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

Thursday, 07 March 2013

BBC News

• Ilkeston station: Derbyshire County Council agrees funds A new railway station could be built in a Derbyshire town after the county council agreed to put up funds for the £6.5m project.
• Hull parents petition against free school bus cuts Parents fighting to save their free school bus services have delivered a petition to Hull City Council using an open top bus.
• MPs agree new biofuel subsidiesMPs have agreed new subsidies for burning wood and plants in the UK's power stations.
• Easyjet and LSE promoted to FTSE 100No-frills airline Easyjet and the London Stock Exchange are promoted to the FTSE 100 index as part of the latest quarterly review.

The Herald

• Service beset with problemsBoeing began developing its 787 Dreamliner in the wake of the September 11 attacks.

The Telegraph

• MPs angered by car dubbed the ProvoThe Korean carmaker, Kia, has run into trouble by calling its latest concept car the Provo, triggering fury from two Democratic Unionist MPs.

Daily Express

• Ryanair woos FlybeRYANAIR has stepped up efforts to gain European clearance for a takeover of Irish rival Aer Lingus at the third attempt after lining up a deal with regional airline Flybe.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Bradford Council asked to back £1bn fund to improve road and rail links Bradford Council is being asked to approve a groundbreaking £1 billion fund to improve transport links throughout West Yorkshire, which is hoped to eventually create almost 4,000 jobs in the district.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Demand to fix potholes on AngleseyPOTHOLE battered roads are a danger to drivers and pedestrians say councillors who are demanding an extra £250,000 to fill the holes.
• Snowdon railway tourists can now travel the vintage wayTOURISTS travelling by rail to the summit of Wales’ highest mountain will be able to choose a modern or vintage experience this summer.

Derby Telegraph

• Artist's impression reveals look of Ilkeston's planned railway stationAN artist’s impression of how a railway station planned for Ilkeston could look has been released to the Derby Telegraph.
• Derby Telegraph commented Friends 'very happy' as underground wharf is granted monument...A HERITAGE group aiming to revitalise a Derbyshire canal says finding funding to help make the waterway navigable should be...

Edinburgh Evening News

• "Inhuman": Heathrow airport bosses urged to stop night flights Heathrow bosses today came under pressure to justify the use of night flights into the country’s biggest airport.

Manchester Evening News

• Saddle up for city™s biggest bike rideEntries have now opened for the second Great Manchester Cycle - which last year saw over 7,000 take part in the biggest timed ride in Britain

Sheffield Telegraph

• Brake on scrapping of free school buses in SheffieldCONTROVERSIAL proposals to scrap free bus travel for pupils attending Catholic schools in Sheffield are to be reconsidered.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Railway dreams steam towards realityTwo tunnels could be built under a Highland trunk road as part of plans to extend a heritage railway.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Leeds: Report urges a £19m trolleybus investmentCouncil chiefs are being urged to spend more than £19m to help bridge a funding gap in the landmark trolleybus scheme.

Yorkshire Post

• Highways Agency refutes MP safety claims on ˜managed motorway™ planHIGHWAYS bosses yesterday said MPs who had raised safety concerns over a “managed motorway” scheme in Yorkshire had misunderstood the plan.

Bucks Free Press

• HS2 campaigners unveil their "stake in the ground" A BLUEPRINT outlining what Buckinghamshire needs to protect it from the effects of HS2 were described as the county's

Other Regional Press

• Rail station is on track Low Moor Railway Station looks closer to becoming a reality this week, after the project took a step towards a huge financial boost.
• Rail service launchedA new service has been launched for rail passengers to report incidents to the police via text.
• New Lancashire transport body to receive £35m fundingA new transport body for Lancashire is to be handed £35m over four years to spend on major road and railway schemes.
• Station bike thief stopped in his tracksA bike thief has been jailed for three months after going equipped to snatch bikes at Bedford Railway Station.

Bus and Coach.com

• Unlicensed drivers on Oxford school buseSix irregularities were discovered by Thames Valley Police during a check of 12 school buses in Abingdon this week.
• First launches Hampshire customer charteFirst has introduced a customer charter for its Hampshire passengers as part of a wider effort to improve communication with bus users.
• Kent signs for improved punctualityA punctuality improvement partnership has been signed by Kent county council and the region's five main bus operators, Arriva Southern Counties, Chalkwell Coach Hire, Go-Coach Hire, Nu-Venture Coaches and Stagecoach East Kent.
• Elcock transport manager disqualifiedThe transport manager at well-known Shropshire business Elcock Reisen has been disqualified until the end of April by West Midlands traffic commissioner Nick Jones.
• Scania-ADL gas bus ready for trialsThe first example of the CNG-powered bus being developed by Scania and ADL is set to start a demonstration programme this month.

Global Rail News

• Invensys completes Welsh training challengeTwenty graduates and apprentices from Invensys Rail have completed a challenging five-day training and team building programme, working with the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railway (F&WHR) in North Wales. The group was tasked with work on the new signalling system at Porthmadog Harbour station and worked on a range of projects including the fit out [...]
• Stuttgart 21 project costs rise by €2bnDeutsche Bahn (DB) has signalled its support for the Stuttgart 21 station project, approving an additional 2 billion euros for the controversial scheme. The cost of transforming Stuttgart Central Station into an underground interchange has been scaled up to 6.5 billion euros. As well as the station works, the project includes construction of a new [...]
• Study to look into possible Mid-Cheshire line upgradeResearch is to be carried out into possible improvement works on the north west’s Mid-Cheshire line. The route, which runs from Manchester to Stockport and Chester, has seen passenger numbers rise by 66 per cent between 1998 and 2010. To ensure the line can cope with current levels of growth, a study will be carried [...]
• Crossrail track contract for Balfour BeattyBalfour Beatty has been awarded a £130 million contract to build a two-mile above-ground section of the Crossrail route in southeast London. Network Rail, which is responsible for elements of the £14.8 billion project that meet with the existing rail network, announced the contract award for the Plumstead-Abbey Wood section earlier today. Balfour Beatty Rail [...]
• Civils contracts awarded for Mechelen bypass projectA joint venture between Royal BAM Group subsidiary CEI-DE Meyer and Jan de Nul will carry out major civils work for Belgium’s Mechelen bypass project. Contracts worth 85 million euros were handed out by infrastructure owner Infrabel for construction works to the north and south of Mechelen railway station. Both contracts are part of the [...]
• Why is innovation so difficult in railways?Railways, and signalling in particular, are generally not well regarded for being innovative. Talented job applicants with a high-tech background, such as software engineering, are predictably surprised when told that mechanical computers (i.e. interlockings) are still widespread in the railway system. Even if not a mainstream technology, relay-based interlockings are still regarded by some as [...]
• Hong Kong rail operations begin move to ˜super™ control centreMTR’s East Rail Line and Ma On Shan Line services will be transferred to a new central control hub at the end of this month. The switch over is the first phase of a planned integration of heavy rail services in Hong Kong. By 2014, all commuter and regional services will be monitored from the Tsing [...]

Aviation Industry

• British Airways announces first A380 routes to LA and Hong Kong British Airways has confirmed that Los Angeles will be the launch destination for its first A380 aircraft from this October. The superjumbo will be rostered onto the Heathrow-LAX route from October 15, with tickets on sale from today.
• Meeting with the chair of the Airports Commission, debunking arguments for new runways, and contributing to the agreement of a new aircraft noise standardTim™s work this month has focused on the UN aviation discussions related to both noise and climate change. The body responsible for aviation noise issues has been considering a new noise standard for aircraft, with environmental NGOs (represented by a small team including Tim) pushing for a significant increase in noise stringency. The Committee’s final [...]
• Titan Airways adds Airbus A320 to its fleetUK charter operator Titan Airways is adding the first Airbus A320 to its fleet May 1.
• US Midwest-East Coast winter storm disrupts more than 2,000 flights A new winter storm in the US”from the Midwest and up the Northeast Coast”has disrupted travel and canceled more than 2,000 flights Tuesday and Wednesday.
• British Airways to launch A380 on Los Angeles, Hong Kong routesBritish Airways has announced it will launch its first Airbus A380”which is scheduled for delivery in July”on Los Angeles, Calif. and Hong Kong routes.
• IAG traffic falls due to Iberia strikeBritish Airways™ owner sees reduction in passenger traffic in February

Other News Sources

• A contract to refurbish tunnels underneath Heathrow Airport is up for grabs with an estimated value of between £80m and £130m. The proposed project comprises the refurbishment of both the main road tunnel and the cargo tunnel under the airport to provide new safety systems.
• Protesters against Bexhill link road due in court Eighteen protesters against a major road development are due to appear in court.
• Bus catches on fire near Pyecombe - with video A bus caught on fire as it was travelling towards Pyecombe with passengers on board.