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

Saturday, 16 April 2011

Financial Times

• Elliott sets out intentions for NatExpressUS hedge fund pushing for change at rail and coach argues that the board is

The Guardian

• Aston Martin steps into IndiaBritish manufacturer joins India's high-priced car market “ but can it beat other marques like Bugatti and Lamborghini?It's a combination that might have made James Bond raise an immaculately groomed eyebrow. Aston Martin, purveyor of luxury sports cars with a dash of 007 about them, is about to enter the tangled tumult that is India's road system.The company has unveiled plans, unthinkable just a few short years ago, to bring almost its entire range of cars, including a model that will sell for Rs200m (more than £2.7m) to a country which has more than 100,000 millionaires and infinitely more ...

The Herald

• National Express tie-up talk Power struggle at transport groupTRANSPORT group National Express has insisted it has a future as an independent company after coming under renewed pressure to seek a tie-up with rival Stagecoach.
• Gray to create mural for subway stationTRANSPORT bosses have approved plans for a £23,000 contract for a mural by Alasdair Gray to be installed inside a subway station.

The Scotsman

• Chaos as blaze closes motorwaySports fans and holidaymakers wanting to get away for Easter are facing disruption as the M1 remains closed after a fire.

The Telegraph

• Planes are cheaper than trains on half of popular domestic routesAir fares are cheaper than rail fares on half of Britain's 10 most popular domestic routes, according to a study carried out by Telegraph Travel. This is despite rises in Air Passenger Duty (APD), increases in departure fees on domestic flights from Heathrow, and a 20 per cent fall in domestic air services since 2005.
• Planes are cheaper than trains on half of popular domestic routesAir fares are cheaper than rail fares on half of Britain's 10 most popular domestic routes, according to a study carried out by Telegraph Travel. This is despite rises in Air Passenger Duty (APD), increases in departure fees on domestic flights from Heathrow, and a 20 per cent fall in domestic air services since 2005.
• Man gets clamped 'in 30 seconds' outside Exeter train stationNetwork Rail is investigating after a motorist said his car was clamped 30 seconds after he got out to get change for a parking ticket machine.

Daily Express

• Germans shun Rolls-RoyceGERMAN engineer Tognum yesterday knocked back a £2.8billion takeover offer from Rolls-Royce and car giant Daimler as -

Mail Online

• Teleporting breakthrough as scientists transport light particlesJapanese scientists have found a way to transport light particles from one place to another, Star-Trek style, though it'll be years before a similar human experiment is possible.

Network Rail

• WORK STARTS AT WATERLOO STATION TO CREATE 20,000 SQ FT OF NEW RETAIL SPACE

Liverpool Echo

• Jaguar Land Rover still driving monthly sales increases SALES of Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) vehicles are still expanding, boosted by Freelander 2 production at Knowsley’s Halewood car plant.

London Evening Standard

• Commuter chaos on the tube after signal failureTens of thousands of Tube commuters suffered major disruption after a signal failure crippled the Circle and District lines

Metro

• BA cabin crew call off strike over Easter and royal wedding weekendsBritish Airways cabin crew's plans for a fresh wave of strikes over the Easter and Royal Wedding bank holiday weekends have been held back to allow peace talks to continue.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Reduced bus services on bank holidaysTIMETABLES for Premiere bus services will be changing over Easter. A Saturday service will run on Good Friday, April 22, while Easter Sunday and Easter Monday will operate as Sunday services. For the Royal Wedding on Friday, April 29, all Red services and the X9 will run a Saturday timetable, while NottsBus services, Shoplink, 17, 64, Red 4, Red 7.2 and 7.3 will be a Sunday service. Bank Holiday Monday, May 2, will be a Sunday service. There are also some changes to Premiere services from Sunday, May 1. The Red 1 from Bingham and Radcliffe to Nottingham will see evening buses increased to...

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Vain bid to save man as car crashes and flips into fieldA man was killed yesterday when a powerful sports car went out of control on a country road and landed on its roof in a field.
• Drivers fear constant traffic jamNairn residents fear facing constant traffic jams after five new sets of traffic lights are installed on the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness road.

Yorkshire Post

• Motorway fire may hit early Easter getawayEARLY Easter holiday travellers and sports fans have been warned of significant delays today because of a fire which has caused the closure of part of the M1 and delays to rail services.

East Anglian Daily Times

• A12: Campaign launched for 50mph speed limitA CAMPAIGN has been launched for a lower speed limit on a busy stretch of the A12 on the Suffolk and Essex border in a bid to reduce serious accidents.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Delays for Peterborough rail travellers after person hit by train6.25pm update: Rail services between London Kings Cross and Peterborough were delayed for upto two hours today (Friday) after a person was killed on the East Coast Main Line.

Western Daily Press

• Shelved cable car scheme resurrectedIt is more than 20 years since the idea of putting a cable car in Cheddar Gorge got the thumbs down. But now David Bradley, the new chief executive of Longleat Estates, which owns the caves and part of the gorge, wants to resurrect the idea. Viscount Weymouth, Lord Bath's son, decided to appoint a chief executive after he took over running the estate last year. Plans for a cable car, which would take visitors from the bottom of the gorge to the top of the cliffs on the south side, are set to be unveiled within the next few months. Mr Bradley explained:

Other Regional Press

• Oyster card will be just the ticket for GlasgowBus company First is œhugely excited about plans to offer Glasgow commuters a London-style Oyster card.
• Railway Children protesters to 'dodge fares'Rail fare protesters are vowing to fare dodge their way to Kent dressed as the Railway Children today.

International Herald Tribune

• Japanese Carmakers’ Struggles Could Put Customers in Rivals’ ShowroomsAs Toyota, Honda and Nissan struggle to get back into full production, non-Japanese automakers are expected to increase market share.

Global Rail News

• LU pay offer rejected by unionsAn interim offer has been put to ASLEF’s negotiators by London Underground which the union says does not meet the expectations or recognise the value of ...
• Work starts at Waterloo to create retail spacePassengers at Waterloo station are set to benefit from better retail facilities and more space on the concourse as work begins to construct a new retail ...
• Arriva Trains Wales rolls out its ˜new look™ Class 158 fleetArriva Trains Wales passengers will see first-hand the result of a multi-million pound upgrade today as the train operating officially puts into service its first fully ...

Railway Gazette

• Progress Rail Services buys Balfour Beatty track component business UK: Balfour Beatty Rail announced an agreement to sell its manganese steel casting, track panel, turnout and crossing design and manufacturing business to the Progress Rail Services subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc on April 15. The transaction will be completed in May. The business operates from five sites in the UK, and generated revenue of £55m in 2010 with gross assets of £43m. Balfour Beatty said it was selling because changes in its clients' procurement models had eliminated 'the competitive advantage of owning manufacturing capability'. However, the company 'remains committed to its core b...

Aviation Industry

• SIA and SilkAir raising fuel surcharges 3rd time in 2011Singapore Airlines and subsidiary SilkAir are raising fuel surcharges again - for the third time in 2011.
• Easyjet calls for support in funding ash radarThe low-cost carrier has been developing an ash avoidance system, and is now calling on other airlines and the EU to help fund the project™s completion

Other News Sources

• 2012 transport plans on track, but huge risks remain 15 April 2011 Getting transport arrangements right remains one of the biggest risks to the smooth running of the 2012 Games.  Extensive preparations are underway, but organisers have an enormous challenge on their hands, a new report by the London Assembly Transport Committee says today. bussml.jpg Yes
• FoE speaks out against biofuels Friends of the Earth said biofuels are not the way to cut transport CO2 emissions.
• Number of low carbon vehicles in UK more than doubles The number of vehicles emitting 100g/km of CO2 or less more than doubled in 2010.
• Is your Diesel fleet ready the pending fuel change legislation?From the 1st of January 2012, all UK Rail Gas Oil will be supplied as ULSD Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel as well as an ongoing trend towards higher FAME Fatty Acid Methyl Ester or Biodiesel content in Rail fuel. Biodiesel blend targets of B7 7 an
• Wincanton secures three-year logistics deal with CometWincanton has met its financial expectations for the year ending 31 March and a new three-year logistics deal with Comet is leading the way for a healthy business pipeline.
• 36-year-old man dead after road accident in AberdeenshireOne man suffered fatal injuries and another was rushed to hospital after a crash in Tyrie Main.
• MG Motor UK begins full production of MG6 fastbackWednesday 13 April marked the start of full customer production of MG Motor UK™s new MG6.
• Merger to create a single business unit BA World Cargo (BAWC) and Iberia Cargo will continue to operate as separate brands following the merger of parent airlines British Airways and Iberia. Nonetheless, the merger will create a single business unit to run the air cargo carriers with one sales force and revenue management system, which will report to International Airlines Group (IAG), the holding company to be created following the merger, reports London's International Freighting Weekly. It said the present managing director of BAWC, Steve Gunning, will head up IAG's new cargo division as managing director, and Iberia Cargo's inc...
• Alstom and RATP join forces RATP Group and Alstom Transport have formed a joint venture to create a research laboratory called Metrolab to develop automated metro technology for the next generation. The joint venture aims to develop a flexible platform in new metro lines and to renovate existing systems. Metrolab will cover various aspects of the technology including infrastructures, rolling stock, signalling, passenger information, operations and maintenance. The new solutions developed by Metrolab will be marketed by the RATP Group or Alstom Transport under the name Optimet. The joint venture will be owned equally by ...
• London Buses trial new equipment to tackle air pollution Transport for London (TfL) is carrying out a trial that will see 18 buses retrofitted with specialist equipment to tackle NOx air pollution.  The trial is a UK-first and will evaluate a number of the latest available technologies, to see which provides the best results before extending it to more buses in the fleet. TfL has taken considerable steps in the last ten years to reduce the environmental impact of its bus fleet.  All buses achieve Euro IV standard for particulate matter (PM) pollution and, as a result, emissions of particulate matter from the fleet have dropped from o...
• BA calls of strikes over EasterTweetBritish Airways and cabin crew union Unite have agreed a 28-day extension to the deadline by which the union must announce any further industrial action, removing the threat of strikes over the Easter and Royal Wedding bank holidays. Unite and BA announced the interim agreement today ahead of the strike-notice deadline at the end of [...]
• PD Ports welcomes third BG Freight Line weekly linkPD Ports says the launch of a third...
• Aéroports de Paris: March 2011 traffic figuresPassenger traffic In March 2011, Aéroports de Paris passenger traffic increased by 0.8% compared to March 2010, with a total of 6.8 million passengers handled including 4.7 million at Paris-Cha...

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• South African arms ban a threat to anti-piracy effortsPolice warn they will prosecute if guns are brought in on port calls even on ships sailing off Somalia