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

Saturday, 16 February 2013

BBC News

• Children's road safety cuts protestA road safety scheme aimed at children faces cuts prompting a protest outside Wrexham council offices.
• Bristol Airport attracts more WelshMore passengers from Wales use Bristol Airport than Cardiff, provisional figures for the first half of 2012 indicate.
• Bikers to compete in city sprintEdinburgh's historic Grassmarket is to be transformed into an uphill race track for one night.
• Speeders caught in Kessock roadworksPolice say they are encouraged by motorists' behaviour despite 27 speeding tickets in the first week of the Kessock Bridge roadworks.
• VIDEO: The congestion charge turns 10Ten years after the launch of the congestion charge £1.2bn has been raised in revenue and less cars come into town - so is it a success?
• Crash scam men jailed over deathThree men who deliberately caused a car crash that led to another collision in which a woman died, are each jailed for 10 years.
• Rail disruption enters third dayRail travellers in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and parts of the east Midlands are facing continued delays to services to and from London.
• Work ongoing at lorry strike houseWork is continuing to make safe the site of a house struck by a lorry in an accident that led to the death of a 55-year-old woman.
• Airbus to switch batteries on A350Airbus says it will not use lithium-ion batteries in its forthcoming A350 plane because of problems that have grounded rival Boeing's 787 Dreamliner.

Financial Times

• Airbus scraps troubled battery for A350European manufacturer forgoes lithium-ion device to keep development of new passenger jet on track after worldwide grounding of Boeing™s 787
• Safety puts brakes on 80mph speed limitPlans for a new 80mph speed limit on the motorways are heading for the scrap heap amid concerns that the move could lead to a rise in fatal accidents
• UK™s young are forced off the roadData from the Department for Transport show the number of 17 to 19-year olds taking their practical driving tests has dropped about 18 per cent since 2007

The Herald

• Flights take offEdinburgh is gain three flights to and from Barcelona.
• New routes increase Prestwick passenger numbersPASSENGER numbers at Prestwick have surged by 29% over the last three months as Ryanair added new routes from the airport.

The Scotsman

• Four children injured in Perthshire school bus crashFOUR children and a van driver were injured today in a collision between a school bus and a van in Perthshire.

The Telegraph

• Woman killed in gang's car crash to earn insurance cashA gang who killed a woman in a deliberate car accident was jailed on Friday as a court heard such

Belfast Telegraph

• Airport plans to turn apprentices into high fliersGeorge Best Belfast City Airport boss Brian Ambrose is to become the Lord Sugar of the city after announcing a new apprenticeship scheme for young people.Related StoriesWrightbus seals £30m contract to supply fleetHeinz now put on Buffett menuCider shop falls to the big AppleLocal businesses team up to deliver savings1,000,000 reasons why Belfast Telegraph is the most popular media service in Northern Ireland

Edinburgh Evening News

• Edinburgh and Glasgow to get ScotRail SmartcardsTrain operator ScotRail is set to roll out electronic Smartcards, similar to London’s Oyster Card system, on the main route between Edinburgh and Glasgow in a move that could pave the way for a national ticketless travel system to be introduced.

London Evening Standard

• Congestion Charge ˜has cost drivers £2.6bn in decade but failed to cut traffic jams™The congestion charge has œsucked about £2.6 billion from drivers in its first decade while failing to cut congestion, the AA claimed today.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Nottingham Post published Weekend's roadworks will divert bus routesArticle

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Heavy snow blamed for quarter of West Midlands' train delays in JanuaryA quarter of trains through the West Midlands were delayed last month, with rail companies blaming heavy snow for the problems.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Survey: Disabled bus passengers want action- Group forms to represent bus users in Peterborough following catalogue of complaints from people with disabilities.

Other Regional Press

• Unofficial car-sharing on edge of Winchester to stop after new restrictions agreed WINCHESTER civic chiefs have taken action to stop unofficial car-sharing at the Hockley Viaduct near Winchester.
• What do you think of Fareham train station?RAIL users are invited to a workshop to give their views on Fareham train station.
• M1 death crash victim was ˜stationary™ on hard shoulderPolice have revealed a woman who died in a horror crash on the M1 in Northamptonshire yesterday had stopped on the hard shoulder moments before a van crashed into her car.
• Maggie™s ˜battle™ bus up for sale in auctionA ’battle bus’ built to transport Margaret Thatcher around Northern Ireland during the 1980s will be sold during an auction in Northamptonshire.
• Millionaire station bid is going globalTHE multi-millionaire bidder for Preston’s iconic bus station has launched a website to gather support for his campaign.
• More jobs land at ManstonThe start of KLM flights from Manston airport to Amsterdam this spring has created 42 jobs - 14 more than expected.

Bus and Coach.com

• Fuel savings for latest ADL hybridAlexander Dennis is claiming a further six per cent fuel saving on the latest versions of its hybrid buses in which the diesel engine shuts down when the vehicle speed drops below 4mph then restarts when it rises above 7mph.
• ADL and Wrightbus win lightweight ordersFirst, which has long called on manufacturers to produce lighter, more fuel-efficient, buses has placed significant orders with ADL and Wrightbus for Enviro300s and StreetLites.

Global Rail News

• Howard Smith to join CrossrailLondon Rail’s chief operating officer Howard Smith has been appointed by Crossrail to oversee the project’s operational strategy. Smith, who will become Crossrail’s operations director on March 25, has led the £1 billion East London Line extension project as well as the development, launch and operation of London Overground and management of its operating concession. [...]
• Testing underway on new Sub Surface line signalling systemTesting has begun on the new Sub Surface (SSR) Lines signalling system at the centre of the biggest metro resignalling project in the world. With signalling systems on the SSR dating back to the 1940s still in use, the project will allow London Underground to run more trains on the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City [...]

Railnews

• Midland Main Line repairs to continue into weekend Network Rail is hoping to fully reopen the Midland Main Line at Radlett later this weekend, but repair work will not restart until Saturday night. The main line was completely blocked when a kilometre of overhead lines collapsed on Wednesday.

Transport for London

• London Overground stations now offer WiFiLondon Overground passengers will be WiFi-connected at 50 stations on the Capital's orbital rail network from 15 February with the final seven stations covered by the end of June.

Aviation Industry

• Business trips abroad rose during 2012Britons made the highest number of overseas business visits since 2008
• Airlines condemn Gatwick™s fees proposalCarriers are unhappy at airport™s request to be allowed to set its passenger charges

Other News Sources

• Winston Churchill's Morris Oxford saloon to go under the hammerThe pale green car has just 7066 miles on the clock.
• easyJet launches trio of flights with over 100,000 seats added from London Stansted AirporteasyJet will mark the inaugural flights of its three latest routes from London Stansted Airport to Marrakech, Sofia and Sharm El Sheikh this weekend. The three new routes which take off for the...
• News from Darren Johnson AM: Build on achievements of congestion charge with pay-as-you-go driving 15 February 2013 On the 10th anniversary of the introduction of congestion charging in London, Darren Johnson AM has called for the introduction of a system of pay-as-you-go road pricing to tackle congestion, reduce air pollution and avoid the legal consequences of failing to meet European air quality standards. The congestion charge zone saw a 21% decrease in traffic from 2002-06 but traffic has now returned to pre-charging levels (1). Traffic across the whole of London, however, has declined by 10% since 2000. Darren Johnson commented:...
• Laing O'Rourke wins £19m Manchester interchange schemeLaing O™Rourke has been appointed as main contractor to revamp Altrincham Interchange in a £19 million deal.
• Work begins on Victoria Dock Crossrail tunnelWork has begun on Crossrail™s Victoria Dock tunnel portal in east London.
• OSG seeks to sell tankersOVERSEAS Shipholding Group has asked a bankruptcy judge to approve sale procedures for three older tankers, marking the company™s first move to shed owned tonnage.