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

Wednesday, 16 November 2011

BBC News

• Checks relaxed at Cardiff AirportCardiff Airport was among 28 locations where passport checks were relaxed under a pilot scheme, it emerges.
• Rhyl harbour project gets £500kCouncillors vote to spend £500,000 on Rhyl's Foryd Harbour project after a confidential report reveals a rise in costs.
• Ship fire 20-hour wait criticisedPoor onshore co-ordination meant passengers had to wait up to 20 hours before getting off a ferry after a fire broke out, an accident report says.
• Ex-borders chief: I'm no rogueThe ex-head of the UK border force Brodie Clark tells a committee of MPs he
• Fuel duty hike 'must be scrapped'The government should scrap a planned increase in fuel duty to help
• MOT tests to have 22 new checksTwenty-two extra checks will be carried out on cars during MOT tests through changes which are to come into effect next year.
• Review follows cycle route deathsThe layout of a junction in east London is to be reviewed after the deaths of two cyclists in three weeks.
• Rural fuel discount due in springA special discount on the cost of fuel for people who live in remote island communities will be in place by spring next year, a Scottish MP promises.

Financial Times

• EasyJet to begin trials on seat allocationBudget airline bows to protracted campaign from founder with £195m in dividend pay-outs
• American Airlines in new approach to pilotsCarrier keen to bring five years of negotiations to an end and address investor fears that high labour costs are crippling its operations
• Qatar humiliates Airbus, then places $6.4bn orderAirline accuses aircraft maker of 'still learning how to make airplanes' before unveiling order for 55 of the new A320 Neo planes
• Ryanair renews call for Aer Lingus meetingBudget airline sends second letter in two weeks for an emergency general meeting at the Irish flag carrier to vote on two resolutions
• Stagecoach cuts school bus sideThe UK public transport group is reducing its exposure to the US school bus market in favour of its higher-margin intercity coach business

The Guardian

• Smoking in cars should be outlawed to protect children, says BMABritish Medical Association urges ministers to extend ban on smoking in public places introduced in 2007 to all vehiclesSmoking should be banned in cars to protect drivers and passengers “ especially children “ from breathing in toxins far worse than those found in smoky bars, the nation's doctors have demanded.The British Medical Association (BMA) is urging ministers across the UK to extend the ban on smoking in public places introduced in 2007 to all vehicles in a further effort to protect people's health.Children are at particular risk from secondhand smoke in cars because they take in more...

The Herald

• Train misery coming down the tracks for passengersRAIL passengers could see fare increases soaring ahead of inflation, longer journeys on certain routes and be forced to stand for lengthy periods as part of a major overhaul of Scotland™s railways.
• Alcohol could be banned on Scots trainsPASSENGERS could be banned from drinking alcohol on all ScotRail trains from 2014 in a bid to cut down on anti-social behaviour.

The Scotsman

• Higher fares, longer journeys, fewer stations: blueprint for ScotRail 2014 COMMUTERS could face fare hikes and longer journeys to work under proposals put forward in a consultation on the future of rail travel in Scotland.

The Telegraph

• Motion to take action on fuel duty passed by House of CommonsHouse of Commons calls on Government to take action over proposed rises in fuel taxes that could
• Drivers should not count on fuel duty cuts, says CableMotorists should not to expect

Daily Express

• BUSIER TRAINS, FEWER SEATS AND LONGER JOURNEYS...BUT YOU’LL STILL HAVE TO PAY MORE SCOTS commuters face higher rail fares for fewer and more overcrowded trains, under controversial plans unveiled yesterday.

Birmingham Mail

• Transport Secretary to meet MPs on HS2MINISTERS will try to head off a rebellion against controversial plans for a new high-speed rail line between London and Birmingham at a meeting with MPs next week.

Derby Telegraph

• Derby Telegraph commented Critical time ahead in the battle to save BombardierArticle
• Derby Telegraph commented Bombardier secures £15m contractArticle

Liverpool Post

• Steve Rotheram, Labour MP for Walton calls for fuel duty to be cut when petrol prices riseFUEL duty must be cut when the price of petrol rises, Liverpool MP Steve Walton will demand today.
• Liverpoool £210m River Mersey terminal to go ahead after dredging permission givenLIVERPOOL’S new £210m River Mersey terminal is set to go ahead, after port bosses secured vital investment to dredge the Mersey.

London Evening Standard

• Tube chief: Driverless trains are safe and staff must accept themThe managing director of London Underground says trains without drivers are perfectly safe
• BMA wants smoking in cars bannedSmoking in your car should be against the law, doctors have told the Government.
• Osborne under pressure on fuel costChancellor George Osborne is under pressure from the Commons to hold down fuel prices.

The York Press

• Stamford Bridge railway line concerns RESIDENTS in Stamford Bridge clashed at a packed public meeting to discuss the campaign to restore a railway line between York and Beverley.

Bucks Free Press

• Thousands of parents to be charged for school bus travel THOUSANDS of parents will have to start paying for their children™s school bus travel in a move that could save a council £1.4m.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Rail firm moves east coast control centreNEW management has been brought in to control Peterborough’s railway lines.

Other Regional Press

• Independence ˜may kill off shipbuilding™COALITION ministers and Labour MPs have united in a renewed attack on the SNP by claiming independence would kill Scotland™s shipbuilding industry, with the loss of tens of thousands of jobs.
• £15.2m deal to keep trains in top shapeSCOTRAIL has awarded a £15.2 million support contract to a German-based firm.
• Passport rules secretly relaxed at Aberdeen Airport PASSPORT controls were secretly relaxed at Aberdeen Airport.

Campaign for Better Transport

• Save our Buses and our CEO Stephen Joseph recognised for promoting low carbon travel15 November: Last night, at the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership awards, our Save our Buses campaign won runner up for ˜Low carbon initiative 2011™ and our CEO Stephen Joseph won ˜Outstanding individual in prompting low carbon transport™. A big thanks to all our supporters and local campaigners; we could not have done it without you. read more
• The Kingskerswell bypass could cause gridlock in TorbayA new report shows that the knock-on effects of new traffic have been ignored by the County Council™s modelling. read more

Global Rail News

• Gateshead site given go-ahead for Network Rail™s new maintenance centreNetwork Rail and 3R Land & Property have been granted planning permission to develop the brownfield site on Askew Road, Gateshead “ creating jobs and regenerating ...
• Alex Hynes appointed Go-Ahead™s new Managing Director “ Rail DevelopmentAlex Hynes, Commercial Director of London Midland has been appointed Go-Ahead™s Managing Director – Rail Development Alex succeeds Patrick Verwer, who has been appointed Managing Director ...
• UK Rail Reform: Secretary of State for Transport to shake up Network Rail?Our railways are currently the most expensive in Europe. That is something we can and must tackle. The recent review by Sir Roy McNulty found scope to cut rail costs by 30 per cent – up to £1bn a year. My department is committed to working with the rail industry to develop a strategy to deliver a better value railway for the benefit of passengers, taxpayers and the wider economy.
• Rail Freight Group welcomes ˜landmark arrival™ of DB Schenker™s HS1 serviceThe Rail Freight Group (RFG) has warmly welcomed the arrival of DB Schenker™s first regular continental gauge train to use High Speed 1, the first freight ...
• Network Rail infrastructure has now been devolvedThe day-to-day running of Britain™s railway infrastructure has been devolved to ten strategic routes. Each route will have its own management team to operate, maintain and ...
• QTS “ Value EngineeringQTS have had an extremely successful year operating both as a sub-contractor on many large rail projects and increasingly as a Network Rail Principal Contractor. This ...
• Virgin Trains™ Paddy Fitzsimons wins National RailStaff Award for Outstanding Customer ServiceVirgin Trains™ Train Manager Paddy Fitzsimons has won the 2011 National RailStaff Award for Outstanding Customer Service after he got a customer home for Christmas last ...

Railnews

• Villiers visit disappoints Derby demonstrators A visit to Derby by the transport minister Theresa Villiers has disappointed people in the city, because she gave no undertakings about more work for the Bombardier train-building works at Litchurch Lane.

Aviation Industry

• Emirates to serve Heathrow with third A380Three of the airline's five daily flights will be operated using a superjumbo from January

Other News Sources

• P&O re-registers two ferries in Bahamas to dodge employment rightsMaritime union RMT today reacted with fury to news that two Hull-based P&O ferries are being re-registered in the Bahamas in a bid to save money.
• Wellington Airport results, developments and awards for the six months ended 30 September 2011Wellington Airport, recognised as the best in Australasia at the 2011 World Travel Awards, achieved earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and fair value adjustments (EBITDAF),...
• QANTAS THANKS ITS MOST LOYAL CUSTOMERSQantas today announced a range of special offers for its most loyal customers to thank them for their support throughout the recent period of industrial action. Selected Qantas Frequent Flyers ...
• AirAsia Indonesia Unveils Green Home at 'Eco-Friendly' Terminal 3, Soekarno Hatta International AirportAirAsia Indonesia unveiled its sophisticated green home at Terminal 3, Soekarno Hatta International Airport in Jakarta yesterday. The state-of-the-art terminal, which formerly housed only...
• A vision of the futureLord Norman Foster™s proposals for a new airport in the Thames Estuary have grabbed the headlines, but his vision for the future of transport in the UK doesn™t stop there. Sara Turner reports...