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

Thursday, 18 February 2010

BBC News

• MP Winterton's anger at first class travel 'ban' Retiring MP Sir Nicholas Winterton has reacted angrily to expenses proposals to restrict first class travel by MPs.
• London Assembly warns against train snow chaos repeat The London Assembly has asked the government to urge train companies to improve their services during bad weather to reduce travel disruption.
• Will it be full steam ahead for the new 'Flying Scotsman'? [video]Justin Rowlatt takes a train ride with John Prescott, Lord Adonis and Michael Heseltine to consider proposals to build a high speed train line from London to Scotland - a project which would cost millions and take years to complete.
• Utility firm road repairs in Devon 'not up to standard' Utility companies are not repairing all of Devon's roads to the required standard after works are carried out, the county council has said.
• 'Half of children' walk to school Less than half of primary school children in Great Britain are walking to school, the latest figures show.
• Council looks at Nottingham Sunday parking charges Free Sunday parking in Nottingham looks set to be dumped as part of proposals to boost council revenue.
• Upgrade plans for area around Reading Station on show Reading residents are being invited to view plans to upgrade the run-down area around its railway station, which is currently undergoing a £400m revamp.
• Double-decker buses could make return to Jersey Double-decker buses could make a return to Jersey roads for the first time since the 1970s.
• Mixed response to Borders railway claims Claims that a reopened rail route to the Borders could attract £500,000 a year in tourist spending to the region have received a mixed public response.
• Cycling councillors to save moneyCouncillors are to be encouraged to cycle and car share to get to meetings to help save thousands of pounds.
• Lawyer to 'clean up' SPT expensesA qualified lawyer is to be the next chairman of Strathclyde Partnership for Transport, which is embroiled in an expenses row.
• Eurostar service on hold all weekEurostar services between the London and Brussels are suspended for a third day following a crash in Belgium.
• Tube line suspended in rush hourThousands of Tube commuters suffer severe disruptions as the Central Line is suspended during rush hour.
• Museum shuts ahead of replacementThe Museum of Transport in Glasgow is to close its doors more than a year before the opening of its multi-million pound replacement.
• Ryanair rowThe airline clashes with the Irish government
• Toyota considers Corolla recallJapanese carmaker Toyota mulls a recall of the world's best-selling car, the Corolla, as it also denies any cover-ups.

Financial Times

• Keeping track Just as boys like to spread their train sets across the kitchen floor, so train company chiefs want control of the tracks they run on. Brian Souter, chief executive of Stagecoach, is (again) joining the bandwagon pushing for more integration.
• Determined drive to get middle classes on the busesThe middle classes are on the buses and Brian Souter can barely contain his delight. The plain-talking Scotsman who heads the bus and rail company Stagecoach sees...
• Stelios raises £5m by pledging sharesEasyJet founder uses 1.27m shares in the budget airline as collateral for a loan for a second time in five months
• Lufthansa pilots call four-day strikeGerman airline faces a four-day strike by its pilots that could hit its plans to counter the worst downturn in aviation history
• Stagecoach seeks more control over railOne of Britain's biggest rail operators says further industry improvements are dependent on giving train compnaies more responsibility for tracks and other infrastructure

The Guardian

• Tory MP Nicholas Winterton complains about possible expenses ban on first-class travel Macclesfield MP says he finds it infuriating that parliamentarians might have to stand when there are no seats
• Judge blocks Milford Haven port strike A high court judge has blocked a strike in Wales as BA cabin crew brace themselves for a legal challenge to its strike ballot
• UK Eurostar services to Brussels suspended until 'at least' Monday Passengers advised to cancel or postpone journeys following Belgian commuter train collision that killed 18 people
• Straitened times in a post-bendy world As public spending cuts kick in, Boris Johnson's logic in replacing bendy buses will seem increasingly flawed

The Herald

• ’What we’ll probably see with SPT is death by a thousand cuts’ While the immediate crisis at Strathclyde Partnership for Transport has been prompted by a long list of questionable expenses claims by senior executives, the malaise at Scotland’s second-biggest public transport quango runs far deeper.
• Sad end to a glittering career serving Glasgow Ron Culley has been chief executive of Strathclyde Partnership for Transport since it was formed in April 2006 when it replaced Strathclyde Passenger Transport Executive.
• Second SPT boss quits as ’clean-up’ announced The under-fire chief executive of a public transport quango has resigned as a new chairman was appointed to “clean up” the body following an expenses row.
• Mileage claims are not the first scandal at SPTThe latest controversy over mileage claims by top officials at Strathclyde Partnership for Transport comes just two days after its chairman Alistair Watson resigned.
• From apprentice mechanic to Scottish director of bus divisionStagecoach, whose Scottish bus operations include Highland, Bluebird, Strathtay, Fife, and West Scotland, has appointed a new Scottish director for its bus division.

The Telegraph

• Record low as just 48% of primary school pupils walk to school Fewer than half of pupils now walk to primary school despite a multi million Government campaign telling parents to stop school-run traffic.
• Eurostar services to Brussels suspended until Sunday Eurostar will continue to suspend all services between the UK and Brussels until at least Sunday.

Times Online

• MPs’ expenses: complaints about ban on first class travel Sir Nicholas Winterton, the disgraced Conservative backbencher, has said it is ’infuriating’ that MPs will be prevented from travelling first class following the expenses scandal.
• Stelios raises £5m pledging shares to UBSCould it be to buy some property in a chi-chi corner of Chelsea? Or could it be to fund his forthcoming legal battle with Michael O™Leary, the chief executive of Ryanair? Whatever the reason, Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou has lodged 1.3 million easyJet shares with UBS in return for £5 million.

Daily Express

• Jarvis hits the buffersRail engineer Jarvis signalled a profits warning yesterday as Network Rail delayed spending on track renewal work, which sent its shares tumbling 1dp to 11p.

Mail Online

• First-class fool! Veteran Tory Sir Nicholas Winterton blasts new rule that says MPs must travel with the rest of us in economyTory grandee Sir Nicholas Winterton has come out fighting over the expenses row, complaining that MPs are no longer allowed to travel first-class. The Conservative MP, seemingly oblivious to the public's anger over the issue, said he was ' infuriated' that politicians had to travel with ordinary members of the public.

ATOC

• Revitalised partnership between public and private sectors would ensure future success of railways - ATOCAt a speech in central London, Micahel Roberts says that a revitalised partnership between the public and private sectors is key to continuing to provide passengers with good services and taxpayers with value for money.

Bolton News

• Town's rail network to benefit from fund boost A PLAN to improve rail services on congested routes in northern England has been outlined by Network Rail ” and Bolton will benefit.

Derby Telegraph

• Better bus service appeal for village People living in Hilton are invited to attend a special meeting when transport issues in the village will be discussed in front of a representative from Trent Barton.
• Mumbai calling as rail advisers set up office to grab deals A DERBY rail consultancy has branched out into India in an effort to win new business created by the country's developing economy.

Journal Live

• East Coast rail bosses pledge no harm to services EAST COAST railway bosses have promised they will not damage connections to Northumberland in the biggest train time shake-up in decades.
• North East has one of the highest uses of public transport THE North East has one of the highest uses of public transport in England, according to figures released yesterday.

Liverpool Post

• Tesco and Stobart deal to bring 750 new Widnes distribution centre jobs TESCO and Stobart have agreed a deal that will bring 750 jobs to Widnes at a new distribution centre.

London Evening Standard

• Traffic hit by work on Thames tunnel and four bridges at the same timeTransport for London was under pressure today to explain how permission was given for roadworks to be carried out simultaneously on five Thames crossings.
• Tough times for Stephen Norris as Jarvis sounds alarm Steven Norris, the former Tory transport minister and London mayoral candidate, today issued a profits warning for Jarvis, the rail and plant firm he chairs.
• Make Eurostar stop at Stratford International, ministers urged Transport Secretary Lord Adonis is under pressure to order Eurostar trains to stop at Stratford International station to stop it being the biggest “white elephant” in London.
• Eurostar trains to remain haltedEurostar will continue to suspend all services between the UK and Brussels until at least Sunday, the operator has confirmed.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Sunday charges for on street parking in city THE city council plans to charge for Sunday on-street parking. In addition, the authority will impose new charges at district car parks in Bulwell and Sherwood.

Sheffield Star

• Fed-up Sheffield families lorry ban joyRESIDENTS living on a suburban Sheffield road blighted by heavy traffic are hoping for relief after highways chiefs announced plans for a lorry ban.

Other Regional Press

• Black box found as rail driver survivesSearch teams have located one black box from the wreckage around two trains that crashed into each other near Brussels, killing 18 people and injuring over 170.
• Officials claimed £30k on own carsTwo senior officials with a public transport quango at the centre of an expenses row have been paid almost £30,000 in travel claims for using their own cars.
• Lawyer sent in to ˜clean up™ the SPTA lawyer has been sent in to œclean up the transport body at the centre of an ­expenses row.
• Tycoon Sir Peter Rigby starts Coventry Airport takeover talks tycoon Sir Peter Rigby is lining up a dramatic swoop to buy Coventry airport.

Aviation Industry

• GLA Report “ ˜Flights of Fancy™The Environment Committee of the Greater London Authority (GLA) has issued a report on environmental controls for Heathrow. The  report is critical of the regime of environmental controls and targets proposed. The report is called ˜Flights of Fancy: Can an expanded Heathrow meet its environmental targets?™ and refers particularly to expansion of Heathrow. The report is quite critical of the regime [...]
• Qantas flags higher airfaresQantas Airways chief executive Alan Joyce says it is inevitable airfares will have to increase in 2010 from a a unprecedented low levelsa a . He said current airfares rates are a a understandablea a , given forecasts the aviation industry will lose $US5.6 billion in 2010.

Green Miscellany

• The bicycle helmet with its own synthetic scalp Bicycle helmets that feature a synthetic scalp to reduce the risk of rotational head injuries are to go on sale within a year.read more

Other News Sources

• Arriva raises €100mTransport group Arriva has raised €100m through a private placement of senior unsecured fixed-rate notes, with a seven year maturity.
• Cycle lane conflict Cyclists are being urged to keep to designated cycle lanes after police received complaints from Lincoln pedestrians.
• Progress for tunnel cycle path Council officials are about to sign the paperwork which will allow work to start on a £1.9 million new cycle path to the south of Bath.
• Car-centric design discrimination against cyclistsIf you are cycling north along High Road Leyton there comes a point where you are forced to peel off on to Grange Park Road, because of a triangular one-way gyratory system.
• Improved rail station is key Town-planning students, asked to come up with ideas for further improving Dundee’s city centre, have zeroed in on the down-at-heel Taybridge railway station as a facility in sore need of a makeover (writes Bruce Robbins).
• STOBART GROUP STARTS WORK ON NEW RAILWAY STATION Cumbrian haulage giant the Stobart Group has started work on a new railway station at its London Southend Airport.
• Just plain loco!A PASSENGER has accused a company of “double standards” over buying tickets on trains. Train operator, London Midland, told The Shuttle conductors could use “discretion” in deciding whether to sell tickets but Mr Lawton said this was “too vague”.
• Work on cycle superhighway starts in East London WORK today began on the first two so-called Cycle Superhighways planned for the capital, including a route to Tower Gateway from Barking.
• Campaign to extend rail along Waterside A CAMPAIGN to reopen a Hampshire railway line could result in trains travelling as far as Fawley, the Daily Echo can reveal.
• East Lancashire snubbed in £530m rail improvements for northVITAL improvements to East Lancashire™s railways have been snubbed in a £530million rail masterplan for the North.
• Now Halifax is in line for a Manchester Airport rail link A £530 million investment package to transform rail travel could see a direct link from Halifax to Manchester Airport and extra trains to Manchester.
• The Waverley railway line to be reopenedThe Borders railway link bill,which was passed recently will ensure the reopening of the Borders rail line that ran between Edinburgh and Tweedbank near Galashiels , which was closed way back in 1969. The total project cost is expected to be over £295m and the project will take off in 2011 and is expected to be completed in 2014. The MSPs approved the Waverley Railway (Scotland) Bill by 114 votes to one, with one abstention.
• Drop in passengers at Birmingham, but chiefs still optimisticDespite a drop in passenger numbers at Birmingham International Airport last month, chiefs are optimistic that they are better placed than last year. Birmingham airport's chief executive officer, Paul Kehoe, indicated that although the airport suffered a 7.2 per cent year-on-year decrease in passenger numbers, it is still performing more strongly than others. Additionally Mr Kehoe believes that the airport is in a stronger position to cope with the turbulent economic conditions than it was this time last year. Mr Kehoe highlighted the completion of a number of high-profile projects and the com...
• Safmarine to launch new Mashariki Express service Safmarine will further improve its Far East - East African shipping network with the introduction of a new, direct, fully-containerised shipping service between the Far East and East Africa. read more
• Train crash: EU pleads not guilty Grillo-Pasquarelli said the European Commission was not trying to blame anybody for the 15 February tragedy. However, he rebuffed accusations from the Belgian railway operator (SNCB) that delays in coming up with harmonised legislation had contributed to the crash. SNCB Chief Executive Marc De Scheemaecker had told the press that "the EU's hesitations on a harmonised automatic braking system caused delays to Belgian plans to secure the lines". A delay in forging new EU legislation cannot be blamed for Monday's train accide...
• ESSEX: Body scanners invade privacy says internet campaignerONE man's internet campaign to stop the roll-out of controversial full body scanners at airports worldwide has attracted more than 10,000...
• Black cabs to run on hydrogen in time for OlympicsBlack cabs run by fuel cells are to put to use across the capital in time for the Olympics.
• Midlands awarded low carbon vehicle research fundThe Midlands has been awarded a multi-million pound fund in order to develop low carbon vehicles.
• Ford saves thousands of bumpers from landfillCar manufacturer Ford saved thousands of car bumpers from landfill and scrap sites last year.
• ACEA welcomes plans for electronic vehiclesACEA has welcomed European discussions regarding the future of electronic vehicles.
• Scrappage scheme drives interest in green cars British drivers are using the scrappage scheme to buy fuel-efficient vehicles, new statistics show.
• Study links road pollution and heart disease for first time European and American scientists have for the first proved a link between pollution and heart disease.

News from Europe

• Low-floor train to boost Lausanne suburban capacity SWITZERLAND: Invited guests rode on the first of six RBe 4/8 electric multiple-units being built for the metre-gauge Lausanne-Echallens-Bercher railway on February 17, just 14 months after Stadler Rail was awarded the SFr41m contract to supply them. They will enter passenger service from May.
• Chinese firm fails in European bid POLAND: Warszawa regional operator Koleje Mazowieckie announced that Bombardier Transportation had been selected to supply 11 electric locomotives on February 12, beating low bidder CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive (RG 2.10 p8)