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

Wednesday, 07 December 2011

BBC News

• Transport strategy to be unveiledA blueprint for the future of transport around Wales is expected to be published, against a backdrop of a 40% cut in infrastructure spending.
• Cows removed from busy train lineA large herd of cows is removed from the main line between Cardiff and Newport after earlier bringing trains to a standstill.
• High speed Scots rail link mootedThe SNP government is considering a high speed rail network for Scotland on condition UK politicians improve the line all the way to the border.
• Missiles hit motorway vehiclesA van's windscreen is smashed and a car roof damaged by large objects thrown from a footbridge over the M8 in West Lothian.
• VIDEO: New road and rail links announcedThe Scottish government announces plans to improve road and rail links and build other infrastructure projects.
• Weather warning for ice on roadsWarnings of rain, sleet and snow turning to ice overnight are issued by the Met Office.
• School bus winter costs revealedScotland's councils paid more than three-quarters of a million pounds for bus services which were cancelled because of winter weather.
• Heating for 'live' rail in winterThe government is spending £16m on heating conductor rails on south east train lines to help services run as smoothly as possible this winter.
• Airport tax will not be devolvedScottish airports say they are disappointed that control of air passenger duty will not be devolved to Holyrood for the moment.
• BA says air duty will hurt jobsBritish Airways (BA) has said it will take on fewer people next year as a result of the government's decision to continue with a planned rise in Air Passenger Duty.

Department for Transport

• Unnecessary bureaucracy cut as councils given new powers to redraw mapLocal authorities are being given greater control over how their roads appear on maps and satnav systems to help them to better direct traffic, Local Transport Minister Norman Baker announced today.
• Government boosts preparations to tackle severe weather and avoid winter travel miseryTransport Secretary Justine Greening announced today a £16m investment in third rail heating as part of a £38m programme to make sure the rail network is better prepared for severe bad weather this winter.
• Passengers to benefit from access improvements at stationsRail passengers are set to benefit from easier journeys at stations across the country after Rail Minister, Norman Baker, approved more than £37.5m of Government funding to make stations more easily accessible under a new Access for All Mid-Tier programme. Upgrades to the stations will include new lifts, ramps and raised œeasy access humps on platforms as well as new accessible toilets.

The Guardian

• Motorway attacks: police appeal for witnesses to Scottish incidentsHeavy objects dropped on to cars from motorway bridge in West Lothian following two similar attacks in EssexPolice have appealed for witnesses after heavy objects were dropped on to cars passing under a bridge on Scotland's busiest motorway. A woman was seriously injured in one of two similar incidents in England last week.The roof and windscreen of vehicles were badly damaged after heavy objects were dropped from a bridge over the motorway in West Lothian on Saturday and on Monday. None of the occupants were injured.A car was struck by a large object as it passed under the B792 Blackburn to B...

Daily Express

• Stelios's African airline on the runwayEASYJET founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou yesterday revealed his new Fastjet budget airline service was set to take off in Africa.

The Mirror

• British Airways to scrap 400 jobs over 8% rise in air dutyBRITISH Airways yesterday reacted ­furiously to George Osborne’s air fare tax hike – and admitted it would have to axe plans to create 400 British jobs next year because of it.
• Concrete thugs struck six times in one night on A12CONCRETE-throwing thugs dropped six deadly blocks in one night during a reign of terror on the same road as recent attacks.

ATOC

• Vast majority of passengers will be unaffected by Christmas improvement workThe vast majority of people travelling by train over the Christmas and New Year period should experience no disruption because of planned improvement works....

Network Rail

• MORE TRAINS AND FEWER BUSES THIS CHRISTMAS

Birmingham Mail

• HS2 decision is delayedPLANS for a £17billion high-speed rail line between London and Birmingham have been thrown into doubt after ministers announced they were delaying a decision.

Birmingham Post

• Bus service to replace trains over Christmas periodBuses will replace trains on some key routes in the West Midlands over the Christmas period, rail companies have announced.

Bristol Live

• Bristol Evening Post published MP's fresh call for M4 link roadArticle

Journal Live

• Newcastle Central Station facelift is given green lightCITY businesses are celebrating after ministers confirmed a £15m facelift for Newcastle's Central Station.

Manchester Evening News

• Snow and ice closes A57 Snake Pass for second day runningIce and snow have forced police to shut the A57 Snake Pass for the second time in two days. The A628 Woodhead Pass was still passable with care and traffic reports suggest the A6024 Woodhead Road between the Woodhead Pass and the A635 is very difficult.
• Audenshaw crossing protest raises the stakes in Metrolink tram ’detour’ rowFurious residents took to the road in a bid to shunt plans to build a raised Metrolink line.  A dozen protesters brought traffic to a standstill on Droylsden Road in Audenshaw by walking across a pedestrian crossing for more than an hour. The protesters claim transport bosses are forcing an elevated track on them as part of the Metrolink extension to Ashton under Lyne.

Metro

• British Airways puts off 400 jobs to pay for passenger taxA tax on air travellers will cost 400 planned jobs at British Airways. The airline will also be forced to delay plans to bring an extra plane into service after learning that air passenger duty (APD) will rise next year.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• New routes and 100 jobs at Newcastle AirportNEW flights from Newcastle Airport to the Mediterranean were announced by cut price airline Jet2 today.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Double delight as government commits to road schemes Plans to upgrade the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness road to dual carriageway will be completed by 2030 and cost about £3billion.

The York Press

• Drink-drivers warned in festive crackdown DRINK drivers who put other motorists™ lives at risk through œselfish stupidity will be targeted in an East Yorkshire festive road safety campaign.

Yorkshire Post

• High-speed rail link decision delayTRANSPORT Secretary Justine Greening has been urged not to allow further delays to a high-speed rail network after confirming she will put off a decision on whether to go ahead until the New Year.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Essex: Car hit as rock dropped on A12POLICE are today probing the latest horrifying instance of concrete or rock being thrown onto cars on the A12 in Essex.
• Stansted: Airport named as world™s third most punctual for departuresSTANSTED has been revealed as the world’s third most punctual airport for flight depatures in a new set of figures.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Rail firm™s winter vow to commutersRAIL passengers in Peterborough are being reassured by East Midlands Trains that the firm is prepared for the cold winter.

Other Regional Press

• Drink-drivers warned: 1 strike and your car™s outMOTORISTS caught driving more than three times the legal alcohol limit or refusing a breath test face having their car confiscated ¦ even if it is a first offence.
• Free bus travel offered in WarwickshireBUS firm Stagecoach are offering passengers an early Christmas present.
• Car drivers blamed for high bus fares in AberdeenCAR drivers have been blamed for increasing bus fares in Aberdeen, according to a report from transport chiefs.

Campaign for Better Transport

• Our village will be swallowed up in urban sprawl6 December: Richard from the Kingskerswell Alliance writes about his disappointment that Ministers have ignored the concerns of thousands of local people to fund the Kingskerswell Bypass... read more

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Designated driving scheme aims to boost festive road safetyAn initiative has been launched for this year's festive season that will reward designated drivers with free beverages.The government has unveiled the latest THINK! Christmas drink drive campaign for Christmas 2011, with efforts to boost road safety including radio advertising, posters and Facebook posts issuing reminders of the consequences of getting convicted of drink driving.As part of the awareness scheme, more than 8,000 pubs and student union bars are offering free soft drinks from December 9th 2011 through the Coca-Cola Designated Driver campaign.Roads minister Mike Penning sta...

Global Rail News

• Rail passengers to benefit from access improvements at stationsRail passengers are set to benefit from easier journeys at stations across the country after Rail Minister, Norman Baker, approved more than £37.5m of Government funding ...
• Leicester rail passengers to benefit from earlier morning serviceRail passengers in Leicester are set to benefit from an earlier morning train service providing improved connections to major northern cities including Sheffield, Manchester, Leeds, York ...

Aviation Industry

• Lightning grounds Qantas flights, stranding thousands of passengers Severe lightning storms at Perth, Western Australia, Tuesday brought Qantas’ (QF) operations to a halt for over 7 hr., stranding 18 planes on taxiways with nearly 2,000 passengers, while an estimated 5,000 passengers were stranded in the airline’s terminal. Altogether, 57 QF flights were affected. Safety provisions in QF baggage handlers’ and engineers’ labor contracts preclude working on the tarmac with lightning within 5 km. of the airport.

Other News Sources

• Multi Agency Response Team to continue monitoring travel response Transport Scotland™s Multi Agency Response Team (MART) will remain open until at least Friday night, Transport Minister Keith Brown announced today. Speaking after a meeting of the Scottish Government™s Resilience Room earlier today, Mr Brown said with more severe weather forecast for the rest of the week the opening hours of MART “ which involves the police, rail operators, road operating companies and the Met Office “ would be extended. read more
• Vehicle device feeds back real time driving data to motoristsEngineers have developed a black box for road vehicles that integrates a host of driving data, including fuel efficiency.
• Huge pothole payouts over car damage DRIVERS are getting payouts totalling hundreds of thousands of pounds because of the damage caused by potholes.
• At a glance: the schools and road closures in your areaFind all the information you need about travel disruption and school closures in your area with these links to local council and transport websites.
• Roads closed as snow hits regionFreezing temperatures make for treacherous driving conditions across Aberdeenshire and Moray.
• Scotland commits to high-speed rail extensionThe Scottish Government today earmarked up to £9bn of capital spending to extend England's planned high-speed rail link into Scotland.
• Vehicle operating costs track ahead of inflation says FTAThe high cost of fuel remains the biggest cause for concern amongst haulage operators, who are continuing to be squeezed by rising operating costs and pressure for earlier payment terms from suppliers, whilst facing downward pressure on haulage rates and lengthening payment terms from customers. The October 2011 update report of the Freight Transport Association™s Manager™s Guide to Distribution Costs 2011 calculates that, on average, vehicle operating costs for rigid, articulated and drawbar vehicles have risen by 6.2 per cent in the year to 1 October 2011 to reach an all-time high. The large...
• Herefordshire Council sets up 'gritter Twitter' page MOTORISTS can now be kept up to date on which roads are being gritted through social media.

News from Europe

• Electric car rental scheme hits Paris streets (News) Pay-as-you-drive electric car rentals are expected to help cut pollution and reduce traffic in Paris, as the new fleet of fully electric Autiolib’ vehicles hits the French capital. More »

Other Subscription Services

• Scots Government warms to high speed rail link Plans for a high speed rail link between Glasgow and the north west of England have been included in Scotland's new 20 year infrastructure investment plan.The strategy is the clearest indication yet...
• Infrastructure plan pledges to dual entire A9 A £3bn plus programme to provide dual carriageways linking all Scotland's cities forms part of a 20 year infrastructure plan published by the Scottish Government this week.Ministers have promised...