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

Wednesday, 12 June 2013

BBC News

• Network Rail told by regulator to cut costs by £2bn Network Rail has been told by the rail regulator that it must find savings of £2bn over the next five years.
• Bereaved parents' cycle helmet pleaThe death of a 17-year-old keen BMX biker rider highlights the need for cyclists to always wear helmets, say his parents.
• Passenger numbers rise at airportsEdinburgh Airport records its busiest-ever May after handling more than 906,000 passengers last month.
• Transport 2020 vision: funds pitch?Is mayor's 2020 vision a funding pitch?
• Passenger numbers rise at airportsGlasgow Airport reports a rise in passenger numbers over the past year.

Financial Times

• IAG paves way for first dividendAgreement on payouts between subsidiary British Airways and pension scheme trustees may see cash being returned to shareholders at the parent group

The Guardian

• The truth about Richard Branson's Virgin Rail profits I once called Richard Branson a carpetbagger. A new report reveals that I was correct to say he built his business empire with millions from the taxpayers – only it's worse than I thought
• Boris Johnson sets out his '2020 vision for London' Mayor calls for greater financial autonomy, more investment in transport and the right for councils to borrow to build new homes
• Freight expectations [letter]As current chair of What, an organisation set up in the early 1970s as West Hampstead Action on Traffic to oppose the motorway "box" in London, I could hardly believe that supporters of that doomed enterprise, which would have decimated the inner suburbs, still existed.
• Mont Saint-Michel workers on strike in transport row Tourists visit for free as workers on pictureque French islet rail against rising car park costs and shuttle bus service

The Independent

• Capital's transport links help entrepreneurs New and growing companies are being encouraged to spread out across the capital thanks to better transport links

The Telegraph

• Mayor gets yellow line suspendedA mayor has had the yellow line outside her home suspended by a council which has launched a major push to maximise fine income from parking and moving traffic offences.    

Network Rail

• Network Rail bridge improvements move a step closer for Burton LatimerNetwork Rail will shortly start rebuilding Finedon Station Road bridge as part of a £70m investment to speed up journey times on the Midland Main Line between London and Sheffield.

Belfast Telegraph

• Network Rail 'must cut spending' Debt-ridden Network Rail (NR) has been told by regulators that it must shave nearly £2 billion from spending plans over the next five years and meet new punctuality targets.

Derby Telegraph

• Derby Telegraph commented Historical Handyside railway bridge gets new lease of lifeA RAILWAY footbridge built in Derby more than 120 years ago for London's King's Cross station has been restored and given a new home.The structure was built by Andrew Handyside and Co in 1892 and installed at the station a year later.But in 2008, it had to be removed to make way for redevelopment work.As a grade one listed structure, English Heritage stipulated to Network Rail that it had to find a suitable alternative use for the bridge.That new home is at Mid-Hants Railway's Watercress...

London Evening Standard

• Crossrail 2 is vital for 'golden age', says London Mayor Boris JohnsonBoris Johnson set out his plans today for a “golden age” of transport to take London into the next decade and beyond.

Sheffield Star

• Train station firm reveals success in cutting its wasteDoncaster railway station operator East Coast has beaten its carbon footprint targets more than a year ahead of its deadline.
• Sheffield faith school bus passes will goHundreds of children at Sheffield faith schools are set to have their discretionary free bus passes withdrawn from September.

The York Press

• Lendal Bridge closure petition tops 900 A PETITION opposing plans to close a York bridge to cars and motorbikes has topped 900 signatures.
• Former Lord Mayor backs NRM campaign A FORMER Lord Mayor and train driver – who drove the iconic Mallard in the 1950s – has thrown his full support behind The Press’s campaign to save the National Railway Museum.
• Archbishop backs campaign to save NRM THE Archbishop of York has thrown his support behind the campaign to save the National Railway Museum.

Wales Online

• Clayton Jones: 'I’ve still got the bug to run buses’ Businessman whose company went into liquidation is applying for a licence to operate eight buses in the South Wales area

Bucks Free Press

• Chesham station car park to close this weekend THE car park at Chesham railway station will be closed at the weekend after Transport for London agreed to take over its operation.

Plymouth Herald

• Next phase of revamp of Plymouth train station begins THE next phase of work to improve access to "transform" Plymouth Railway Station will begin later this month, it has been announced.

Other Regional Press

• Outrage over bus 'prioritising' COUNCILLORS in Middlewich have hit back at Cheshire East Council’s ’unfair’ prioritising of bus services in the borough.
• Bus lane work to close key route into Leicester Drivers face extensive diversions when a key route into Leicester will be closed for six weeks as part of a £5 million bus route improvement scheme.
• Heathrow expansion ruled out at White Waltham AN MP has received reassurances a airfield will not be transformed into an airport as part of plans for the future of air travel in the South East.
• Skegness railway stations’s new Jolly Fisherman statue to be in place by autumnA popular mascot which has welcomed visitors into the town for many years is set to receive the face lift he desperately deserves.

Global Rail News

• New stations open on Milan-Bologna high-speed lineThree new railway stations including the stunning Reggio Emilia AV Mediopadana stop have opened on Italy’s Milan-Bologna high-speed line. The first phase of the Bologna Centrale redevelopment and the city’s[...]
• Joint venture chosen to oversee Great Western electrificationAtkins and Parsons Brinckerhoff have been chosen by Network Rail to lead the planned electrification works on the Great Western Mainline. The joint venture will install around 20,000 overhead line[...]
• Eurostar won’t be affected by French union strikes, says operatorEurostar has said that its services “should not” be affected by planned strikes across the French rail network. Union members in France have proposed industrial action from 20.00 Wednesday, June[...]
• National Railway Museum seeks Mallard crewAs the countdown continues to the 75th anniversary celebrations of Mallard breaking the world steam speed record the National Railway Museum is trying to find the drivers and other crew that worked on the world’s fastest locomotive. The Museum plans a Drivers Day in October. Several members of the crews that worked on the footplates [...]

Railnews

• Major rail links at heart of airport proposals Major railway links are included in Birmingham Airport’s ambitions to build a second runway as a boost to its long-haul capacity. The proposals include People Mover links to the future HS2 station and also a reopened Stonebridge Railway. A plan to restore this line, which would run from a junction near Coleshill Parkway to a second connection between Birmingham International and Hampton-in-Arden, was unveiled last week.

Aviation Industry

• Heathrow sets new passenger record despite BA emergencyUK’s hub airport carries 6.1 million passengers in May despite disruption from emergency landing
• France air traffic strike shortened by one dayOriginal three-day industrial action is cut to a 48-hour stoppage

Other News Sources

• Boris pitches for transport cash with grand plan BORIS Johnson yesterday made a bold pitch for investment in London’s infrastructure as he continues to battle with the Treasury over funding for the capital’s transport system