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Thursday, 15 September 2011

BBC News

• Edinburgh trams: Ministers to help finish project Scottish ministers have stepped in to help run Edinburgh's troubled tram project, to ensure its completion.
• Tougher L-test 'could cut jams'A tougher driving test and more use of real-time traffic information could help tackle congestion and delays on the roads, MPs say.
• London travel fares to rise by 7%The Mayor of London Boris Johnson confirms that fares across the capital's transport network will rise by an average of 7% in the new year.
• Bus firm fined over worker injuryA Falkirk bus builder is fined £50,000 after a worker was injured by a steel platform which slipped while being lifted into position.

Financial Times

• Hapag-Lloyd IPO blocked by shareholder splitThe general manager of the consortium that owns a majority of the container shipping lines rules out the €3bn flotation for the coming year
• FirstGroup finance chief moving to AholdJeff Carr, who joined the UK bus and train operator in 2009, will leave in November and hand over the business to an interim manager
• Ryanair steps up Aer Lingus confrontationEurope's leading low-cost airline has demanded that the Irish flag-carrier in which it has a 29.8% stake pay a special dividend to shareholders

The Guardian

• Has Salford solved the problem of leaves on the line? Bright academics seek partner from industry for mutual benefit and faster trains
• Bus company asks Mormons to leave passengers alone The polite request comes as Stagecoach customers in Lancaster complain of being targeted by missionaries
• London transport fares to rise 7% next year, says Boris Johnson Mayor's rivals attack fourth consecutive annual rise above rate of inflation for bus and tube users
• Greenpeace's 40 years of activism prepare us for our greatest threat We have a long way to go if we are to protect the planet from climate change, the great environmental battle of our age

The Herald

• Holyrood tram role THE Scottish Government is to play a hands-on role for the first time in four years in Edinburgh’s crisis-hit tram project in an attempt to get it back on track.
• Finance chief at FirstGroup exits for Ahold roleABERDEEN-based bus and rail company FirstGroup is losing its finance director Jeff Carr to Dutch supermarket group Ahold and has promoted Vernon Barker to head a trains business which includes ScotRail.

The Scotsman

• SNP takes charge of stricken city tram project THE Scottish Government has stepped in to effectively take control of Edinburgh's troubled tram project. Ministers confirmed they would now oversee the long-delayed scheme and bring in their own experts to try to get the trams running by 2014.
• Tougher L-test could be jam-busterA tougher driving test and more use of real-time traffic information could help curb road congestion, according to MPs.

The Telegraph

• MPs call for tougher driving test to ease road congestion The driving test should be made tougher to ease congestion, an all-party committee of MPs has said.

Daily Record

• How dare Alex Salmond call me 'one of the most disliked people in Scotland'? I'm just standing up for my rights The SNP leader also accused RoadSense chairman William Walton of
• Jet2.com to create 50 new jobs with Glasgow Airport expansion The company will have a third aeroplane based at the airport from summer next year to increase capacity on its flights.
• Edinburgh's beleaguered tram project to be taken in hand by Scottish Government THE Scottish Government is stepping in to oversee the capital's troubled trams project despite its long-standing opposition.

Mail Online

• Traffic jams and road rage could be eased by tougher driving tests, MPs claim Making driving tests tougher could help ease traffic jams clogging up roads across Britain, MPs claim.

ATOC

• People from all backgrounds travel by train In response to Philip Hammond's comments about the affordability of rail travel,...

Network Rail

• MAJOR WORKS STARTS ON DARTFORD STATION UPGRADE

Liverpool Post

• Merseytravel chairman Mark Dowd branded a bully by Liberal Democrat MEP Chris Davies over credit card row THE chairman of transport authority Merseytravel has been branded a bully for threatening to sue a fellow councillor.

London Evening Standard

• These fare rises are a tax on London The only thing to be said for the Mayor's admission that public transport costs will soar next year is that we are already hardened to the prospect. Transport for London made clear that its formula for raising fares is inflation, or RPI, plus two per cent.

Metro

• Tube, train and bus fares in London to rise 7% in 2012Bus and tube fares in the capital are to soar by a substantial seven per cent next year, the mayor of London has confirmed.
• Ryanair debit card launched as only way of avoiding airline surchargesBudget airline Ryanair is to force all its passengers to use its own branded debit card - or incur extra fees of £48 for a family of four.

Sheffield Star

• Clegg pledges improvements to transport infrastructureDEPUTY Prime Minister and Sheffield Hallam MP Nick Clegg has revealed the Government is pushing ahead with 40 large infrastructure projects across the country in a bid to get the economy moving.

The York Press

• 'Scandalous' road sign clutter in York comes under fire CONSERVATION chiefs have attacked the ˜scandalous™ proliferation of roadsigns in some parts of York, singling out a new 20mph zone in Fishergate for special criticism.

Yorkshire Post

• Include Yorkshire in fuel discount trial, urges leading ToryMINISTERS are facing fresh calls to help motorists in remote parts of North Yorkshire struggling with high fuel prices.

Blackpool Gazette

• £5m transport scheme turned down BATTLE lines have been drawn up in a plan to fight for passengers after a £5m bid to revolutionise travel on the Fylde coast was turned down. The scheme to change the way people in Blackpool use public transport had been the subject of a Government cash bid.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Suffolk: MPs demand rail improvementsA NEW call to improve East Anglia’s rail network has today been launched by MPs from across the region.

The Shields Gazette

• Why are rules different? WHILE the thought of job losses is bad news for all those involved, whether it be in Hebburn or Derby, there are things that need addressing. Siemens had already decided to close Trench UK because of market conditions and move any work to its Cologne factory.

Other Regional Press

• Arriva never wanted service to work claims councillorARRIVA never wanted the controversial pilot bus service between Whitby, Sleights and Robin Hood’s Bay to work, claims a local councillor.
• Commuter chaos after train power problemsBuses replace Southeastern trains between Dover Priory and Ashford International.
• Rail firms blasted as Scots trains run lateThe rail regulator has expressed œserious concern about declining levels of train punctuality, with performance in Scotland falling faster than elsewhere in the UK.

Global Rail News

• Regulator expresses concern over railway performanceThe Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) has expressed concern over ‘continuing performance problems’ across Great Britain™s rail network. Latest performance figures published today in the Network ...
• Brighton station installs new bicycle rack for passengersCycle-Works of Winchester has installed a new Josta two-tier rack bicycle rack at the front of Brighton station. The racks are safe and easy to use ...
• Half of commuters ˜worried Tube won™t cope™ during OlympicsWith the London Underground criticised this week for low performance by the London Assembly, British confidence in the Tube™s ability to cope ahead of the Olympics ...
• Work nears completion on Taunton bridgeA landmark Taunton bridge is a step closer to fully reopening after improvement work on half its structure was completed. Network Rail is spending £300,000 on ...
• Mayor of London confirms transport fares increase for 2012The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, today confirmed that from January 2012 fares on London’s Tubes, Buses, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway (DLR) and Trams will ...
• Warwickshire County Council agrees plans for new rail linkWarwickshire County Council has ‘rubber-stamped’ proposals for a multi-million pound upgraded rail link between Nuneaton and Coventry. The full council has agreed the plans for a ...
• Southern installs new ticket machines across south London networkAs part of a £3.1m investment to install an additional 156 new ticket machines at its stations by the end of Jan 2012, train operator Southern ...
• Ministers to oversee final delivery of Edinburgh tramsThe Scottish Government has today announced that it will help oversee the final delivery of the Edinburgh trams project. Ministers have also confirmed that the remaining ...
• South West Trains™ graduates complete training programmeSouth West Trains’ graduate managers have successfully completed the train operating company’s graduate development programme this week. Graduates Sam Woolley, Rachel Vardy and Joe Parish successfully ...
• Major work starts on Dartford station upgradeDartford MP, Gareth Johnson, and the leader of Dartford Borough Council, Jeremy Kite, joined Network Rail, Southeastern and the Homes & Community Agency to mark the ...
• Terence Watson appointed Managing Director of Alstom Transport™s UK and Ireland businessAs of 15th September, Terence Watson will be responsible for the region™s market and product strategy, its consolidated P&L and business development, sales, oversight of project ...

Railnews

• Hammond admits rail fare comments were 'flippant' The transport secretary has suggested to a committee of MPs that railways are only affordable, in the main, by people who are better off, prompting immediate protests. Philip Hammond was giving evidence to the House of Commons Transport Select Committee inquiry into High Speed 2, when he was questioned about the likely level of fares on the future line.

Aviation Industry

• Comment following Ryanair announcementComment on the announcement by Ryanair of their intention to pull their Aberdeen to Dublin service:
• Responding to the Government’s climate report and looking for solutions on noiseThis is another one-month update, to allow for the end of summer, before returning to fortnightly bulletins. The big news for us has been the delayed publication of the Government™s response to the Committee on Climate Change report on aviation emissions. AEF provided early comment, which was used by campaigners and quoted by Flight International [...]
• Easyjet to rent out TVsPersonal TVs will be available on selected flights for £7.50

Other News Sources

• £465 penalty for East Lancashire rail fare cheatsRAIL fare dodgers across East Lancashire have been hit with a £465 reminder of why they need to buy a ticket in future.
• News from Caroline Pidgeon: Four years of fare misery under Boris JohnsonCaroline Pidgeon, leader of the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Group, commenting on Boris Johnson™s fare proposals for 2012, which he confirmed today will be set at RPI plus 2 per cent said: "This is the fourth year of fare misery that Londoners will face under Boris Johnson.
• News from John Biggs: John Welcomes New Bus Services For StratfordLocal London Assembly member, John Biggs, has today welcomed the announcement by TfL that four routes will now stop at Stratford. They are route 97 from Chingford, Walthamstow and Leyton, route 241 from Custom House and Plaistow, route 339 from Shadwell and Old Ford, and route D8 from the Isle of Dogs and Bow will all serve the new bus station. 360-house-thumb.jpg Yes read more