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

Thursday, 22 April 2010

BBC News

• Exhibition over £3.5m Kidderminster rail plans An exhibition has been organised for people to learn about £3.5m plans to improve facilities at a Worcestershire railway station.
• Recriminations grow over airline costs Recriminations are growing over the costs of the six-day UK airspace shutdown as thousands of Britons continue to make their way home.
• Bus driver reading while drivingA bus driver is suspended after a passenger films him reading while driving along a dual carriageway in Birmingham.
• More losses at Fiat and ChryslerItalian car maker Fiat and its US subsidiary Chrysler report losses despite the recent recovery in the car market.
• Ash chaos 'cost airlines $1.7bn'Airlines have lost about $1.7bn due to the disruptions to flights caused by the Icelandic volcanic eruption, the industry says.
• Airlines dispute passenger rightsSome airlines have been challenged over their financial treatment of passengers affected by the volcano ash disruption.

Financial Times

• Airlines seek cash for ash as flights restartEuropean airports and airlines were scrambling to restore flights amid claims that governments had overreacted to the ash cloud and should compensate the industry
• Fuel prices widen American Airlines' lossAmerican Airlines posted a wider than expected first-quarter loss, squeezed by higher fuel prices and
• Deutsche Bahn backs £1.5bn bid for ArrivaDeutsche Bahn's supervisory board has approved the German rail operator's planned £1.5bn bid for Arriva, the British train and bus operator
• Europe in uncharted territory on ash risksFor the head of the UK's Civil Aviation Authority, and hundreds of other European officials and regulators, taking the decision to keep airspace closed amid mounting pressure was far from simple
• Zipcar snaps up UK car club rival for $50mStreetcar, the UK's biggest car club operator, has been taken over by US rival Zipcar in a $50m deal

The Guardian

• UK airports face continued disruption as volcano flight ban ends Gordon Brown defends decision to close UK airspace as recriminations continue over repatriation
• Fury at Ryanair refusal to pay costsBudget airline Ryanair risks consumer backlash by refusing to pay hotel and food bills of passengers stranded by ash cloudThe budget airline Ryanair today sparked a furious response from politicians and risked a consumer backlash by refusing to pay the hotel and food bills of passengers stranded by the volcanic ash cloud, in a blatant refusal to abide by strict EU consumer rules.As Britain's skies opened for business at last after a catastrophic six-day shutdown, the carrier's chief executive, Michael O'Leary, told passengers his airline would not meet hotel and subsistence expenses incurred w...

The Herald

• Extra ferries scheduled to bring stranded Scots homeFerry companies that sail to Scotland have been inundated with bookings from holidaymakers stranded abroad and a special one-off service has been organised to repatriate those stuck in Norway.
• Air shutdown will cost ˜billions™The impact of the volcanic ash-induced shutdown of northern European aviation will be œvast, will take months to fully assess and will be far higher than figures suggested now, air analysts said today.

The Independent

• Bus driver faces sack after he was filmed 'reading book at the wheel'A bus driver is facing dismissal after he was filmed apparently reading a book at the wheel.

The Telegraph

• Arriva sold to Germans in £1.54bn deal Arriva is on Thursday expected to recommend a £1.54bn cash takeover by Deutsche Bahn, marking the first foreign purchase of one of the UK's big five bus and rail groups.

Times Online

• Government ’too cautious’ over ash cloud, Adonis admits The Transport Secretary today admitted that Britain had been “too cautious” in its decision to keep airspace closed for six days, as criticism of the blanket flying ban mounted.
• Ryanair boss to challenge EU law on hotel billsTens of thousands of exhausted holidaymakers struggled home yesterday as the scramble for flights and ferries continued, despite airports reopening.
• Volcano: airlines ˜breach EU law™ by refusing to pay for hotelsThousands of stranded passengers are being refused hotels and food despite government assurances that airlines are obliged to help, The Times has discovered.
• Ash cloud over Europe ˜worse than 9/11™ with airline costs of $1.7bn$The International Air Transport Association said today that the ash cloud over Europe had cost airlines $1.7 billion, although the losses have not been spread evenly among carriers.$

Mail Online

• From potholes to pot-LUMPS: How shoddy work has made scourge of our roads even more dangerous
• Iceland volcano eruption: Ryanair boss defies courts to deny compensation as airport misery drags on

Network Rail

• RAIL NETWORK TO STAY OPEN ROUND THE CLOCK TO HELP GET PEOPLE HOME

Birmingham Mail

• Birmingham bus driver faces sack for 'reading book at wheel' A bus driver is facing dismissal after he was filmed apparently reading a book at the wheel, his employer confirmed today.
• Slow return to normal flights service at Birmingham Airport Airlines and passengers, including those affected in the West Midlands, have been braced for a slow return to normality as British airspace reopened.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Station car park bid is welcomed Businesses believe plans to increase parking at Crossflatts Railway Station, near Bingley, could alleviate problems with commuters leaving their cars on residential streets.

Edinburgh Evening News

• More tram misery is on way for Princes StMOTORISTS are facing more roadworks misery as tram works return to Princes Street at the start of next month, it was revealed today.

Blackpool Gazette

• Parking fine fury over yellow blobA BLACKPOOL bus driver is warning motorists to beware of "ludicrous" blobs of yellow paint which form part of little known parking restrictions.

Bucks Free Press

• BBC show to look at rail impact on Bucks TV presenter John Craven was in the Chilterns this week as he looked at the impact a planned high speed rail link will have on the district.

Other Regional Press

• Coach companies rescue tourists caught in volcano chaos COACH companies have stepped into the breach to help travellers stranded by the air travel crisis caused by the Icelandic ash cloud.

Campaign for Better Transport

• Traffic-busting success in Bedfordshire21 April: Yesterday Stephen went to Leighton Buzzard to celebrate the launch of a very special bus service. read more

Aviation Industry

• Airlines dispute passenger rightsSome airlines have been challenged over their financial treatment of passengers affected by the volcano ash disruption.
• Airlines assess financial damage as European air traffic resumesWith air traffic beginning to return to normalcy in Europe, airlines are tallying the bill for the six-day disruption in service caused by volcanic ash, with IATA estimating cumulative lost revenue at $1.7 billion.

Other News Sources

• Updates from Siemens, Alstom, Railinc, Bombardier, Road & Rail Services and System Logistics [Progressive Railroading - USA]Siemens has been contracted by the Austrian Federal Railways to supply up to 200 Desiro ML electric regional passenger trains over the next five years.
• Bombardier wields axeBombardier Inc. took a cleaver to its executives' pay last year, starting at the top.
• Jobs boost as Crewe-based Bombardier start hiring workers RAIL giant Bombardier has given a welcome boost to the local economy by starting to hire workers. Just four months after 96 jobs were axed amid fears the historic Crewe Works would close, Unite union rep Mick Roberts says the future is now looking much brighter.
• Government denies airline 'pressure' to open skiesAll Scottish airports were opened on Tuesday night in line with the lifting of the UK airspace restrictions.
• RMT condemns Network Rail 'gloating' over dangerous jobs cullBRITAIN'S BIGGEST rail union today condemned Network Rail's 'gloating' over its cull of front-line maintenance jobs and demanded a reversal of cuts that would make another rail disaster inevitable.
• Hauliers call for Immingham port roads overhaulHaulage firms in Humberside say it is vital the road network around the Port of Immingham is improved
• Carbon data ˜favours private sector™Private businesses gain an unfair advantage by being able to keep commercially sensitive emissions information secret
• Call for views on Kidderminster station plans RESIDENTS and railway users are being reminded to have their say on plans for Kidderminster station.
• 24 hour Gatwick Express between Brighton and London to clear flights backlog Southern Trains will be running Gatwick Express trains between Brighton and London through the night to carry the huge influx of passengers expected tonight.
• New rail ticket website launches Passengers now have a new option for booking rail tickets online, mytrainticket.co.uk

News from Europe

• Bombardier Will Supply 11 Electric TRAXX Locomotives to Polish Operator Koleje Mazowieckie Bombardier Transportation and "Koleje Mazowieckie - KM" Sp. z o.o. have signed an agreement for the delivery of eleven TRAXX electric locomotives. The value of the contract amounts to approximately 41 million euros ($54 million US). The delivery of the locomotives is scheduled for summer 2011.