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

Wednesday, 09 February 2011

BBC News

• Ferry routes sale set for Competition Commission probe Stena Line's acquisition of two Irish Sea ferry services has been referred to the Competition Commission by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).
• Level crossing near-misses up 15%, says Network Rail The number of motorists taking illegal and dangerous risks at level crossings is rising, Network Rail has warned.
• New DLR line delay explained... [blog]We have been inundated with a query from a Mind the Gap viewer, as to when the new DLR branch from Canning Town to Stratford International was opening.
• Leeds bus lane drivers set to face fines Motorists who use bus lanes illegally will be targeted in a new traffic crackdown in Leeds.
• Search and rescue helicopter bid process is halted Plans to privatise the search and rescue helicopter service have been suspended amid concerns about the bidding process to find a supplier.
• Airport has become 'one terminal'Terminals one and two at Birmingham Airport are merged into one facility to make journey's
• Fuel lines cut in petrol theftsThieves in Stirling have resorted to cutting car fuel lines in a bid to steal tanks of petrol and diesel, police say.
• Rail route site works under waySite investigation works get under way on the £235m rail link project between Edinburgh and the Borders.
• Jaguar E-Type turns 50The Design Museum in London marks the anniversary by displaying the iconic car in its
• AUDIO: Hauliers demand no fuel duty increasePeter Carroll is a haulier and founder of Fair Fuel UK. They're campaigning for the government to scrap the planned increase of duty in April.
• BA forces new crew strike ballotBritish Airways cabin crew are to be balloted again on strike action after the airline said a previous vote was unlawful.
• Toyota shares jump on US findingsShares in Toyota jump nearly 5% after a US inquiry into reports of unintended acceleration finds no electronic flaws in the company's cars.

Financial Times

• BA wrangles with union on ballotsBritish Airways cabin crew are to be re-balloted on strikes in their long-running dispute after the airline warned that their latest ballot was unlawful

The Guardian

• Leeds trolleybus: Transport chiefs call for meeting with secretary of state Leeds transport chiefs remain bullish about the prospects of receiving funding for the £250 million Leeds trolleybus - despite a damning government report casting doubt over the future of the scheme.
• Green thinktank warns against using tax cuts to stabilise fuel prices Pleas from industry to cut fuel duty will result in rises to other taxes or further spending cuts, Green Alliance says
• BA cabin crew strike ballot 'unlawful' Union abandons threat of fresh walkouts after British Airways questions legality of January ballot

The Herald

• Plan for second Glasgow runway ditchedTHE owners of Glasgow Airport have dropped plans to build a second runway and slashed forecasts for passenger growth under a new 30-year development plan.
• BMI routes are replacedAIRLINES have replaced a number of international routes that were threatened after BMI announced it was axing its daily Glasgow to Heathrow service last week.

The Telegraph

• London Underground's 'ludicrous use of English': can someone make it stop? A crackling noise startles the morning commuters. Then a voice: “Could customers please be advised that, owing to may-jah escalator refurbishment at Victoria station, could they please exit at the rear end of the platform. Could customers please be advised that they should exit Victoria at the uuh-rear end of the platform, please. Thank you.”
• MoD halts helicopter deal as police probe 'irregularities' The Government has halted a £6 billion procurement programme for search and rescue helicopters, after the preferred bidder admitted it had access to commercially sensitive information.

Press Association

• Crossrail work to hit Tube services Work on the cross-London Crossrail scheme will lead to disruption to Tube and bus services in the heart of the West End for the next few months, it has been announced.

Reuters News

• UK ditches helicopter deal over bid irregularitiesBritain has abandoned the procurement process for a new generation of search and rescue helicopters as military police investigate how information relating to the bid process fell into the hands of the preferred bidder.

Daily Express

• £6BN RESCUE CENTRE SELL-OFF IS STALLED BY BUNGLE OVER BID SCOTLAND’S two search and rescue centres could escape privatisation after an investigation was launched into improper conduct in the bidding process.

The Mirror

• Search and rescue helicopter privatisation on hold amid police probe into bidding process PLANS to privatise the UK’s search and rescue service have been put on hold after a police probe was launched into alleged irregularities in the bidding process. Transport Secretary Philip Hammond yesterday said Soteria – the preferred bidder in the £6billion deal to replace the RAF’s Sea King fleet – had access to commercially sensitive information.

Network Rail

• MOTORING MADNESS AT LEVEL CROSSINGS CONTINUESNew CCTV highlights crazy driving and people risking lives at level crossings across Britain

Belfast Telegraph

• Firm lands $2m Hong Kong airport contractA BELFAST-based firm which makes security screening products has won a $2m (£1.2m) contract to upgrade a system at Hong Kong International Airport.

Birmingham Mail

• MEP blasts toll price rise A WEST Midlands MEP has slammed the rise in charges on the M6 Toll road as a “slap in the face for motorists”.
• Passenger numbers increase at Birmingham Airport for first time in two years PASSENGER numbers have grown at Birmingham Airport for the first time in two years, bosses have revealed.
• West Midlands Police offers officers advice on how to ride a bike ’YOU never forget to ride a bicycle’, the old saying goes.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Bus firms asked to share pain of cuts A total of £10 million is being slashed from the budget of the county™s integrated transport authority, Metro, in the next two years.

Derby Telegraph

• Consultation starts into removal of two city bus lanesTHE first step in removing two controversial bus lanes has been taken by the city council. The Conservative cabinet councillor for planning and environment, Matthew Holmes, decided the lanes in Kedleston Road and Duffield Road should be removed. The party had ordered a review of all bus lanes in the city after taking control of the authority last May. Now a formal consultation over the removal of the two lanes has begun. Bus companies and members of the public have until February 28 to let the council know their views. The Duffield Road lane was created three years ago by the then Labour-led ...

London Evening Standard

• Oxford Street Tube revamp to cause eight months of delaysTube and bus passengers face months of disruption as the transformation of two stations in Oxford Street accelerates.
• £6bn air-sea rescue sale halted in insider probeThe £6 billion privatisation of search and rescue helicopter services was cancelled at the last minute today because of "irregularities".

Sheffield Star

• Labour might axe plans for high speed rail link between Sheffield and LondonLABOUR may shelve its plans for a high speed rail link between London and Sheffield, The Star can reveal. Shadow transport secretary Maria Eagle is reviewing the party’s transport policy and has said there is “nothing ruled in or out”.

This Is Local London Network

• Objections to M25 Downside service station tunnel overturned Another hurdle to construction of a motorway service station area has been removed after ministers threw out the remaining objections.

Other Regional Press

• Birmingham Airport bosses back HS2 plan BOSSES at Birmingham Airport have given their backing to the controversial high-speed rail line set to cut through Warwickshire.
• Railway station platforms to be extended SIX train stations in Thurrock will have their platforms extended as part of a multi-million pound scheme.
• Final week's consultation on county's three-year Transport Plan underwayPriorities for Plan?s first three years include improvements for roads, public transport, cycling & walking.
• New station will be an icon for the townMEMBERS of the Northampton Rail Users Group will meet with the Transport Secretary later this month in a bid to secure Government backing for a £20 million new railway station for the town.
• ˜HS2 would wreck dream racecourse™A POPULAR racecourse which attracts thousands to its events is one of many rural businesses in South Northamptonshire which could be “destroyed” if plans for a high speed rail route go ahead.
• Rallying to keep vital busA campaign has been launched to try to stop a ’vital’ bus service from being axed.
• Bus cuts coming to West Yorkshire, Huddersfield University expert Colin Bamford warns VILLAGERS could lose their bus services, a transport expert has warned.

Campaign for Better Transport

• More condemnation for costly M25 widening8 February: The Public Accounts Committee has condemned the Highways Agency for wasting up to a billion pounds widening the M25. read more

Global Rail News

• Translink appoints McCann BAM for £13m engineering projectTranslink NI Railways has appointed Magherafelt construction company FP McCann, who will work alongside Dutch rail contractor BAM, ...
• East Midlands Trains begin work on upgrading fleetEast Midlands Trains has this week embarked on the final phase of a £30 million programme to totally ...
• New platforms and footbridge at Cambridge station given the go aheadPlans to transform train services between Cambridge and London Liverpool Street have cleared the final hurdle after Cambridge ...
• Northern Rail receives environmental accoladesNorthern Rail is celebrating the award of two internationally recognised Environmental standards. The accolades come on the back ...
• Alstom to provide 161 IGBT traction systems to NedTrain in the Netherlands for €36mNedTrain, the company in charge of the service and maintenance of the Dutch Railway fleet, has selected Alstom ...
• Alstom wins contract for T7 and T8 tramway linesAlstom will be providing the tramways set to run on the T7 and T8 lines in the Paris ...
• USA™s Vice President Joe Biden announces six year plan to build national high-speed rail networkVice President Joe Biden today announced a comprehensive plan that will help the nation reach President Obama™s goal ...
• Finsbury Park station™s National Rail ticket gates begin to take shapeFinsbury Park station™s new National Rail ticket gates will begin to take shape on 14th February. Boxes will ...

Railnews

• News: National Rail Oyster surge hailed as success Rail passengers in Greater London are now paying for more than two million journeys a week with Oyster smartcards, after equipment to accept them was installed at the last of 350 suburban stations in the capital just over a year ago. The completion of the Oyster programme marked the end of a long saga, during which the former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone made funding available to National Rail operators to encourage them to update or install gatelines. However, they were slow to respond at first, and much of the work was only done as the funding deadline approached.

The Business Desk

• Vital secures £21m refinancing package SALFORD-based industrial recruitment firm Vital Services Group has secured £20.9m to finance the growth of its engineering services business.

Aviation Industry

• Airport launches master plan for the futurePassenger numbers at Scotland's leading long haul airport are expected to rise over the years.
• BA and Travelport collaborate on merchandisingTMCs subscribed to any of the Travelport GDSs can now book pre-allocated seats on British Airways' flights

Other News Sources

• Cambridge to London trains receive multi-million pound boost with new platforms TRAIN services to London will receive a massive boost after a multi-million pound scheme to build a new platform at Cambridge Station gets the go ahead.
• Application in for Wixams rail link DEVELOPERS have submitted an application to build a £17.5million railway station in Wixams village. The application has been submitted by developers Gallagher Estates in association with Network Rail.
• Mayor seeks £500M Crossrail style funding for Northern Line extension London mayor Boris Johnson yesterday published a consultation document that sets out plans to garner £500M of funding from developers for the Northern Line extension The amended consultation sets out a proposed Section 106 framework designed to secure the money for the extension through Vauxhall, Nine Elms and Battersea, west from Kennington. It will have two new stops, and aims to help regeneration in the area.
• Northern Line extension 'faces £58m funding black hole' There could be a £58m funding gap in the plans to extend the Northern Line into the Vauxhall, Nine Elms and Battersea Opportunity Area in west London, a report has concluded.
• Bridging the Gap: South London Transport Plan The South London sub-region is the second largest sub-region in the capital, home to 1.6 million people and providing employment to more than 720,000. The population is forecast to grow by 8% between 2006 and 2031, with particular growth in the Opportunity Areas of Croydon Metropolitan Town Centre and Vauxhall, Nine Elms, Battersea. With a growing population, comes inevitable demand on the transport system

News from Europe

• Alstom unveils Paris RER Line A double-deck train FRANCE: The first MI09 double-deck electric multiple-unit for Paris RER Line A was officially unveiled on February 8. Certification testing is underway with three MI09 trainsets, ready for entry into passenger service by the end of the year.