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

Thursday, 12 August 2010

BBC News

• RMT union votes for London Underground strike Union members have voted for industrial action on the London Underground (LU) in a row over jobs and safety.
• East Midlands Trains to close buffet cars Buffet car services are to be scrapped on East Midlands Trains and replaced with a trolley service.
• Peak London Shropshire train service fares to rise Passengers travelling between London and Shropshire will be charged higher train fares from September.
• Cyclists want promenade ban endedCyclists put new effort into a campaign to get the by-law changed to allow bikes on the promenade at Llandudno.
• Hire scheme cyclists overchargedThousands of users of London's new cycle hire scheme have been overcharged, Transport for London admits.
• RMT union votes for Tube strikeMembers of the RMT union vote for industrial action on the London Underground in a row over jobs and safety.
• Change of track for old railway stationMany old railway station buildings such as parcel offices and station pubs have fallen into disrepair. But now a new scheme has been launched to restore these listed buildings and give them a new lease of life.
• Toyota probe implies driver errorA preliminary study into accidents involving Toyota cars suggests driver error may have played a part in many incidents.
• BAA strike ballot result expectedThe result of a union ballot that could lead to strike action at BAA airports over the summer will be revealed later.

The Independent

• RMT votes for Tube strike The threat of Tube travel chaos rose today after members of the RMT transport union voted overwhelmingly for industrial action in a row over jobs and safety.
• Speeding drivers revel in Oxford's great switch-off The A44 Woodstock Road is the type of place for which speed cameras were invented. The pretty, tree-lined street serves as both a busy thoroughfare to Oxford town centre and a bustling residential area, complete with a church and nursery school.

The Telegraph

• Traffic lights being stripped out in urban overhaul Traffic lights are being stripped out across the country under radical plans to reshape town centres.

Reuters News

• Deutsche Bahn cleared by EU to buy Arriva (Reuters) - The European Union gave German transport company Deutsche Bahn DBN.UL approval to buy British bus operator Arriva (ARI.L) on Wednesday on condition that Deutsche Bahn sell Arriva's German business.

Network Rail

• MERSEYRAIL ON TOP IN TRAIN PERFORMANCE LEAGUE

Bolton News

• Welcome for new railway carriages TRANSPORT chiefs in Bolton have welcomed the addition of five new carriages on the busiest train route through the town ” and vowed to push the government for more.

Journal Live

• Newcastle Airport chiefs blast new tax proposals NEWCASTLE Airport chiefs have blasted what they call damaging proposals for new taxes imposed by Brussels.

London Evening Standard

• Arriva takeover by Deutsche Bahn wins EU backing German transport giant Deutsche Bahn has won EU approval to buy Arriva

Manchester Evening News

• Manchester Airport named the world's best on Twitter Manchester Airport is flying high again after winning another award “ this time for being the world's number one airport on Twitter. Almost 150 airports across the globe use the micro-blogging site to update passengers but Manchester was ranked the best of the bunch.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Metro celebrates three decades of success IT STARTED as a transport revolution but has grown to be as much a part of Tyneside as the black and white stripes of Newcastle United.
• New diesel Quaylink buses still eco-friendly NEW non-electric buses will run on a flagship Tyneside service from today. The electric hybrid Quaylink buses are being replaced by diesel engine vehicles after the service changed hands.

Sheffield Star

• News In Brief: Station on track for rail honourSHEFFIELD railway station has won a Highly Commended award at East Midlands Trains' Best Station Awards.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Ryanair review urged after child's fall from airstairsAir accident investigators today recommended budget airline Ryanair review procedures after a three-year-old child fell on to the tarmac while boarding a plane.

Other Regional Press

• Speed plan for the M20The M20 is to become one of only three motorways in the UK where the police can enforce variable speed limits.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• P&O Ferries issues trading conditions warningThe chief executive of P&O Ferries has stated that the company is struggling as demand for its services has declined.According to Helen Dreeble, it is facing increasing competition from Eurotunnel and other ferry companies regarding freight contracts and passenger pricing, forcing down profits for the firm.

Rail-News.com

• Mechan exceeds export expectationsRail depot equipment specialist, Mechan, is on target to double its export turnover this year.
• Merseyrail tops July’s train performance leagueTrain operator Merseyrail, which runs commuter services in and around Liverpool, tops the train performance league this month with 96.2% of services on time in July, narrowly beating South West Trains (95.9%) and Arriva Train Wales (95.8%).
• Gair is Northern’s StarA station supervisor who drove stranded tourists ten miles through fog to their hotel on his day off has won Northern Rail’s first customer service award. Gair Urwin from Alnmouth for Alnwick Station in Northumberland was crowned ’Northern Star of the Year’ in a gala awards ceremony in Leeds.
• Sheffield stars prepare for rail lifeShelby Cound and Abbi Fitter, both aged 17, from Hillsborough College in Sheffield are set for a career on the railways after winning a schools competition to design a new railway carriage.
• Virgin’s reaction to East Coast Main Line Pendolino proposalVirgin Trains says it has no knowledge of plans to operate a Pendolino along the East Coast Main Line. The train operator, which is seeking an extension to its West Coast franchise, says that it plans to run the first new Pendolino, due to arrive later this year, on Scotland to Birmingham services in an effort to relieve overcrowding on this popular route.

Railnews

• News: Network Rail under fire over 'lost' accidents A row is brewing over the way that accidents affecting Network Rail staff are being reported, amid allegations that some are being concealed. As many as 2,500 minor injuries may have been missed out of the statistics in the last year.

Aviation Industry

• Temporary changes to Heathrow runway alternationFor six weeks from 13 September 2010 essential maintenance work will be taking place on taxiways connecting Heathrow's northern runway with the rest of the airfield...
• Virgin Airlines no longer expected at O'HareDespite claims last month by Virgin America that it was negotiating with the city for an
• Qantas posts four per cent fall in annual profit but says market is improvingQantas Airways Ltd. on Thursday posted a 4.3 per cent fall in annual net profit to 112 million Australian dollars but said market conditions were improving.

Other News Sources

• West Coast to lose out on new trains West Coast rail passengers have been warned they will be left standing on overcrowded trains under plans to deliver new carriages to a Government-owned competitor.
• Home for accessible transport charity A FIVE-year search for land to build a home for West Somerset's accessible transport charity has come to an end this week.
• Tube staff deliver solid vote for action in fight over jobs and safetyTUBE UNION RMT confirmed this morning that members across London Underground have delivered a rock solid mandate for strike action and action short of a strike in a fight over planned cuts to safety-critical jobs that the union have warned would turn the network into a death trap.
• Five extra carriages for East Lancashire railway lineEXTRA train carriages have been added to help ease congestion on the Clitheroe to Manchester railway line.
• Fraport Traffic Figures – July 2010: Frankfurt Airport Reports New Traffic RecordsFrankfurt Airport home base welcomed 5,281,632 passengers in July 2010 – exceeding the 5.2 million passenger mark for the first time in a single month. This topped the previous record of July...
• New Visual Brand Identity For The New United AirlinesUnited Airlines (NASDAQ: UAUA) and Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) today revealed refinements to the visual branding for the new global airline that will result from the proposed merger between ...

News from Europe

• Worksite asset logistics NETHERLANDS: Plant hire company New Rail Vision deployed Ritco's GeoRailManager asset location system with 100 GPS units to provide round-the-clock tracking during a 52 h possession on the Eindhoven - Venlo line last month.
• 'All in one' wagon SWEDEN: Load securing specialist ExTe and leasing firm AAE are jointly marketing a wagon which they say is a technically simple but economically attractive way of maximising vehicle usage in the forest products industry.
• Tube locomotive modernised UK: The prototype for the refurbishment of 29 battery-electric locomotives used on London Underground engineering trains is now undergoing trials.
• Tatravagónka enters Polish market POLAND: Slovakian wagon manufacturer Tatravagónka Poprad has completed its acquisition of a 49·56% stake in Polish wagon manufacturing and repair company Fabryka Wagonów Gniewczyna from Orliston Enterprises Limited for an undisclosed price.
• EC approves DB’s takeover of Arriva EUROPE: The European Commission announced on August 11 that it had ’approved under the EU Merger Regulation (EC 139/2004) the proposed acquisition of rail and bus operator Arriva plc of the UK by Deutsche Bahn’. However, the decision is conditional upon DB’s commitment to divest all of Arriva’s rail and bus activities in Germany.