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

Friday, 29 January 2010

BBC News

• London Underground workers to strike in rota dispute London Underground (LU) maintenance staff will go on a series of one-day strikes over new rotas, the Rail, Maritime and Transport union has said.
• Rail company Babcock to cut jobs The rail maintenance company, Babcock, is cutting 150 jobs in Scotland.
• Obama hopes to boost economy with high-speed rail US President Barack Obama has repeated a vow to improve the economy, as he sought to boost confidence a day after his first State of the Union speech.
• Minister considers nationalising Thameslink franchiseA minister has refused to rule out nationalising an "appalling" London commuter railway line that suffered almost three months of disruption.
• Protesters plan runway 'fortress'Protesters plan to build a "fortress" occupied by "ordinary people" on land earmarked for the construction of Heathrow's third runway.
• 'Stingy' £1 station short-cut feeTransport for London is criticised for its 'Scrooge-like behaviour' for charging rail passengers £1 for using a short-cut to station.
• Thameslink franchise warningA minister has refused to rule out nationalising an "appalling" London commuter railway line that suffered almost three months of disruption.
• Concern at airport pollution planThere are "clear inadequacies" in pollution safeguards imposed on the planned expansion of Heathrow Airport, London Assembly members have said.
• Car success creates 400 new jobsCar maker Nissan is to create 400 jobs at its Sunderland plant to meet demand for the Qashqai model.
• Toyota set for global car recallToyota announces the recall of vehicles in the US, Europe and China over concerns about faulty accelerator pedals.

Department for Transport

• New law to keep banned drivers off UK and Irish roadsA new law to keep disqualified drivers off UK and Irish roads comes into force today.
• Transport StatisticsThe Department for Transport has today published the following Transport Statistics:

Financial Times

• On the busesI first met Arriva not long after the European Commission decided to free up the railways . . . In truth, France's state-owned rail operator has known the UK...
• Business faces maximum Crossrail levyLondon businesses will pay the maximum extra levy to fund Crossrail for the next 25 years, in spite of warnings that the tax will hurt companies' chances of recovering from recession
• SNCF on European track with Arriva talksA merger between France's state-owned rail operator and UK's transport group would enable the French company to branch out of its core business into offering door-to-door transport across Europe

The Herald

• Country driving under spotlight in new campaignA hard-hitting campaign to reduce the number of deaths on country roads is to be launched in Scotland.

The Telegraph

• Arriva in talks with SNCF over tie-upBus and rail group Arriva is in exploratory talks with France's state-backed rail operator SNCF over a potential merger with its Keolis transport wing to create a business with more than €6bn (£5.1bn) of sales.

Times Online

• Two Network Rail workers fall to deaths at Forth and Tay bridgesTwo workers have fallen to their deaths from Scottish railway bridges within hours of each other.
• Using biofuel in cars 'may accelerate loss of rainforest'Using biofuel in vehicles may be accelerating the destruction of rainforest and resulting in higher greenhouse gas emissions than burning pure petrol and diesel, a watchdog said yesterday.
• Arriva and SNCF in talks on European groupArriva, the UK transport operator, is in talks with SNCF, the French state-owned rail operator, over moves to create a European transport group with revenues of about €6 billion.

Daily Express

• Arriva lines up for giant merger dealARRIVA, the bus and train group, has opened merger talks with French national rail operator SNCF over a possible deal to create a new European transport giant.

ATOC

• ATOC RESPONDS TO UNION CLAIMS OVER RAIL SAFETYATOC responds to a union campaign and potential strike over fears that Network Rail is planning to cut maintenance jobs.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• More flights from Anglesey airportTRANSPORT chiefs are looking at the expansion of routes from Anglesey airport while the airline running the Wales air-link battles to secure its future.

Journal Live

• Transport group issues plea on Metro financeTHE Government was urged last night to “urgently” approve £300m plans to link up the North East.

London Evening Standard

• Rail firm axes 300 jobs in overhaulA rail maintenance firm has come under attack for announcing plans to axe 300 jobs to

Metro

• Rail firm axes 300 jobs in overhaulA rail maintenance firm has come under attack for announcing plans to axe 300 jobs to

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Other airline ready to step in if Highland Airways foldsWestern Isles MP Angus MacNeil said that he had been assured that flights between the mainland and Stornoway and Benbecula would continue if the worst came to the worst for troubled Inverness-based company Highland Airways .

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Rail firm to axe 300 jobs in restructuringA rail maintenance firm came under attack today for announcing plans to axe 300 jobs to "restructure and refocus" its business.

Blackpool Gazette

• Bus chiefs to scale back on job lossesBLACKPOOL Transport has announced it will cut 56 jobs.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Minister in warning over rail firm's franchiseMinisters refused to rule out nationalising a commuter rail line, which links Bedford to London, that has enraged passengers with three months of delays and cancellations.

Other Regional Press

• OAP bus pass cash will keep tax in check OXFORD will get its promised £2.28m extra to cover pensioners™ bus travel in a move that will help other areas of the city™s finances.
• Babcock Rail to slash 300 jobsBabcock Rail is to slash 300 jobs to make the œbusiness fit for the future.
• City council rejects plea for congestion chargesCouncil leaders in Glasgow have ruled out introducing a congestion charge despite strong public support for the tax.
• Aberdeen bus bosses have change of heart over No 5ABERDEEN bus passengers today praised a transport company for changing their minds over an axe-threatened route.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Official opening for M4 widening projectA section of the M4 that has been widened to carry more traffic has been officially opened.Welsh deputy first minister and minister for economy and transport Ieuan Wyn Jones unveiled a plaque to mark the occasion.The scheme covered a stretch of the motorway from Junction 29 to Junction 32 to the north of Cardiff and was carried out by Carillion (formerly Alfred McAlpine).Running from Castleton to Coryton, construction work has been underway since May 2007 to widen it from a dual two lane highway to three lanes, allowing traffic to flow more freely."I am delighted to see the completion...

Aviation Industry

• London Gatwick Airport December 2009 traffic performance summaryDecember 2009 marked the third consecutive month of growth in passenger numbers at London Gatwick Airport...
• Restructuring US Airways reports significantly reduced 2009 lossA year in which US Airways unveiled ambitious plans to reconfigure its airline operation ended with a $205 million net loss that was a significant improvement from the $2.22 billion deficit reported in 2008.

Other News Sources

• Light railway link studiedThe London Borough of Greenwich has agreed plans for a feasibility study to look at bringing the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) to Eltham and Kidbrooke.
• Network Rail secures go-ahead for sustainable national centreNetwork Rail has gained planning permission for a national centre in Milton Keynes, to which it will relocate 3,000 staff.
• Denham considers runway plan call-inA planned expansion of Southend Airport has been thrown into doubt after a last-minute government intervention that could result in a public inquiry.
• Groups unite to press parties on integrated transport policyFive organisations have called on the party that forms the next government to integrate local, regional and national transport plans to ensure cost-effectiveness.
• pteg calls for beefing up of DfT ticketing strategy28 October 2009
• First class travel plan for railways Commuters travelling from Northampton to London by rail could soon be able to use first class seats without paying extra, if proposals by a transport watchdog are approved.
• Preston bus station will not be listedPreston's bus station can be bulldozed, the government has ruled.
• Stobart and Jenkinson order 1,000 ScaniasCumbrian-based transport operators Stobart Group and AW Jenkinson Forest Products have ordered 1,000 new Scania trucks through a joint-procurement agreement.
• Bolton’s Metroshuttle; Extended to 2011.Bolton has extended it’s Metroshuttle service until 2011, and awarded the tender to Maytree Travel. Bluebird, the previous operator, will handed over the service on the 25th of Jan. . The service is jointly funded by Bolton Council and the GMITA. The 25-seater single decker buses will also have a new royal blue and orange livery to [...]
• Last chance to comment on bus shake-up plans BUS users in Surrey have just a couple of days left to comment on plans to cut or reduce dozens of services as the county council looks to make up to £4m worth of savings.
• Criticism of Heathrow expansion safeguards London Assembly members warn that safeguards to limit the environmental impact of a potential third runway at Heathrow may not be fit for purpose
• EU body gives thumbs up to 'green' road chargingThe overall benefit of charging trucks for the pollution they cause outweighs the limited negative price impact on consumers, shows a new report from the European Commission's in-house Joint Research Centre (JRC).
• COGGESHALL: Buses in battle over key routeBUS wars have broken out in Braintree after a second bus company, to rival First, launched an almost identical service on a key route....
• Rail firm warned over 'unacceptable' serviceFirst Capital Connect has been warned that it has to improve on the
• High-speed rail 'more important than airport expansion' High-speed rail networks 'could reduce CO2 emissions'.
• Two consortia in line to carve up £555m of road maintenance dealsTwo consortia are understood to be sharing £555 million of road maintenance work through the Highways Agency™s managing agent contractor deals for Areas 1, 13 and 14.