more years.
• Change in Attitudes to Aircraft NoiseNew research suggests people are more annoyed by aircraft noise than they used to be.
• Dutch car-maker to switch production to UK A Dutch-based luxury sports car-maker is to switch its assembly plant from Holland to Britain to reduce its cost base.
• Haulage must invest in drivers, says ArlaArla Foods has called on the rest of the road transport industry to invest in driver development to help raise the overall standard of operations.
• Floods disrupt rail services in the westIrish Rail has said that bus services are operating again between Galway and Athlone on Galway/Dublin services due to flooding between Ballinasloe and Athlone.Bus transfers are also in use on the Long...
• Campaign for Heathrow transport hub set to gather paceThe campaign for Heathrow Hub, a proposed transport interchange at the world's second-busiest airport, is set to gather pace next month. Arup, the engineer that first proposed the hub, is understood ...