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

Wednesday, 26 May 2010

BBC News

• Manchester Victoria station's £30m revamp now uncertain The £30m redevelopment of Manchester Victoria station is uncertain after the government cut the Department for Transport (DfT)'s budget.
• Campaign to end hate crime on transport in Bristol A campaign to encourage public transport workers and passengers to report hate crimes and aggressive incidents has been launched in Bristol.
• High speed rail to arrive 'in due course' The new Government today confirmed its commitment to the building of a high-speed rail (HSR) network.
• High-speed rail network Bill 'in due course' Plans for a high-speed rail network are among the commitments of the new government, it has been announced.
• Council misspells No Entry signA council is embarrassed after workers misspell No Entry road markings.
• Forth bridge to pass key hurdlePlans to build the replacement Forth road bridge are expected to pass their first parliamentary hurdle.
• BA strike: 200 flights cancelledStrike action by British Airways cabin crew continues to affect Heathrow flights.
• Eurostar says 'no to Stratford'A £210m station which was due to help bring in people from abroad to the Olympic Games may never have an international service.

Financial Times

• How to stay ahead of the angry brigadeLike most hapless passengers, you may be wondering what the British Airways dispute is actually about. Neither airline nor union seems able to explain the areas of...
• Top US legacy airlines launch peak faresThe country's five biggest legacy carriers are charging passengers extra for flying on peak days as they seek new ways to take advantage of improving demand
• BA will continue to test strikes' legalityThe UK carrier warns the Unite union that it plans to keep challenging the legality of the walkouts, in a move that could make it easier for the airline to claim damages
• Beijing plans air cargo 'champion'After a wave of consolidation among the country's airlines, China's civil aviation authority and state-owned asset regulator are working on a plan to merge cargo operations as well
• Private high-speed rail for ItalyThe chairman of Europe's first privately owned high-speed train operator says that it will launch services in September next year in a 'historic event' for Italy's rail system

The Guardian

• Transport in London: upgrades and orbitals This morning's meeting of the London Assembly's transport committee will debate the future of the Underground upgrade programme in the light of TfL's buying control of Tube Lines and therefore the execution of work on the Northern, Jubilee and Piccadilly lines.
• Heathrow's third runway is grounded but expansion spreads to regions Battle against expansion is far from over when Liverpool, Bristol and Manchester airports have ambitious plans, say campaigners
• Yes, high-speed rail can help develop sustainable travel We need a more valued, living countryside, and to do more to help people travel less

The Independent

• Watchdog bans Eurotunnel advertAn advert for Eurotunnel has been banned for claiming the service runs in any weather, a watchdog ruled yesterday.

The Scotsman

• BA 'preparing fresh legal move'The British Airways cabin crew strike has entered its third day amid speculation the airline is preparing another court bid to halt the latest wave of walkouts.

The Telegraph

• New railway carriages shelved because of spending squeeze Hundreds of railway carriages intended to ease overcrowding on some of Britain’s busiest lines have fallen victim to the first tranche of coalition cuts.

Daily Express

• Virgin's worries over BA mergerVIRGIN ATLANTIC may be forced into a merger if British Airways succeeds in its tie-up with American Airlines, says Sir Richard Branson.

Airwise News

• Plans on track [letter]REF Michael Cather's inquiry (April 12) regarding the progress of the re-opening of the railway link between Bere Ferrers and Tavistock, which would reconnect Plymouth and Tavistock by rail.

Birmingham Mail

• Queen's Speech: Green light for London to Birmingham high speed rail link The new coalition Government today confirmed its commitment to the building of a high-speed rail (HSR) network.

London Evening Standard

• BA 'preparing fresh legal move'The British Airways cabin crew strike has entered its third day amid speculation the airline is preparing another court bid to halt the latest wave of walkouts.

Nottingham Evening Post

• City trams may run into trouble [letter]THE national media universally condemned Labour's spending binge in the run-up to the General Election. Newsnight presenter Jeremy Paxman even described Labour as acting like "drunken sailors".
• Is this the end of the road for the A453 widening project? MULTI-million pound plans to widen one of Nottingham's key roads have been shelved, prompting fears the project is dead in the water.

Sheffield Star

• Cuts to delay new train carriage plans PLANNED investment in rail services through South Yorkshire could be hit as part of Government cuts - with £54 million of "low priority" transport schemes being delayed.
• Green Week on the busesENVIRONMENTALLY friendly bus travel is being promoted with a week of events by South Yorkshire bus operator Stagecoach.
• Fury over 'duplicitous' bus fares hikePublic transport companies have been slammed as "duplicitous" for advertising a cut in the cost of South Yorkshire tickets - then shortening their validity from monthl

Wales Online

• What Welsh councils spend on mayoral transport Anglesey – The council says it has no civic or mayoral cars.

Bucks Free Press

• Train plan causing 'uproar' MP tells new transport sec BRITAIN™S new transport chief has been told by a Buckinghamshire MP that plans to run a high speed train line through the county have caused 'uproar'.

Other Regional Press

• Energy trust offers free pedometers to fuel savers An energy saving organisation better known for its push to reduce domestic fuel consumption is stepping up its campaign to promote sustainable transport across Warwickshire.

Railnews

• Government reaffirms commitment to High Speed rail THE NEW coalition government has reaffirmed its commitment to building a High Speed rail network in Britain, by including plans for a draft Bill in the Queen's Speech at today's ceremonial opening of Parliament.

Railway Gazette

• Transport orders down at AlstomALSTOM: ˜Fiscal year 2009-10 was marked by a major contraction in demand for power generation due to the strong economic downturn, whilst the transportation market resisted better, supported by the focus on rail projects in government budgets™, said Alstom Chairman & Chief Executive Officer Patrick Kron on May 4 as he presented results for the year to March 31. Transport orders were down 32% to €5·48bn, though a 39% group fall in orders reflected ˜exceptional™ levels the previous year. Transport sales were up 1% to €5·75bn, but Power grew 6% to give an overall increase of 5% to €19·7...
• Trains talk to avoid collisionsGERMANY: Trials are being undertaken at the Wegberg-Wildenrath test centre near Düsseldorf with a collision avoidance technique based on short-distance train-to-train transmission. The trials are being led by aerospace research agency Deutches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, which is providing researchers from its institutes for Transportation Systems, Communications & Navigation and Robotics & Mechatronics. DLR partnered with train operator Bayerischen Oberlandbahn for the trials ” BOB offered use of an Integral DMU and crew. The other vehicle used was DLR™s own ˜RailDrivE™ road-ra...

Aviation Industry

• American Airlines' plan to become profitable includes focus on hub airportsBy ANDREA AHLES Focusing on major airport hubs and finally getting antitrust immunity for closer cooperation with partners in its Oneworld alliance will bring American Airlines back to profitability, the Fort Worth carrier's top executives told Wall Street last week.After its annual meeting in New York, executives from American's parent company, ...
• HK: Two airlines to raise fuel surcharges by 20% in JuneThe Civil Aviation Department of Hong Kong approved on Tuesday a roughly 20 percent rise in passenger fuel surcharges in June levied by Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines.
• BA may take new action on walkoutBritish Airways says it may again take to the courts in an effort to block strike action by its cabin crew.

Other News Sources

• Multi-million pound makeover for Crewe Station Multi-million pound makeover for Crewe Station
• Updates from Michael Baker Jr., Thales, HDR, Alstom, TCS, Greenbrier and Cubic Transportation Systems • Alstom has opened a new train maintenance facility in Edge Hill, Liverpool, England. As the result of a $21.5 million investment from Network Rail1, the facility can receive up to eight high-speed tilting Pendolino Trains for maintenance each night vs. the five it formerly handled.
• Uttlesford District Council Announces Its Delight At BAA's Decision To Withdraw Stansted Runway Plan UTTLESFORD District Council has announced its delight that BAA has formally withdrawn its application for a second runway at Stansted Airport.
• Local MP and MSP call for action on Kintore station [Lib Dem Malcolm Bruce]Surging passenger numbers on North-East railway lines have led to renewed calls to reopen Kintore Station.
• RMT demands that the Mayor comes clean as speculation grows that Northern Line upgrade will be delayed until after the OlympicsTUBE UNION RMT today called on London Mayor Boris Johnson to make an urgent statement on the impact of the ConDem government cuts on the tube upgrade programme as rumours gathered ground that the works on the Northern Line will not be completed in time for the 2012 Olympics.
• RMT sets deadline of Friday for Southern Trains to abide by agreements on the role of the GuardRAIL UNION RMT announced today they have given Southern Trains a deadline of this Friday (28th May) to confirm that they will not breach agreements on the extension of Driver Only Operation (DOO) and the safety-critical role of the Guard on their services or the union will register a dispute with the company.
• Bristol airport plans approvedPlans for the expansion of Bristol Airport have been approved by North Somerset Council.
• Birmingham calls for review of high speed rail compensationBirmingham City Council is urging the government to look again at proposals for a hardship scheme to compensate property owners affected by the construction a high speed rail network.
• Cheshire company takes PlayStation onto airlinersIFE Services, a Knutsford-based provider of in-flight entertainment, has confirmed that it has struck a deal with Sony Computer Entertainment America to distribute the PlayStation Portable to airlines.
• Manchester could benefit from new airports billManchester Airport could be one of the beneficiaries from a new airport economic regulation bill announced in today's Queen's Speech.
• Victoria Station revamp axed and civil service campus in doubtGreater Manchester Chamber of Commerce has described cuts to funding for a major revamp of railway stations in the North West as
• Secretary LaHood Charges Advisory Committee with Helping to Ensure Health of U.S. Aviation IndustryU.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, at today's opening session of the Future of Aviation Advisory Committee, charged the committee's members with helping to ensure that the U.S. aviation...
• Air New Zealand to offer mobile text and email services inflightAir New Zealand will be enabling its new Boeing 777-300 aircraft with mobile phone and data capability, with the first aircraft due for delivery in November this year. The introduction of...

News from Europe

• Danish timetables integrated with Google Maps DENMARK: Travellers in Denmark can now use the Google Maps website to plan multi-modal public transport trips. Users type an address or click on the start and end points of their journey, and Google Transit provides details of train and bus times and connections along with a map of the suggested route.