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

Thursday, 03 February 2011

BBC News

• Humber Bridge: private bid to buy debt off government A businessman has unveiled plans to buy the Humber Bridge in a bid to boost the regional economy by slashing tolls.
• London Tube Central Line services hit by cable theft Tube services were disrupted during the morning rush hour after thieves stole cabling in east London.
• Campaign fights 'major bus cuts'A campaign is launched to save subsidised bus routes after it was found more than two-thirds of councils planned to cut services.
• Risk over tram firm 'skills gap'The company constructing Edinburgh's controversial tram line is at risk of lacking the skills and experience to finish the project, it is warned.
• Anger at salary for new SPT bossA transport authority which was mired in an expenses scandal is under fire over a top official's salary.

Department for Transport

• Millions of extra holidays protected as Government confirms ATOL reformPeople booking a holiday abroad are set to benefit from a clearer more extensive protection scheme after the Government confirmed it would press ahead with reforms to ATOL (Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing). The reforms - made necessary by changes in the holiday market - will see the ATOL scheme undergo the biggest overhaul for more than a decade. The changes are expected to ensure around 6 million more holidays receive protection.

Financial Times

• Edinburgh council lacks "unified commitment" to tram schemeAn audit report suggests Transport Scotland, the Scottish government's transport organisation, should become more heavily involved in supervising progress on the troubled project

The Herald

• End in sight for Edinburgh trams? Hope for the future of the Edinburgh tram system is pinned on mediation between the city council, the body it set up to deliver the now stalled project and the contractors’ consortium, Bilfinger Berger Siemens.

The Scotsman

• It's your money so get a grip on trams, ministers told MINISTERS have been urged to get a grip of Edinburgh's troubled tram project, in a critical assessment by public spending watchdogs.

The Telegraph

• Bus services at risk because of spending cuts Bus services are being axed by more than two thirds of councils due to public spending cuts, a study has found.
• BA worker 'discussed forming terrorism cell' Airline worker accused of planning attacks on a flight to the US.
• £545 million trams project 'may never be finished' The beleaguered Edinburgh trams project will not be finished for almost another three years at the earliest and may never be completed, a damning report by auditors has concluded.

Press Association

• Hopes rise for rail electrification Hopes of electrifying the main railway line between London and South Wales have increased after Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan said she is "optimistic" over the project.

Mail Online

• The real Danger Mouse: airport rodents trained to sniff out terroristsCrack teams of mice are being trained to detect would-be bombers and drugs couriers – rather like the 1980s cartoon secret agent.

The Mirror

• Alleged BA "sleeper" terrorist wanted to take part in another July 7 bombing, court told AN alleged terrorist sleeper at British Airways accused of plotting to blow up a plane had hoped to take part in “another July 7”, a court heard yesterday.

Birmingham Mail

• Birmingham Airport workers in pension ballot AROUND 370 workers at Birmingham Airport are to be balloted this week on a pension U-turn which would see their final salary scheme retained after a hard-fought, ten-month battle.
• Final pay offer for National Express bus drivers across the West Midlands MORE than 3,750 bus drivers across the West Midlands are to be balloted on a “final” pay deal worth two per cent a year for two years – and improved sickness terms for the lower paid.
• Birmingham City Council staff to lose parking passes HUNDREDS of Birmingham City Council staff are set to lose valuable free car parking passes as public spending cuts begin to bite.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• New road planned through Bingley park Plans have been submitted to build a permanent roadway in one of the district™s parks to get rid of the recurring œmajor cost of installing temporary road surfaces for major events.

Edinburgh Evening News

• TIE 'may lack skills to finish tram project'THE competence of Edinburgh's tram company to finish the multi-million-pound project was called into question in a leaked report today.

Journal Live

• North-based BA worker plotted suicide attack AN ISLAMIC extremist working as a British Airways computer expert on Tyneside plotted to blow up a plane bound for America with the help of a radical preacher, a court heard.

Liverpool Echo

• Pressure mounts against Mersey tunnel toll rise POLITICAL and business leaders in Wirral have condemned a planned increase in Mersey tunnel tolls.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Stagecoach move cuts Thurso to Inverness bus timesThe bus journey from Thurso to Inverness is to be 20 minutes shorter after Stagecoach™s operation in the far north was amended.

Wales Online

• ’Optimistic’ Gillan boosts Welsh hopes of rail-line electrification HOPES of electrifying the main railway line between London and South Wales were given a boost yesterday as Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan said she was “optimistic” over the project.

Peterborough Telegraph

• MP Jackson™s campaign to end fuel price painPeterborough MP Stewart Jackson has called for the Government to scrap a tax increase on fuel.

Other Regional Press

• First buses in Norwich puts up fares Cash-strapped Norwich families are facing more price hikes after the city’s biggest bus company announced it was raising fares from Sunday.
• Air Southwest to cut jobs as Plymouth to Gatwick flights end UP to 21 jobs are likely to go at Plymouth airline Air Southwest following the scrapping of its flights to Gatwick.
• 'Vulnerable' south coast rail line still a cause for concern The main railway line into the Westcountry remains vulnerable to the effects of climate change despite official reassurances to the contrary, councillors have claimed.
• Train fare protesters to stage protest in Brighton Campaigners from Brighton are urging fed-up commuters to join them in Preston Park at 7am on Friday (4 February) to protest against rising rail fares.
• Council bosses to decide on cutting free transport to school for some county pupilsThe county council coughs up nearly £14million per year transporting around 10 per cent of the children and young people who travel to school and college each day from home.
• Buses can't handle Forest hills That's the excuse being given by Stagecoach bosses after a spate of breakdowns.
• Delays on Thameslink rail lineRAIL bosses are reporting delays and cancellations on the Thameslink line between Bedford and Brighton.
• 'We won't take Southeastern's figures at face value'Kent MPs renewed calls for rail operator Southeastern to be denied a contract extension and pressed for an independent audit of its performance.
• Delays on Thameslink rail lineRAIL bosses are reporting delays and cancellations on the Thameslink line between Bedford and Brighton.

Campaign for Better Transport

• Save our Buses Across the country lifeline buses are being axed by local authorities. We have launched the Save Our Buses campaign to stand up for treasured local buses and to defend them from damaging funding cuts.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• New EU regulation adopted for bus and coach passengersThe European Council has adopted a regulation governing the rights of bus and coach passengers in the region.Members of the European Parliament will now vote on the legislation later this month before it is finally adopted.It will be applicable two years from publication and is intended to strengthen individuals' rights in case of accidents, discrimination, cancellation or delay and handling of complaints.In addition, the rights of those with disabilities or reduced mobility are covered by the regulation, as is the information provided to passengers travelling by bus or coach in Europe...

Rail-News.com

• DRS wins boat train contractDirect Rail Services, the UK’s leading rail freight operator, continues to expand its portfolio of rail activities with the addition of First Class passenger services to the port of Southampton in partnership with Cruise Saver Travel of Poole, Dorset.
• Success story spans a generationIt seems like only yesterday since the DLR opened but it was actually back in 1987, with the concept originating in 1984. In the intervening period, the network has seen unprecedented growth that at times has led it almost to become a victim of its own success. So says Martin Collett, the DLR’s Chief Engineer, who gave a fascinating talk to the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) recently.
• Cover your tracksMore stringent European safety regulations now stipulate that new railway tunnels have to be designed as two separate single-track bores. Furthermore the track system must take into account the need for road vehicles to access the line in case of emergency. Double-track tunnels currently under construction are also being built with such vehicular access in mind.

The Business Desk

• IoD boss: "We need runway more than HS2" THE RUNWAY extension at Birmingham Airport is more important for the immediate needs of the West Midlands than “futuristic discussions” about high speed rail, says the regional chairman of the Institute of Directors.

Green Miscellany

• iPhone 'black box' app for cars and bicycles As the cost of car dashboard and cycle helmet-mounted cameras designed to record footage in the event of a collision continues to drop in price, a new iPhone app offers the technology for less than £1. read more
• Latest bicycle case is inflatable A new design of inflatable case promises to be a lightweight and robust way of transporting a bicycle. read more
• Bicycles are not witchcraftread more

Other News Sources

• New Crossrail boss should be engineering figure, says Holden The new Crossrail boss should come from an engineering background rather than project management, outgoing chief executive Rob Holden has said of his future successor.
• Thales completes North East telecommunications projects Ahead of schedule, electronics systems company Thales has successfully completed two key telecommunications projects in the North East for Network Rail, following contract awards from Invensys Rail in 2009.
• Mayor announces major progress with Jubilee line upgradeLondon Underground (LU) confirm that a new signalling system is operating on the majority of the line. More work is still to be done on the northern end of the line.
• HS2 and the North-South divide Public consultation is about open on HS2, the proposed first leg of the government’s high speed rail (HSR) network. HSR has crucial implications for many local communities. Some local authorities along the HS2 route are committed to opposing it, but others are vociferous in their support. So what are the issues?
• RMT slams East Coast plans to slash catering services in run up to re-privatisationRAIL UNION RMT today slammed proposals from East Coast that would result in the slashing of on-train catering services along the prestige inter-city route, leaving only four trains a day on the national rail network, excluding the Scottish sleeper services, with a dedicated restaurant car when British Rail provided 249.
• Improved links to Manchester and Yorkshire are priority for East LancashireEAST Lancashire™s transport priorities are improving links to Manchester and Yorkshire, councillors have been told.

Other Subscription Services

• Arriva confirms new bus order for Malta Arriva Malta has announced it has placed an order for 174 new buses with Chinese bus manufacturer Xiamen King Long United Automotive Industry Co. Ltd (King Long). The order confirms Arriva’s commitment, made when it won the 10-year contract, to replace a large part of the island’s ageing bus fleet.