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

Sunday, 16 December 2012

BBC News

• Christmas rail strike to go aheadRail strikes in the run-up to Christmas are to go ahead after talks between ScotRail managers and trade union officials failed to achieve agreement.
• Damaged ship to be towed to portAn oil rig emergency rescue vessel which lost a crew member in North Sea gales is to be brought ashore, rescuers say.

The Herald

• Christmas rail strike is onSCOTLAND faces festive rail strikes after talks between ScotRail and trades union officials broke down.
• Air pollution at Waverley seven times higher than safety limitsMillions of people are being poisoned by air pollution up to seven times higher than public safety limits at Waverley station in Edinburgh, a study for Network Rail has revealed.

The Scotsman

• ScotRail strike to proceed as talks failSTRIKES across Scotland’s rail network are set to go ahead over the Christmas period after talks between train operators and trade union officials broke down yesterday.
• CalMac plans world™s first hydrogen fuel ferrySCOTLAND’S main ferry operator is planning to develop the world’s first vessel powered by hydrogen fuel cells.

Daily Express

• Willie Walsh takes hat off to Ryanair bossA SURPRISING new alliance has been forged in the aviation industry, with British Airways boss Willie Walsh praising Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary for his achievements as a true aviation industry pioneer.

Daily Record

• Christmas rail strikes are back on after showdown talks fiascoCRUNCH talks to avert rail strikes collapsed in less than an hour yesterday meaning that two threatened 24-hour strikes by rail staff on December 22 and Christmas Eve could still go ahead.

Journal Live

• Transport businesses protest at rise in Tyne tunnel tollLORRY drivers bringing vital business to the North East have branded Tyne Tunnel toll fee-hikes a “disgrace”.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Nottingham Post commented Residents happy with bus in Beeston say: Who needs the tram?THE standard of bus services in Beeston proves there is no need for a new tram line in the town, residents claim.

Bucks Free Press

• Free bus travel for jobseekers MORE than 800,000 jobseekers in England, Scotland and Wales are to be given free bus travel in January of next year.
• Chiltern Railways train fares will rise in January CHILTERN Railways will be increasing its fares in January by an average 3.5 per cent.

Other Regional Press

• Heathrow ballot coming to Richmond in springPeople in Richmond will soon get the chance to vote on Heathrow expansion as the council prepares for its borough-wide ballot.
• 20mph zone for area around Lindley schools as £68k road safety plans to be implementedROADS outside Lindley schools can finally be made safer with a £68,000 road improvement scheme.
• Christmas bus strike in Aberdeen called offA CHRISTMAS bus strike in Aberdeen has been averted after a union agreed to accept a new deal.

Bus and Coach.com

• Leeds sees start of joint ticketingJoint ticketing has been introduced on the A65 Kirkstall Road corridor in Leeds.
• Highlighting barriers for blind peopleBus drivers swapped places with customers with sight loss in Reading this week to promote a campaign to remove the barriers blind and partially sighted people face when making a bus journey.
• Rotala secures RBS fundingRotala has secured £11million in facilities from the Royal Bank of Scotland to support the group™s growth, both organically and through acquisitions.
• Long service awards at EYMSThe work of 12 long-serving employees of EYMS Group has been celebrated at a dinner in the Tickton Grange Hotel near Beverley.
• First cuts landfill wasteFirstBus has reduced the volume of waste going to landfill by 10 per cent over the last 12 months across its entire UK operations.
• MCV wins Golden Tours double-deck orderThe first order for MCV double-deck bodies has been placed by Golden Tours of London.
• Fines improve bus lane complianceBradford council has collected £2,3million in fines over two and a half years since introducing camera enforcement of bus lanes.
• Lobbying action on German VAT proposalsThe European Alliance for Coach Tourism (EACT) is lobbying the German government about its proposals to amend the VAT registration and taxation of foreign coach operators providing passenger transport services within Germany.
• Seven-day ban for Crawley Luxury CoachesCrawley Luxury Coaches is to have its O licence suspended for seven days in January after ignoring the safety implications of drivers running red lights and breaking speed limits.
• Fishers Tours get œstrongest warningThe deputy traffic commissioner for Scotland, Nick Jones, has issued the strongest form of warning to Fishers Tours of Dundee after the company failed to operate services as registered and admitted that buses on long-distance services missed out stops to make up for lost time.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Government refuses to intervene in Manchester Airport rowThe government has refused to be drawn into an argument between Manchester Airport and a group of campaigners. A large number of people urged the authorities to intervene when planning permission was granted for a huge £100 million World Logistics Hub, which is earmarked for land near Hale Barns. Altrincham and Sale West MP Graham Brady was one person who requested a public inquiry, Messenger Newspapers reports, but this request has been turned down. Mr Brady told the news provider he was disappointed with the rebuff. "I will now work with residents and the airport to tr...

Global Rail News

• Future beckons for rail freightWhen the rail industry was privatised rail freight, like the rest of the business, was scheduled for quiet decline. BR had four main freight companies for sale – three were bought by Wisconsin Central and became EWS – subsequently acquired by DB Schencker. Out of the fourth, RailFreight Distribution, BR’s international freight pioneers, came the [...]

Other News Sources

• CHEAPEST RAIL TICKETS NOT FOR SALERAIL firms have “ripped off” festive passengers by not selling their cheapest fares on the most popular travel days, we reveal today.
• News from Jenny Jones AM: Tougher enforcement needed on car dooring of cyclists 14 December 2012 Tougher enforcement needed on car dooring of cyclists The Met Police have issued an average of 7-9 Fixed Penalty Notices per year for car dooring during the last seven years. This is despite a Transport for London study finding that drivers opening doors accounted for 8% of the cyclists killed and seriously injured in 2007. This would be the equivalent of 46 cyclists killed or seriously injured last year. cycling, car doorin...