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

Tuesday, 24 November 2009

BBC News

• Station may reopen after 44 years A railway station in Cambridgeshire could reopen for the first time in 44 years, it has been revealed.
• Rail ticket barrier plan rejected Plans for ticket barriers at Sheffield railway station have been refused on the grounds that they would affect the character of the listed building.
• A75 Dunragit bypass scheme moves closer A £15.9m bypass for a south of Scotland village has moved a step closer.
• Bus sale could reap council £20m A Devon council has been offered £20m for the controversial sale of its bus service.
• Glasgow Airport rail link wins backing of business Six leading business organisations have written to the Scottish government asking it to reinstate plans for the Glasgow Airport Rail Link (Garl).
• School bus consultation under way A three-month consultation on new proposals which could see out-of-county school transport for children cut has begun in Wrexham.

Financial Times

• Prospect of BA and Qantas link-up resurfaces British Airways' planned merger with Spain's Iberia opens the way for BA to reconsider a tie-up with Qantas, according to Willie Walsh, the British carrier's chief executive
• Cosmens raise National Express stakeNational Express's biggest shareholder increases its shareholding ahead of a vote on Friday that will decide whether the transport group's £360m rights issue goes ahead
• German ship owners pull aid requestsTwo large container ship owners that requested aid from the German state have withdrawn their applications, in a move that raises questions about the government's stance towards the sector
• Oyster card extended to overground rail linesLondon's underground and overland rail services are to have a single, integrated ticket system for the first time after agreement was reached to extend Oyster smartcard ticketing to most of London's mainline rail services from January 2

The Guardian

• Boris's Bus (A Political Journey) Pt 19: Open Platform, Closing Door Let's assume, as I expect we can, that Wrightbus and Alexander Dennis have fully addressed the part of Transport for London's specification for the capital's new bus that was summarised in a June press release as follows:
• Tories pledge 10% cut in government emissionsThe Conservatives make an ambitious pitch to win the environmental vote with a raft of measuresThe Conservatives will tomorrow make an ambitious pitch to win the environmental vote with a raft of measures including plans to pay the public to recycle and a promise to cut government emissions by 10% within 12 months of taking office.The party's pledge to slash the government's carbon footprint represents the most significant policy commitment in response to the 10:10 climate campaign which asks individuals, companies and organisations to cut their emissions by 10% during 2010.Shadow chancellor G...

The Scotsman

• Business groups join forces to get Garl back on track John Swinney is accused of not consulting on scrapping Garl SCOTLAND'S six main business groups yesterday joined forces to step up pressure on ministers to save the axed Glasgow airport rail link (Garl).

The Telegraph

• Direct rail links to be opened between London and Amsterdam, Gordon Brown announces Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister, has announced plans for direct rail links to be opened between London and other European cities including Amsterdam.

Times Online

• Cosmen family up the stakes in National Express battleThe Cosmen family has increased its stake in National Express to almost 20 per cent and has not ruled out raising it further as its members look to strengthen their hand ahead of the transport company™s vote on a £360 million rights issue.

Reuters News

• Hitachi eyes UK high-speed rail project by MarchJapan's Hitachi Ltd (6501.T) said on Tuesday it expects a delay of a few months in clinching a British high-speed railway deal worth over $5.6 billion -- a deal it hopes will add momentum to its push into the overseas market for eco-friendly trains.

Derby Telegraph

• 140 jobs at risk at city train builders FORTY permanent jobs are at risk at Derby train-makers Bombardier. A further 100 contract staff are also set to be let go at the firm's Litchurch Lane site.

London Evening Standard

• Travel revolution: Oyster rail will cut fares by 30%Some fares could fall by more than a third when Oyster is extended to every national rail station in London, it has emerged

Nottingham Evening Post

• Rail passengers demand better weekend service in Nottingham TRANSPORT campaigners have demanded an improvement to weekend rail services in Notts after passengers were again hit by disruption on the tracks.

Yorkshire Post

• Rail firm under fire as ticket barriers rejected CONTROVERSIAL plans to introduce ticket barriers at Sheffield's Midland railway station were thrown out by councillors yesterday who described the scheme as "appalling".
• Tony Lodge: We need leadership and vision to enter new age of the train ISAMBARD Kingdom Brunel, one of the greatest railway engineers in history, died 150 years ago at the age of 53. Brunel's death was followed, a few weeks later, by that of Robert Stephenson, a household name who had risen from humble origins in the Northumberland coalfield to the highest echelons following his building of the world's first modern steam locomotive, Rocket.

Aviation Industry

• Heathrow™s Terminal 2 closes as work on its £1 billion replacement gets underwayPassengers will check in at Heathrow™s Terminal 2 for the last time on Monday as, after 54 years of service, it is closing to make way for a stunning £1 billion replacement.
• Equity injection into London airport groupFurther to the announcement on 13 November 2009, BAA is pleased to confirm that its three controlling shareholders have formally approved the £200 million injection of new equity into BAA's London airports.
• Air France-KLM Makes First Biofuel Flight Carrying PassengersAn airliner using a 50 percent biofuel mix in one engine has successfully completed a demonstration flight in the Netherlands.

Other News Sources

• £2m swoop for National Express shares The biggest shareholder in National Express yesterday splashed out £2.7m to increase his stake in the transport firm - just days after spending £1.7m on shares in the group.
• Ashurst sitting pretty as National Express rail saga rumbles on Given that the East Coast mainline has been described by one insider as “ill-fated”, the chosen date for the Government to reclaim the franchise could have been better considered. But at midnight on Friday 13 November the line reverted to public ownership - albeit temporarily.
• Hitachi in high speed train dealHitachi is expected to sign a high-speed railway project deal in the UK worth more than 500bn yen (£3.38bn), as the electronics conglomerate steps up its efforts to push into overseas markets.
• New anti-piracy plan soughtSHIPOWNERS are seeking new strategies to counter piracy, concerned that the international naval presence in the Gulf of Aden is becoming a ˜business as usual™ scenario.
• 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.
• Expansion of airport World Freight Terminal approved Plans to create a new cargo hangar at Manchester Airport World Freight Terminal have been approved by Manchester City Council's planning committee.
• New Eco Park plans revealedMulti-million pound plans for a new facility to recycle and generate renewable energy will be revealed to the public at the beginning of December.

News from Europe

• Belgium tightens up its load lawsFollowing similar moves in Germany, Belgium has issued new and stricter rules on securing loads.