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

Tuesday, 02 July 2013

BBC News

• Great Central Railway link appeal raises £100,000 An appeal to link two East Midlands heritage rail lines has raised £100,000 in just two weeks.
• Haulage firms in free M6 Toll trialAbout 450 haulage firms start a trial scheme to enable them to use the M6 Toll road for free for a month.
• BA testing electronic luggage tagsBritish Airways is launching a trial of luggage tags made from electronic paper.
• HS2 timetable 'complete madness'The timetable for completing the HS2 railway is
• Public transport learns from F1How public transport is learning the secrets of F1
• VIDEO: F1 technology helping train companiesTrain and bus companies are using Formula One-inspired technology to improve services.

Financial Times

• Iata calls for more airline consolidationThe sector’s representative body urged governments to take a more relaxed approach over global airline mergers as earnings remain weak
• EasyJet investors set to back jet orderSir Stelios Haji-Ioannou threatens to hold airline’s directors to account should decision to order 135 aircraft damage shareholder value
• Laptops hit economic argument for HS2Alliance opposing project says £21bn of forecast £48bn economic benefits depend on assumption that passengers do not work while on trains

The Herald

• Direct bus route to city airportA DIRECT bus service between Glasgow city centre and Edinburgh Airport has been launched.
• Airline imposes tighter bag rulesTIGHTER cabin bag rules take effect on a major low-fare airline from today.

The Scotsman

• Edinburgh set to crack down on shoddy road repairsEDINBURGH is believed to be the first local authority area in Scotland to announce an inspection of every road-work site as part of a crackdown on utility firms which carry out shoddy repairs.

The Telegraph

• John Lewis prepares for take-off with store at Heathrow Terminal 2Retailer plans store at Heathrow's new Terminal 2 in preparation for the day it

Network Rail

• Thorne South station to be fully accessible when line reopensPassengers using Thorne South station will find a fully accessible footbridge linking the platforms when the line reopens to rail services on 8 July. A temporary stepped structure which was installed in January to replace a level crossing has been replaced with a purpose-built bridge which has both steps and ramps.
• Two south London road bridges to be improvedWork is to take place on two south London bridges which will extend their working life and reduce the need for future maintenance.
• £400m Edinburgh-Glasgow electrification work out to tender
• Improving level crossing safety at Four Ends LanePedestrians and motorists using Four Ends Lane level crossing near Hoscar, Lancashire now have safer journeys after an upgrade to the level crossing in the village.
• Have your say: Designs for bridge at High Street level crossingNetwork Rail is holding two days of public events in Lincoln next week to seek comments on proposed designs for a new footbridge over the level crossing at Lincoln High Street.

London Evening Standard

• Network Rail chiefs' £5.8m bonus plans under firePlans to award the top five directors of Network Rail millions of pounds in bonuses over the next three years will be discussed in detail tomorrow.
• Transport chiefs defend HS2 after MPs claim project was 'project plucked out of the air'Whitehall transport chiefs today defended the cost of, and need for, HS2 as MPs claimed the high-speed rail scheme was a "project plucked out of the air".

Wales Online

• Train punctuality improves as Welsh line tests new EU signalling system The drivers must wear dark shirts to stop any glare interfering with the computer screen's visibility as the train constantly 'talks' to signalling centre
• Cardiff's motorists face crackdown on driving offences using CCTV on buses CCTV cameras mounted to buses and cars could be used to catch and fine motorists who commit minor traffic offences

Yorkshire Post

• HS2 rail link to create jobs for 89,000The new high-speed rail link between Yorkshire and London will directly create nearly 90,000 jobs, a new report claims as transport bosses were forced to defend the spiralling cost of the scheme.

Blackpool Gazette

• Branson praises Gazette readers’ rail link support Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson today praised the thousands of Gazette readers who have backed our campaign to restore Blackpool’s direct rail link with London, and vowed: “We will keep fighting”.
• Sale raises questions over airport futureBosses at Blackpool Airport have played down speculation owner Balfour Beatty could sell the hub after it offloaded Exeter Airport.
• Rail link bid ‘a multi million pound call’The Fylde coast will lose out on millions of pounds in business and tourism if the direct rail link between Blackpool and London is not restored, commerce chiefs warned today.

Other Regional Press

• Heathrow will top conference agenda Thames Valley Property Forum will look at how to tackle Heathrow issue
• Northern interchange at Reading Station will open next Monday It will be all change for bus passengers and pedestrians on Monday, July 8, with the opening of the new northern interchange at Reading Station.
• MP hits out at Northampton’s ˜third world" roadsA Northampton MP has 
applied for more money from the treasury to fund more 
resurfacing and repairs on the “third world” roads in his 
constituency.
• M62 managed motorway scheme set to go live next monthA £150m managed motorway scheme is now in the fast lane and set to go live next month.

Bus and Coach.com

• BSOG survives chancellor's cutsThe bus industry got off lightly in last week's government spending round.
• Metro plans for autumn QP consultationPlans by Metro, the West Yorkshire PTE, to adopt a new approach to the region's bus network continue to make slow progress.
• Healthy figures from StagecoachRevenue at Stagecoach Group for the year to 30 April 2013 was £2,8million, up 8,3 per cent on the 2012 figure of: £2,6million.
• New look for First express servicesFirst has launched a new dark blue livery for buses used on express services.

Campaign for Better Transport

• What the Spending Round means for buses1 July 2013: We have been campaigning very hard over the last few months, making the case for buses to MPs of all parties. This is quite simple to spell out; the hard part is getting people to listen in the first instance. read more

Global Rail News

• Huddersfield wins IMechE Railway Challenge Newcomers Huddersfield University won the second IMechE Railway Challenge held on June 29-30 at the Stapleford Miniature Railway near Melton Mowbray. David Shirres reports

Aviation Industry

• Finnair to join British Airways’ Japanese ventureOneworld member plans to become part of BA-JAL joint business
• Stelios to vote against Easyjet’s Airbus orderAirline’s founder warns directors they will be “held to account” if order backfires

Other News Sources

• New bus service boost for Marwell Wildlife MARWELL Wildlife visitors are the first to benefit from new South Downs National Park funding.