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

Wednesday, 05 December 2012

BBC News

• Metro rail for south east Wales task force appointed A task force is being set up to drive forward plans for a metro-style rail system in south east Wales.
• Task force to drive metro planA task force is being set up to drive forward plans for a metro-style rail system in south east Wales.
• Council publishes gritting mapsMaps showing which roads in a local authority's area get priority for snow clearing and gritting have been published online.
• New system to cut traffic jamsA motorway management system designed to ease congestion on the roads is launched in Fife.
• Borrowed £300m to complete A465A road-widening scheme for the Heads of the Valleys will finish on time as part of a £300m borrowing announcement by the Welsh government.
• Spending boost for London's roadsTransport bosses reveal they want to double the amount they will spend on improving London's roads over the next 10 years.
• Ryanair announces new city routesRyanair announces eight new flights from Edinburgh and Glasgow Prestwick airports to destinations across Europe.
• Disabled passengers in Darlington sue bus firm Arriva Disabled people in north-east England are being denied access to public transport because of discrimination by a bus company, a court hears.
• BA cutting 400 cabin crew jobsBritish Airways confirms that it is cutting 400 senior cabin crew positions on both its long and short-haul routes.
• Los Angeles port hit by strikeA strike at the port of Los Angeles enters a seventh day, disrupting the busiest shipping complex in the US.

Department for Transport

• Full speed ahead as government appoints new Director General to oversee HS2 David Prout to be Director General taking charge of the delivery of HS2. The government’s commitment to delivering a new national high speed rail network has been underlined by the appointment of a new Director General to oversee the crucial project.

Financial Times

• Heathrow neighbours gain noise respiteAirport management seeks to improve relations with neighbours by using targeted approach to route management to make noise more predictable
• Northgate still plans to deliver dividendVan rental group hit by UK and Spanish markets but it will pay out 1.3p a share in recognition of its cash generation and growth prospects

The Guardian

• No case for Gatwick airport expansion, says IAG's Willie Walsh Boss of British Airways' parent company tells MPs that airlines will only pay for expansion at Heathrow

The Herald

• Climate experts' inaction warningThe pace of progress in cutting global greenhouse gas emissions is recklessly slow, experts have warned.
• Airline's new routes help lift the gloom at PrestwickA TROUBLED airport has been given a major boost with the addition of new routes and a long-term commitment from a budget airline.

The Independent

• Cyclists hit out at depiction of the war on Britain™s roads in BBC documentary A prime-time documentary that promises to deal with cycle safety couldn™t come at a better time. Weeks after Bradley Wiggins™ bruising encounter with a van, the number of cyclist deaths in Britain this year hovers at a record 112.Related StoriesAshcroft drops High Court action after apologyAs the Duchess languishes, the world™s paps and hacks freezeJudge reprimanded for praising burglarWomen and child hurt at rail crossingCenotaph skateboard man fined

The Scotsman

• British Airways announces plans to shed 400 cabin crew jobsBRITISH Airways has announced it is looking to shed 400 senior cabin crew jobs.

Mail Online

• The 'crashproof' car that Volvo say could be on British roads within eight yearsVolvo says sensors built into cars will allow them to avoid collisions - and claims that by 2020 it can cut collisions to zero in its new vehicles.

Liverpool Post

• Cammell Laird jobs secured for years to come with £230m contractHUNDREDS of shipyard jobs at Birkenhead have been secured for years to come.

London Evening Standard

• HS2 will close Camden Town and cost borough £1 billion, council tells courtThe controversial High Speed 2 rail link between London and Birmingham will cost Camden £1 billion in damage, the council warned the High Court yesterday.
• DfT criticised over rail franchiseA Commons select committee chairwoman has strongly criticised the Department for Transport (DfT) as the West Coast rail franchise fiasco took another turn.
• BA boss Willie Walsh: MPs too scared to make tough Heathrow Airport decision over new runwayPoliticians have been afraid to take tough decisions on airport expansion, the head of British Airways' parent company told MPs today.
• BA seeks to cut 400 cabin crew jobsBritish Airways is looking to shed 400 senior cabin crew jobs.
• Walsh: airport call 'too difficult'Politicians have been afraid to take tough decisions on airport expansion, the head of British Airways' parent company has told MPs.
• Ford in EcoBoost engine fire probeCar giant Ford has said it is expanding an engine fire investigation to Europe.

Manchester Evening News

• Airblue passengers stranded at Manchester Airport for more than a dayPassengers were stranded at Manchester Airport for more than a day after their plane developed a fault “ and engineers had to fly a replacement part in from Germany.

Sheffield Star

• Wizz takes off with new deal at airportBUDGET airline Wizz Air is set to remain a high-flier in South Yorkshire - after signing a new five-year deal for flights in and out of Doncaster’s Robin Hood Aiport.
• Rail maintenance worker killedA RAIL worker from South Yorkshire has been killed after being struck by a train.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Hauliers hit the road in protestA campaign organised by a lorry driver from Inverness to increase speed limits for large heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) from 40 to 50mph was launched yesterday.

The York Press

• Mallard™s sister locomotive gets makeover THE sister locomotive to Mallard will receive a makeover in preparation for its display at the National Railway Museum (NRM) in York.

Wales Online

• DfT criticised over rail franchise A Commons select committee chairwoman has strongly criticised the Department for Transport (DfT) as the West Coast rail franchise fiasco took another turn.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Leeds street light switch-off warningLeeds could be heading for partial blackout if plans to switch off some of the city’s 91,807 street lights at night are approved.

Yorkshire Post

• Chancellor urged to offer rural areas a fuel duty lifelineGeorge Osborne is under mounting pressure to offer a fuel duty lifeline to people living in rural areas today after new figures showed they spend almost £1,000 more a year on transport costs than their urban counterparts.

Blackpool Gazette

• MP hails railcard as aid to joblessA NEW railcard designed to help jobseekers get to and from interviews cheaply has won the backing of Fylde MP Mark Menzies.

Bucks Free Press

• HS2 judicial review: Govt overcrowding argument 'misleading' A KEY government argument for the HS2 scheme centring on train overcrowding is ˜misleading™, while northerners have not been properly consulted on the route, said opponents of the controversial rail plan after the first day of a judicial review.

Carlisle News & Star

• Cumbria rail line closed after crash The Carlisle to Whitehaven rail line was closed after a car hit a bridge in Wigton.

Other Regional Press

• Train passengers ˜must be priority™Whichever company is awarded the rights to run Lancashire’s most popular rail franchise must make tackling overcrowding, simplifying fares and station upgrades a priority, transport campaigners said today.

Global Rail News

• Ellman criticises DfT over delayed West Coast reportTransport Committee chairman Louise Ellman has criticised the Department for Transport (DfT) for ’adding to the confusion’ over the West Coast franchise after it delayed the release of the Laidlaw report. An evidence session, which was due to be held today (December 4) over the West Coast Main Line, has had to be postponed in [...]
• HS2 director general appointedThe government has sent a defiant message to campaign groups, announcing the appointment of a new director general to oversee the delivery of HS2. Opponents of the £34 billion project are at the High Court this week seeking to block the government’s high-speed plans on the grounds that they’re based on a flawed business case. [...]
• Transport for London sets out investment planTransport for London (TfL) has published its new business plan, setting out future investment in London’s rail system. Future plans include doubling the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) tracks between Stratford and Bow Church, increasing capacity on the Overground and continued investment in the Underground network. TfL also plans to buy four new trams for Tramlink [...]
• Locomotive plant opens in KazakhstanA 50 million euro locomotive manufacturing plant has been opened in Kazakhstan’s capital to address the country’s need for new rolling stock. The new unit in Astana was unveiled at a special ceremony today (December 4) by project partners Kazakh Railways (KTZ), Alstom and Transmashholding (TMH). The new plant, which will be operated by EKZ, [...]
• Electrifying the Great Western RailwayAt last, we now know that the Great Western Main Line Railway (GWML) is going to be electrified. It was way back in 1977 that the Parliamentary Select Committee on Nationalised Industries recommended considering electrification of more of Britain™s rail network. Two years later, British Rail presented a range of options that included electrifying the [...]
• Time to improve rail safety by cutting down on ˜essential paperwork™My memory is long enough for me to remember when engineers used slide rules and mechanical/electrical calculating machines. We generated far less paperwork than we do today and for the sake of safety, cost, time and accountability I believe it is time for us to review and look to reduce the œessential paperwork we now [...]
• Light rail lines extended in DallasDallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) has opened extensions to its Blue and Orange light rail lines. The new sections extend the Blue Line to Rowlett and the Orange Line further into Irving. The $360 million extension of the Blue Line is the first expansion project on the route since it reached Garland in November 2002. [...]

Rail Technology Magazine

• Invensys Rail Awarded Bowesfield Re-control Contract by Network Rail Invensys Rail has been awarded a contract by Network Rail for the Bowesfield re-control project. This is the first project to be awarded under the Network Rail Framework Contract in the Central East Region where Invensys is the nominated secondary co¦

Railway Gazette

• Eurostar to trial London “ Aix-en-Provence serviceEUROPE: International high speed operator Eurostar is to operate a new service between London and the south of France on a trial basis in May and June 2013. Building on its long-standing seasonal service between London St Pancras International and Avignon-Centre which has operated on Saturdays in July and August for several years, Eurostar intends to launch a single train pair linking London and Ashford with Lyon Part-Dieu, Avignon-TGV and Aix-en-Provence-TGV on Saturdays from May 4 to June 29 2013. According to Eurostar, the trial is a result of the growing popularity of its seasonal trains, ...
• Rescuers trained by year endNETHERLANDS: National operator NS is on course to complete evacuation training of all 6000 drivers and conductors by the end of 2012. NS was mandated to introduce updated tunnel safety training in the wake of a fire on the line running beneath Amsterdam Schiphol airport in July 2009. NS selected the RescueSim package developed by Vstep to provide three-dimensional modelling and incident simulation for a sub-surface environment. A number of emergency scenarios can be simulated in realistic surroundings; staff are expected to respond in real time in accordance with communication and evacuation ...

Aviation Industry

• Ryanair Holdings plc Stock Rating Upgraded by Goldman SachsThe analysts wrote,
• Ryanair to expand at Edinburgh and PrestwickNo-frills airline reverses plans to cut routes from Scottish capital after change in airport ownership

Other News Sources

• Rail strike ballot over catalogue of safety breachesRAIL UNION RMT confirmed today that it is balloting for industrial action over safety after a series of recent incidents shone the spotlight on corner-cutting and the drive for profit at the expense of safety on the Network Rail High-Output Electrification contract run for NR by the Amey Colas Joint Venture (ACJV).
• News from Caroline Pidgeon: TfL 10-Year Plan falls short for pedestrians, cyclists and disabled people 4 December 2012 Caroline Pidgeon, Leader of the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Group, commenting on TfL™s new draft Business Plan which has been published today said: "The extra investment in cycling is welcome, however it is far from sufficient to deliver a real cycling revolution across the whole of London. Further investment is needed if London is really to catch up with a number of other European cities. No read m...
• Call for evidence as London airport capacity investigation is launched 4 December 2012 The London Assembly™s Transport Committee today asked Londoners to send them their views and evidence as it launched an investigation into airport capacity[1]. Entering the topical debate for and against changes to existing capacity, its work will identify issues that the Government's independent Airports Commission[2], chaired by Sir Howard Davies, should take into account when considering the options for airport expansion.  ...
• Transport chiefs quizzed on fare rises, cycle safety and delivery of the Mayor™s transport manifesto 4 December 2012 Will Transport for London™s business plan be able to deliver the goals set out in the Mayor™s manifesto “ such as increasing cycling in the capital[1]? How will the drastic drop in bus subsidy[2] affect the transport budget? Will the extra £130 million generated by fare rises be a worthwhile addition to its investment programme? Members of the Assembly™s Transport Committee will tomorrow question the following transport chiefs: ...