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

Thursday, 05 May 2011

BBC News

• London Underground to strike for six days London Underground workers are to take six days of strike action in an escalating row over the sacking of two Tube drivers, threatening travel chaos for millions of passengers, it was announced today.
• New £60,000 Hathern-Loughborough cycle path completed A new foot and cycle path has been been created, linking a village with a major road in Leicestershire.
• Airport restrictions to stay for months, says transport secretary [video]Transport Secretary Philip Hammond said airport restrictions were to stay for months to come, as he was asked about the terror threat to the UK after the death of Osama Bin Laden. The nation is on the highest possible alert level.
• Millions awarded to London More than £4m has been awarded to 13 London "biking boroughs" to improve routes for cyclists.
• Who will blink first in Tube battle?As strike dates are announced, Tom Edwards looks at the battle between the RMT and TfL
• Union confirms six Tube strikesSix Tube strikes are to be held in May and June as drivers walk out in support of two sacked colleagues.

Financial Times

• Alstom to halve dividend pay-outAlstom halved its annual dividend as the French transport and power conglomerate recorded a 62 per cent drop in profits when it reported full-year results.

The Guardian

• Tube strike looms for London commuters Train drivers' union RMT calls walkouts across two weeks, starting 16 May and 13 June, over sacking of two drivers
• Daniel Moylan: the politics of streetscapes [blog]Tory approaches to urban street design and management express eloquently the libertarian strand of Conservatism. A dislike for traffic signals, guard rails and the segregation of different kinds of streets-users - cyclists, motorists, pedestrians - articulates a wider argument that too much regulation erodes personal responsibility, discourages social negotiation and in seeking to lessen risk ends up increasing it

The Herald

• Ryanair cuts send passenger numbers down at PrestwickPRESTWICK Airport suffered an 11% annual fall in passenger numbers after no-frills carrier Ryanair slashed capacity last year at the Ayrshire hub, it emerged yesterday.
• Stagecoach shares slide after analyst downgradeSHARES in rail and transport group Stagecoach shed 3.4% yesterday after analysts signalled that the company™s valuation was starting to look rich.

The Independent

• Fly me to the shops: Sky cars are finally available When US company Terrafugia unveils the prototype of its new car this July the $200,000 price tag will probably barely be mentioned. Not because this is a car to rival a Ferrari, but because it is one to soar above it.

The Scotsman

• Airport to land up in court over buses row The council-owned bus firm will today go to the Court of Session in a bid to prevent airport bosses putting out to tender the right to pick up passengers from directly outside.

The Telegraph

• Boris Johnson: Tube union bosses are out of their minds [video]Mayor of London Boris Johnson and the RMT's Bob Crow lock horns over two weeks of planned strikes on the London Underground this summer.

Belfast Telegraph

• Honda recalls cars over air bag alert Honda wants to check the driver's air bags on 833, vehicles for a possible defect. Related StoriesAer Lingus buy-out rumours scotched by officialsUS newspapers see circulation fallUK mortgage lending plunges by 60%Virgin call centre closure to cost 500 jobsNI Water fined £2,000 for pollution
• Aer Lingus buy-out rumours scotched by officialsThe Irish Department of Finance has dismissed rumours that it has been approached by a consortium of investors interested in acquiring the government's 25% stake in Aer Lingus.Related StoriesFirst-time buyers save for five yearsUS newspapers see circulation fallUK mortgage lending plunges by 60%Virgin call centre closure to cost 500 jobsNI Water fined £2,000 for pollution

Bristol Live

• New tram vision for the future: Bristol streets could see 'Ultra Light Rail' network A PIONEERING tram system has been revealed which could provide a key to beating Bristol's daily traffic congestion.

Derby Telegraph

• Bus income is up despite passenger numbers fallA COMPANY which provides bus services in the Derby area has increased its income despite falling passenger numbers caused by the economic downturn. Arriva's UK bus division has increased revenues by 1% over the past 12 months. The firm said that managing costs, including matching the frequency of services with demand, had helped it achieve a positive result. But Arriva has warned that it faces further financial pressures this year, including the rising cost of fuel and the impact of the Government's spending cuts on concessionary fairs. In February, the company put up the majority of single fa...

Edinburgh Evening News

• Swinney: I set up tram talks FINANCE Secretary John Swinney has said it was his idea for tram bosses to hold mediation talks with contractors.

Metro

• New York picks Nissan to supply new fleet of yellow cabsNissan has been chosen to provide the next generation of New York yellow cabs, major Michael Bloomberg has announced.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Cameras will be brought in to monitor safety-plea junctionA traffic safety survey is to start soon at a Highland trunk road junction described as a fatal accident waiting to happen.

The York Press

• 500 sign petition on Selby bus service cutbacks A PETITION to save a Selby bus service which has been signed by more than 500 people has been presented to transport bosses.

Yorkshire Post

• David Begg: High-speed line too important to be derailed IF Yorkshire and the North does not step up and make a strong case for high-speed rail, I fear that this once-in-a-generation opportunity to re-draw the economic map of Britain will be wasted.
• End of free bus passes for resort pensionersTOURISM leaders have voiced their disappointment after concessionary fares on bus services serving Yorkshire’s most popular seaside resort are due to be ditched.

Blackpool Gazette

• Rail link revival backingA GROUP trying to re-open the Poulton to Fleetwood rail link has won the backing of the Government’s railways minister Teresa Villiers.

Other Regional Press

• 'Overwhelming' support for Newburgh train station's reopening It may have been closed for more than 50 years, but support for the reopening of a Fife railway station is "overwhelming," campaigners claim.
• Plug pulled on Kenilworth train station agreement CAMPAIGNERS for a new train station in Kenilworth have vowed to keep lobbying after the plug was pulled on a key agreement to build it.
• Protest at charges prompts bus u-turnPARENTS with disabled children over the age of 16 will now pay a maximum of £600 a year for school transport after a policy u-turn by Northamptonshire County Council.
• Ticketing glitch fixed as buses return to normalA technical fault that prevented First bus drivers in Glasgow from issuing tickets to passengers will never happen again.
• Fury as firm makes bus-pass pensioners pay fares up frontA bus firm has sparked fury from passengers by charging pensioners with free bus passes in a row with the Government over payments.
• Commuters 'helpless' after rail vandals escape justice in Coventry and Warwickshire JUST a handful of people have been charged with vandalising railway lines in Coventry and Warwickshire despite commuters enduring months of misery on delayed trains.

Campaign for Better Transport

• Young people™s video competition goes live! 4 May: If you are a young person and you want to talk about why buses are important to you or what you want bus services to be like in the future, now is the chance to get your voice heard. read more

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Network Rail plans to create new freight director role In June 2011, the infrastructure agency will create a new network operations function led by Robin Gisby to replace operations and customer services, which will include the freight director.
• JMP Studies Electric Car Charging Points Transport planner JMP is undertaking a study into the introduction of electric car charging points on behalf of the London Borough of Newham.
• Mobile ticketing 'to take off by 2015' An estimated half a billion people around the world will use their mobile phones to access bus and metro services by 2015.

The Business Desk

• Revenues on right road at National Express GROUP revenues have climbed by 5% at Birmingham-based bus and rail operator National Express, the firm reports today.

Aviation Industry

• US Airways traffic and revenue trends riseUS Airways Group Inc. said Wednesday that April traffic rose 4.5 percent and, after several fare increases, a key revenue measurement grew by six percent over last year.
• A pound a puffBelfast International airport has started to charge passengers a £1 fee should they wish to have a smoke before taking their flight.
• Virgin Australia takes flightAussie domestic carrier Virgin Blue has rebranded as Virgin Australia

Other News Sources

• Rail passengers 'missing out' on ticket discounts Train travellers could be missing out on big savings by leaving it to the last minute to buy their tickets, new research shows.
• TV presenter experiences first week of electric driving

News from Europe

• Act now on peak oil or curtail mobility, says Commission The European Commission's director-general for transport and mobility policy has warned at a conference on peak oil that it would be a "fatal mistake" for the EU to postpone measures to reduce oil dependency.
• EU accused of hampering airport security In the wake of Osama Bin Laden's death, EU policymakers and the security industry have stepped up the debate on risk detection in airports, revealing security gaps they say have been caused by bad regulation.