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

Thursday, 10 January 2013

BBC News

• Barrow MP John Woodcock quits shadow cabinet Shadow transport minister John Woodcock has resigned from the shadow cabinet after being told it could take up to two years for him to recover from an accident.
• Iain Gray MSP makes bus regulation bill bid The former leader of Scottish Labour has proposed a parliamentary bill aimed at strengthening regulation in the Scottish bus industry.
• York park and ride expansion to begin A £22m project designed to reduce traffic congestion in York is to go ahead subject to final approval from the government.
• Clackmannanshire Council to extend electric vehicle use Clackmannanshire Council has begun to replace its transport fleet with electrically-powered vehicles.
• Rail minister Simon Burns denies £80k chauffeur car bill Rail minister Simon Burns has denied his chauffeur-driven car journeys into London are costing the taxpayer £80,000 a year.
• Aberdeen bypass: Transport Minister Keith Brown outlines bypass details Transport Minister Keith Brown has been outlining details of the planned Aberdeen bypass to potential contractors.
• Train delay after signal problemTrains from Cardiff to London Paddington return to normal after being hit by severe disruption caused by major signalling problems.
• £8m car sales showrooms approvedCouncillors approve plans for an £8m car sales plaza which will create up to 150 jobs, less than a month after they rejected the proposal.
• Bus firm plans £75m investmentPerth-based transport group Stagecoach has announced that it is to invest more than £75m in hundreds of new vehicles
• Airport 'must be value for money'Conservatives insist the Welsh government must prove a plan to buy Cardiff Airport will be value for the taxpayer, but ministers say public opinion is on their side.
• Love and hate for Victorian TubeMixed feelings for early Tube passengers
• London Underground's changing mapHow the pocket maps evolved over the years
• Councils 'profiting' from parkingCouncils are making huge profits from parking charges while cutting road safety spending, the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) claims.
• Rail minister denies £80k car feeRail minister Simon Burns denies he costs the taxpayer £80,000 a year by being chauffeured from his Essex constituency into Westminster.
• New safety scares for DreamlinerA fuel leak cancels takeoff for a Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Boston's Logan airport, and a brake problem causes another one to be grounded.
• Rolls-Royce sees record car salesRolls-Royce Motor Cars, which is owned by BMW, reports record car sales for the third year in a row, though its growth rate slows.

Financial Times

• London Underground™s 150th birthdayWorld™s first subway system is a perfect demonstration of the journey from private-sector initiative to publicly owned strategic asset

The Guardian

• The London underground: still the people's railwayAs a child I wondered why all railways couldn't be like the tube. On its 150th anniversary, I still do
• New York ferry crash: at least 50 injured after boat hits Manhattan pierOfficials said Wall Street vessel missed one slip on the pier and crashed into the second, flinging passengers across the boatMore than 50 passengers on a New York commuter ferry were injured on Wednesday when they were flung across the boat as it slammed into a pier in lower Manhattan.There were harrowing scenes at Pier 11, near the heart of New York's financial district, as 20 passengers with head and neck injuries were carried off on stretchers and rushed to local hospitals.Officials said the vessel, Wall Street, a two-hulled craft carrying 326 passengers and operated by Seastreak, missed o...

The Herald

• Capital's bus lane cameras extendedEDINBURGH'S controversial bus lane camera system will be expanded next week as figures reveal nearly 28,000 fines have been issued since it launched last April.
• Gray raises bus service proposalsLABOUR'S former Scottish leader, Iain Gray, has proposed legislation giving councils greater control over when and where bus services operate, three years after a similar attempt was rejected by MSPs.

The Scotsman

• Sleeper specials to take to the road as Stagecoach places bumper order STAGECOACH will spend over £75 million in the coming year on hundreds of 
additional buses, including ten purpose-built “sleeper coaches” to run on cross-Border Megabus routes in the UK.
• Cheaper fares, better services – Labour’s pledge on the buses More control over Scotland’s buses could be introduced to improve services and increase passengers under legislation launched by Scottish Labour.
• Minister considers HGV speed limit riseTransport minister Keith Brown said he was “looking seriously” at whether the maximum speed for heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) on the A9 could be increased.
• Iain Gray: Taking the right route to protect bus servicesRegulation is the key to preserve vital transport links and a system that works for passengers, writes Iain Gray

The Telegraph

• Tube 150th anniversary: 'London simply wouldn't be London without the Underground'The director of the London Transport Museum, Sam Mullins, says the streets of the capital were grinding to a halt when plans were hatched for the first underground line, which opened 150 years ago today.
• Archive footage released as Tube celebrates 150th anniversaryNew video has been released to mark the 150th anniversary of the London Underground, which shows the early days of the Tube.
• The history of the Tube in pictures: 150 years of London UndergroundIn pictures: 150 years of travel on the London Underground.
• Going UndergroundTelegraph View: The Metropolitan Railway was a triumph of engineering and of optimism

Reuters News

• London fetes world's oldest underground railway at 150LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's capital began year-long celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the world's oldest underground passenger railway on Wednesday with reams of newsprint and plans for exhibitions, books, poetry and a commemorative steam train ride.

The Mirror

• Bound and gagged: Watch video of unruly passenger TAPED to his seat by air stewardswas taped to his seat after reportedly becoming aggressive towards staff and passengers and screaming the plane was going to crash
• Only fare: Transport minister pledges to use train after backlash over his £80k chauffeur billSimon Burns faced a voter backlash as it emerged taxpayers were shelling out huge amounts for him to be driven to work

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• West Yorkshire rail investment plan is welcomed The authority responsible for train travel in West Yorkshire said that it wants to see responsibility for rail franchising devolved to a new Rail in the North Executive to ensure a quality of services across the north.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Wrexham council rejects call for a rethink on raise special school bus services faresA COUNCIL yesterday rejected calls to reconsider a controversial decision to raise fares on special school bus services.
• Airbus announces £620m order from Middle East AirlinesAIRBUS today announced a £620million order from Middle East Airlines-Air Liban (MEA), the flag carrier of Lebanon, for 10 A320neo Family aircraft.

Derby Telegraph

• Derby Telegraph commented Delays for five months as 40-year-old inner ring road gets revampMOTORISTS are being warned to expect delays for about five months on Derby's inner ring road as £1.2 million of ...

Liverpool Post

• John Lennon Airport appoint new chief executive Matthew ThomasTHE owners of Liverpool John Lennon Airport have appointed Matthew Thomas as the new new chief executive.

London Evening Standard

• The poster boys and girls of London UndergroundAs part of the 150th anniversary of the Tube celebrations, the London Transport Museum has selected 150 of the best London Underground posters from its archive of more than 3,300 for a special exhibition which opens next month.
• Now you see me: London's best reflective bike gearReflective medium zero messenger bagThis San Francisco-made bike bag is easily worth the price of shipping from the US. The entire outer shell glows, and it comes in orange and silver.£105 approx. ($166.32) including shipping, rickshawbags.com
• Tube boss: we need £12 billion for vital Piccadilly and Bakerloo line upgradesThe London Tube boss today warned that passengers could suffer years of disruption because of a £12‰billion funding gap in planned upgrades to two lines.
• Labour loses 'super peak' rail fares voteLabour failed tonight in its bid to derail proposals for new "super peak" rail fares which it said would hurt commuters.

Manchester Evening News

• Manchester council rakes in £6m from parking charges in one yearManchester Council raked in nearly £6m from parking charges last year, according to new figures. Town hall insiders insist no 'profit' is made and all money brought in through parking charges is used to improve the city's transport system.

The York Press

• Rail bosses unveil a massive investment RAIL bosses have announced billions of pounds of investment to increase capacity.

Wales Online

• Electrification of North Wales' rail network moves a step closerA case for the electrification of North Wales’ rail network is to be drawn up by the Welsh Government, Transport Minister Carl Sargeant has announced

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Will £250m trolleybus scheme solve Leeds™s transport woes?Leeds stands on the brink of the biggest transport network shake-up in decades with the planned NGT trolleybus scheme. As consultation begins, Neil Hudson asks whether the scheme will cure congestion or become a white elephant.
• Plans advance for ˜critical™ £100m road in east LeedsA new £100m ring road in east Leeds would provide “critical” infrastructure support for a hoped-for housing boom in the area.

Bucks Free Press

• District Cllr says BCC is 'burying head in the potholes' TRANSPORT chiefs have been accused of ˜burying their heads in the county's potholes™ by a disappointed councillor.
• Help wanted from Bucks businesses over HS2 THE company behind plans to build a new high speed railway line through the county is looking for expert advice from Bucks-based property management firms.

Other Regional Press

• £5m bus lanes get go-aheadCity mayor Sir Peter Soulsby yesterday approved a £5 million scheme to introduce bus lanes along one of the busiest routes into Leicester.
• Meeting called over the future of railway crossingRESIDENTS in Long Rock are holding a public meeting to challenge the emergency closure of a rail crossing which some feel is placing a stranglehold on village life.
• Spotlight falls on railway station’s redevelopment A scheme for Haywards Heath Railway Station’s redevelopment goes before Mid Sussex Council planners tomorrow (Thursday).
• MP blasts rail fares rise as unfair to train commutersRAIL fare hikes have been slammed as a "massive burden" and unfair on commuters. Llanelli MP Nia Griffith has condemned the soaring cost of rail travel, with some fares rising by more than 10 per cent this week.
• Transport Secretary puts rail track bosses under pressure over floodingRail track bosses have vowed to shore up the Westcountry's flood-hit lines after coming under pressure from Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin.
• A year left for Preston Bus Station?Preston Council’s leader has revealed that work to demolish the city’s bus station could start in 2014 - but said no timeframe has been set as yet.
• Package holidays boost for airportManchester Airport is cashing in thanks to a resurgence in families jetting off on 70s-style package holidays.
• Eurotunnel bids to run French portsThe Channel Tunnel operator is bidding to win a concession to run Calais and Boulogne for the next 50 years.
• Up to £10m to be invested at Huddersfield railway station in massive boost to rail servicesMILLIONS of pounds is set to be invested in Huddersfield railway station.
• Potty about repairing the roadsWho ’ya gonna call if your road is full of pot holes? Bedford Borough Council’s Pot Hole Hit Squad of course!

Global Rail News

• Delhi Metro to build new elevated lineDelhi Metro (DMRC) has signed a $110 million contract for a new 9 km elevated line. The deal with ITD Cementation India Limited and joint venture (JV) partner Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited includes construction of the new metro track and eight elevated stations. The project is scheduled for completion in 2015. The JV recently [...]
• Federal funding for California light rail extensionThe Department for Transportation has pledged $135 million to the extension of Sacramento’s Blue Line. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has signed off the payment, which will fund a 4.3-mile expansion of the light rail system, linking downtown Sacramento to the South Sacramento County corridor. The funding represents half of the project’s $270 million total cost. [...]
• Tube celebrates 150 years of operationTo mark the 150th anniversary of the London Underground, we will be sharing historic images and videos of the system throughout its extraordinary life. The Royal Mail is marking the occasion with a collection of 10 special stamps. Google has got into the spirit with its own Tube map on the homepage.
• New line connects Madrid and Barcelona with French borderThe Prince of Asturias joined senior Spanish politicians at the inauguration of a new 131 km high-speed rail line between Barcelona and Figueres. Opening the new line completes an 804 km high-speed network, connecting Madrid with Barcelona and the French border. Services begin on the 3.7 billion euro extension today (January 9). Renfe will operate [...]
• Spain at high speed“This is one of the sections we designed.” There’s a brief pause in conversation as Fernando Mesa, project director of transport infrastructure at AECOM, points to lineside features rapidly passing by on the high speed line from Madrid to Barcelona. “This is our viaduct. Just here. See? ” It’s gone in a flash. “Oh well, [...]
• Crossrail™s Sophia starts Thames tunnelling worksCrossrail’s fifth TBM, Sophia, has started drilling a tunnel under the River Thames from the project’s Plumstead portal. Sophia will drill at an average rate of around 100 metres a week, installing precast concrete segments as rings to form the tunnel lining as she goes. Unlike the tunnel boring machines currently in operation, Sophia is [...]
• Union Station glass roof recognised in architecture awardsToronto Union Station’s new train shed glass roof has been named in the Canadian Architects Awards of Excellence 2012. Renovation of the train shed roof began in 2010, with installation of the glass atrium due to be completed in 2014. As well as installing the 5,000 square-metre glass roof, track will he rebuilt, waterproof membrane [...]

The Business Desk

• Airport chiefs hail strong first half as Stansted D-Day nears MANCHESTER Airports Group has reported solid half year results, which show it is continuing to out-perform its regional rivals.
• Airport chiefs hail strong first half as Stansted D-Day nears MANCHESTER Airports Group has reported solid half year results, which show it is continuing to out-perform its regional rivals.

Aviation Industry

• Aerosvit cancels flights amid financial problemsUkrainian airline insists it will keep operating despite cancellations over recent days
• Fastjet hails ˜fantastic™ first month of operationsNo-frills airline enjoys high load factors during first weeks of flying

Other News Sources

• Rail, maritime and transport union RMT shows continued growth in face of savage attack on jobsRail, maritime and transport union RMT announced today that the organisation has continued to increase its membership in the past twelve months in the teeth of the most savage attacks on jobs and working conditions for a generation.
• Red light for Brighton and Hove cyclists Motorists claim that cyclists riding through red lights are a common sight in Brighton and Hove, but only a small number of cyclists are fined every year. Just 31 cyclists were handed a penalty notice in 2012, yet The Argus spotted 17 cyclists jumping the light in less than one hour when we went out to catch them red-handed. Neil Vowles reports on the police response to cyclists and motorists ignoring traffic signals and endangering lives.