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

Thursday, 04 October 2012

BBC News

• Minister Keith Brown given 'no notice' on scrapping of rail deal - Audio ClipThe Scottish government's Transport Secretary Keith Brown said he was not informed by the UK government that the new West Coast Main Line franchise had been scrapped.
• What derailed the Transport Department In awarding a contract to run a public service, such as a railway, there is a balance to be struck between making the contract long enough to encourage serious investment and not so long that the forecasts built into bids for the contract become highly speculative.
• Pupil hit by bus on disputed school walking route A girl has been hit by a school bus on a Leicestershire walk-to-school route - on the same day the county council was criticised for removing free transport.
• Isles of Scilly transport has 'significant hurdles' The uncertainty over transport links to the Isles of Scilly has to be resolved soon, according to the council's transport chairman.
• Drivers 'should be made to learn for a year' People should spend at least a year learning to drive, say insurers who are calling for an overhaul of the system.
• VIDEO: West Coast Main Line deal scrappedSir Richard Branson has declared the franchise bidding process for the West Coast Main Line a
• VIDEO: Miliband criticises rail 'fiasco'The bidding process for the West Coast Main Line franchise is a
• What future for privatised rail?The collapse of the West Coast rail franchise raises questions about the future of privatised railways and government policy.
• Talks plea over ditched rail dealScotland's transport minister says he wants an urgent meeting with the UK government over the
• Cycling routes to get £6m revampScotland's cycle path network is to get £6m revamp, which will include improvements to the Land's End to John O'Groats route.
• John O'Groats Airport takes offWick Airport is being renamed Wick John O'Groats Airport to mark its proximity to the UK's most northerly mainland settlement.
• Flaws scupper rail franchise dealThree civil servants are suspended after flaws in the bidding process for the UK's West Coast rail franchise will see it re-run at a cost of at least £40m.
• Strike paralyses Belgian railwaysA 24-hour strike over rail sector reform paralyses the network in Belgium, including high-speed services to London and Paris.
• Petrol sales suffer 'huge drop'Sales of petrol and diesel on UK forecourts fell significantly in the spring despite cheaper prices at the pumps.
• Easyjet sees post-Olympics boostA post-Olympics surge in the number of UK holiday makers heading abroad means Easyjet now expects to report higher-than-expected profits.
• Rail bidding a 'fiasco' - BransonSir Richard Branson says the bidding for the West Coast Main Line franchise had been a

Department for Transport

• West Coast Main Line franchise competition cancelled “ updateFurther details about suspensions in relation to the cancellation of the West Coast Main Line franchise competition.

Financial Times

• Coalition accused of ineptitude and wasteNew minister, appointed to help defuse another transport row over whether to expand Heathrow, faces baptism of fire
• Delays ahead: rail franchising in disarrayThe collapse of the government™s West Coast contract throws into question the whole system of rail franchising
• Three suspended over West Coast fiascoGovernment has suspended three civil servants involved in the flawed West Coast rail franchise contest as it investigates the mistakes
• EasyJet lifts guidance despite pressuresLow-cost carrier flags cost challenges ahead, including a bigger fuel bill, negative foreign exchange movements and higher airport charges
• A train accidentFailed West Coast bid leaves rail franchising in disarray and has wasted a huge amount of public money at a time of austerity
• Apology long time coming, says BransonEntrepreneur appears vindicated on his core complaint: that the Department for Transport incorrectly assessed the risks of FirstGroup™s bid
• How West Coast deal hit buffersMcLoughlin has to rip up a central plank of government rail policy, and sets off a chain of events that sends shockwaves through the industry
• Ministers accused of using rail scapegoatsThree officials were suspended in fiasco over West Coast main line franchise that could cost taxpayers millions of pounds
• Franchise delay hits FirstGroup sharesConcerns about company™s balance sheet and strategy resurface after transport secretary orders reviews of bidding process for West Coast mainline
• Heathrow crash-landing case settledSixty-five passengers and crew of a British Airways flight from Beijing in 2008 have agreed an out-of-court deal with Boeing and Rolls-Royce

The Guardian

• Virgin Rail back on track in west coast shamblesFirstGroup takeover of west coast line halted and three senior civil servants suspended, as taxpayers pick up £40m billThe Department for Transport has been left reeling after three senior civil servants were suspended over the collapse of the west coast main line franchise deal, leaving Britain's most lucrative train service in limbo and Sir Richard Branson's Virgin group triumphantly vindicated.Shortly after midnight on Wednesday, the government was forced to concede that serious flaws meant the competition to operate the west coast line would have to be re-run, less than two months after Fi...

The Herald

• Key dates in the saga1997: Virgin Rail, a joint venture between Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Trains and Stagecoach, begins running the West Coast Main Line.
• System to blame for fiasco over train franchiseIT was a humiliating day for a Coalition Government that had promised to overhaul the rail franchising system and end years of micro-management under Labour.
• Rail network in crisis after franchise debacleBRITAIN'S railway system has been plunged into one of its worst crises since privatisation after a

The Scotsman

• West Coast rail franchise analysis: Economics bound to run out of steamSIR Richard Branson built his business empire placing big stakes on sometimes unlikely runners.
• West Coast rail franchise Q and AEmbarrassing franchise U-turn likely to see heads roll, but for weary rail passengers it’s just business as usual

The Telegraph

• Scrapping West Coast Main Line deal 'will cost £40 million'Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin confirms the West Coast Main Line rail deal has been scrapped after contract flaws were discovered.
• Heads should roll after this rail bid debacleTelegraph View: If a blunder of this proportion had occurred in the private sector, the consequences would be very different
• Why the West Coast franchise is a great Whitehall railway disasterMinisters and mandarins must work together to avoid repeating the rail fiasco, says Sue Cameron
• Britain's rail system faces chaos after West Coast rail franchise pulled over Whitehall 'mistakes'Britain's rail system could be plunged into chaos after ministers cancelled the awarding of one of the UK's biggest rail franchises and put a halt on three more.

Press Association

• Johnson to attack aviation policy London Mayor Boris Johnson is set to risk the wrath of Prime Minister David Cameron by highlighting "unnecessary" delays in formulating aviation policy. Mr Johnson is expected to repeat calls for his Thames Estuary airport scheme, dubbed "Boris island".

Reuters News

• Government scraps flawed rail deal in embarrassing U-turnLONDON (Reuters) - The government has torn up a deal awarding one of its biggest rail franchises to a private operator, in a humiliating U-turn that raises doubts about the government's handling of the privatised railways.

Daily Express

• £5.5bn rail line deal is axed over ’flaws'THE competition to run the West Coast Main Line has been cancelled after the Government admitted getting its figures wrong.

Mail Online

• Maps show how London's Tube network has expanded and changed over the past centuryFascinating maps have emerged that show the evolution of the London Underground from the early chaotic diagrams in 1919 to the ones commuters use today.
• West Coast Main Line: Ministers dodge the blame as it emerges rail line shambles will cost us £100mIn an embarrassing U-turn – announced one minute after midnight – Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin (pictured) scrapped the 15-month bidding process to run trains between London and Glasgow.
• West Coast rail deal: Labour urges PM to axe the minister in charge of bid as aides insist she 'acted properly at all times'Former Transport Secretary Justine Greening's refusal to follow up concerns about the West Coast Main Line bidding process should cost her her job, says Labour MP Graham Stringer.

The Mirror

• Hitting the buffers: Government must abandon East Coast line privatisationPassengers and staff deserve reassurances about the future of the West Coast Main Line service

This is Money

• Scrap road tax and hit big car buyers with one-off tax, says think-tankThe controversial plans would hit those who buy new larger or more powerful vehicles hard, such as adding £23k to an Aston Martin, but end annual road tax renewal.
• West Coast rail deal: Refunds to Virgin and FirstGroup will cost taxpayer £40mAfter ministers last night sensationally cancelled their decision to take the London to Glasgow mainline from Virgin and hand it to FirstGroup, the Government admitted the taxpayer will foot a bill of £40million - before the costs of reviewing and re-running the bidding process.
• FTSE CLOSE: FirstGroup plunges after Whitehall debacle dashes West Coast hopesTransport giant FirstGroup lost more than a fifth of its stock market value today after an embarrassing Government u-turn dealt a blow to its hopes of running the West Coast franchise.

ATOC

• Train companies respond to DfT franchising announcementResponding to today’s DfT announcement, Michael Roberts, Chief Executive of the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) said: “The discovery of significant flaws in the DfT’...

Network Rail

• NETWORK RAIL INVITES BIDS FOR DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF CROSSRAIL WESTERN STATIONS

Belfast Telegraph

• We're on track, says FirstGroup The transport group that beat Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Rail to win the London to Scotland West Coast line expects to start as scheduled despite a legal challenge. Related StoriesUnion still smiling over Single Farm PaymentSorry demise of JJB could've been avoidedMerger stalls on better deal callUS display boosts plumber's profitsTV Dragon didn't have heart attack

Birmingham Post

• West Coast Main Line deal in disarray after DFT blundersFuture Government rail plans have been thrown completely off track after ministers scrapped a deal which would have seen Sir Richard Branson's train company lose its West Coast franchise, which connects London with cities in the West Midlands and the North West.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Major Bradford transport schemes could move a step closer Major transport schemes for the district which could be funded through a new £1billion West Yorkshire transport fund are to be discussed.

Liverpool Post

• West Coast main line deal scrapped in shock Government u-turnTHE future of the Liverpool to London rail line was today in disarray after an astonishing U-turn by transport ministers

London Evening Standard

• Virgin Trains' statement in fullHere is Virgin Trains' full statement after the Department for Transport's decision to cancel the West Coast franchise competition:
• FirstGroup's statement in fullHere is FirstGroup's statement after the Department for Transport's decision to cancel the West Coast franchise competition:
• Blog post by Sir Richard Branson Here is Sir Richard Branson's full blog post, put on the Virgin website:
• West Coast Mainline fiasco: Questions and AnswersIn a series of questions and answers, we examine what the Government's decision to scrap its West Coast franchise plans means for rail passengers and future rail policy.
• West Coast franchise fiasco by 'Pig headed government has cost taxpayers £40m', says unionTaxpayers were landed with a bill of at least £40 million today after the Government was forced into a humiliating U-turn on which operator runs the West Coast mainline.n Sir Richard Branson's train company lose its West Coast franchise.
• Three suspended in rail bid fiascoThree civil servants have been suspended after the Government was forced into a costly and embarrassing U-turn over the award of a new franchise for the West Coast main line.
• BAE boss 'set for merger windfall'The boss of defence giant BAE Systems stands to make £18 million almost overnight if the firm's controversial merger with Airbus aircraft manufacturer EADS goes ahead, it has been reported.

Manchester Evening News

• Franchise fiasco: 'Shambolic' government handling of West Coast bid will cost taxpayers £40mThe government has been accused of causing a train wreck after its 'shambolic' handling of the West Coast rail deal cost taxpayers £40m.

Metro

• McLoughlin 'forced to apologise to Richard Branson' after rail plan chaosTransport secretary Patrick McLoughlin has admitted he was forced to make a late night grovelling apology to Richard Branson. Richard Branson branded the government's rail plans 'insane' (Picture: Getty) Mr McLoughlin phoned Sir Richard, who was on business in New York, to concede that the Virgin boss had been right to launch a legal challenge against the government. On breakfast television the next morning, Mr McLoughlin accepted that the blunders over the bidding for the West Coast main line would never have come to light if Sir Richard had not fought against what he described as an ˜insane...
• Taxpayers to foot £40m bill for West Coast main line blunderTaxpayers will foot the £40million bill for cancelling the contract for Britain™s most lucrative rail line after civil servants got their sums wrong. The cost of the West Coast main line chaos is expected to be around £40m (Picture: EPA) The cost of reimbursing the four companies vying to run the West Coast main line was revealed today as transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin scrapped the bidding process. He admitted his department was ˜wholly and squarely™ to blame for the fiasco, which was put down to mistakes in calculating inflation and rises in passenger numbers. It was a victory for R...

Wales Online

• Cardiff news: Heath Park railway extension opponents take fight to councilOpponents fighting plans to extend a miniature railway track in a city park have taken their fight to the council as it prepares to rule on the project’s future.
• West Coast rail franchise - 'take Wales' trains out of private hands'The turmoil around the West Coast rail franchise has strengthened the case for Welsh trains to be taken out of private hands, campaigners claimed yesterday.WED

Yorkshire Post

• Calls to keep East Coast rail line in state hands after bidding fiascoLABOUR has demanded the main railway linking Yorkshire to London be left permanently in state-owned hands after the Government was forced into an embarrassing £40m U-turn over the award of a new franchise for the West Coast main line.

Bucks Free Press

• High Speed 2: MP wants review after West Coast Main Line errors MP CHERYL Gillan has called for an immediate review of High Speed 2's business case aftern the Government scrapped the multi-billion-pound West Coast Main Line rail deal.

Crewe Chronicle

• UK & World News: Three suspended in rail bid fiascoThree civil servants have been suspended after the Government was forced into a costly and embarrassing U-turn over the award of a new franchise for the West Coast main line.
• UK & World News: Statement due on rail deal fiascoHolyrood's Transport Minister is due to make a statement on the

East Anglian Daily Times

• East Anglia: Review could delay new regional rail franchiseTHE award of a new long-term contract to run rail services in East Anglia could be delayed following the Government’s decision to cancel the award of the West Coast main line franchise to FirstGroup.

Other Regional Press

• U-turn over rail services planTHE plan to re-shape rail services through Wigan has been scrapped.
• Western Morning News published Eagle swoops on Government rail debacleArticle
• Western Morning News published Blunder has rail deal on buffersArticle
• UK & World News: Statement due on rail deal fiascoHolyrood's Transport Minister is due to make a statement on the
• MP calls for halt in Kent rail franchise processA Kent MP has urged the government to put on hold the awarding of a new contract to run Kent's rail services - following the shock decision to pull another franchise.
• Buses to replace Huddersfield to Manchester trains during Stalybridge station worksRAIL passengers travelling between Huddersfield, Manchester and Leeds will face disruption because of improvement works at Stalybridge.

Global Rail News

• Network Rail plugs apprentice gapAt a time when the railway industry is still bemoaning the shortage of skilled workers, Network Rail is once again doing something about it. The company has just taken on another 190 apprentices to join its three-year programme, where they will train to become skilled maintenance engineering technicians, after the company received more than 6,500 [...]
• Branson welcomes scrapping of West Coast decision“From the moment we found out that FirstGroup had been made the preferred bidder with a completely unrealistic bid. We questioned the way the offers had been assessed, and asked Government to review and explain how it came to its decision. “We were convinced the process was flawed but despite our best efforts we were [...]
• FirstGroup Statement re West Coast Main Line franchiseWe were notified late last night that the Department for Transport (DfT) has apparently discovered significant technical flaws in the way their franchise process for the InterCity West Coast was conducted and have consequently cancelled the competition for this franchise. We understand the DfT has ordered two urgent independent inquiries into the West Coast competition [...]
• Alstom agrees maintenance contract with Kazakh RailwaysAlstom and Kazakh Railways subsidiary AO Locomotive have signed a 25-year contract for the maintenance and modernisation of 27 passenger locomotives. The 100 million euro contract is Alstom’s first in Kazakhstan. The KZ4ACs passenger electric locomotives run mainly between Astana and Almaty and have been in operation for three years. Alstom will provide maintenance in [...]
• Bidding opens for Crossrail stationsNetwork Rail is inviting bids for the design and construction of the 13 new stations to be built along the western section of the Crossrail route. New station buildings are required at Acton Main Line, Southall, West Ealing and Hayes & Harlington and a major renovation at Ealing Broadway including an enlarged ticket hall, new [...]
• Poll: Should the government reconsider Thameslink deal following West Coast error admission?Rail union RMT is calling for the government to ‘call to a halt’ the Thameslink deal with Siemens following the DfT’s announcement today that it will not be awarding the West Coast franchise to FirstGroup due to flaws in the process. We’re asking you, should the government reconsider the Thameslink deal following West Coast error [...]

Aviation Industry

• United to add extra Houston-Heathrow flight Third daily service on route will be introduced from March 2013
• Easyjet set to make record profitNo-frills carrier boosted by post-Olympics demand and low levels of disruption

Other News Sources

• Why Boris Johnson is against third Heathrow runway It is almost two years since Boris Johnson published a document calling for a new airport for London and he has consistently maintained his position since.
• RMT demands scrapping of Thameslink Siemens deal and investigation into relationship between DFT and train operators in wake of West Coast collapseRAIL UNION RMT today demanded that the Government call a halt to the 18 month long saga of the Siemens/Thameslink fleet contract after it emerged that it has been stitched together by the same group of Ministers and Government officials responsible for the collapse of the West Coast main line franchising deal.
• London Overground safety and security staff balloted for strike action in bullying disputeTRANSPORT UNION RMT confirmed today that security and safety staff employed by STM Security Group on London Overground services will be balloted for both strike action and action short of a strike this week in a dispute over bullying and an attempt to impose new terms and conditions.
• RMT on Govt West Coast humiliationReacting to government abandonment of west coast tendering RMT general secretary Bob Crow said;
• Blackburn MP Jack Straw backs drive to cut car accidents JACK Straw has backed a campaign to change how young people learn to drive to cut car accidents and injuries involving them.