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

Friday, 15 November 2013

BBC News

• Durham Tees Valley Airport plan promises 4,000 jobsUp to 4,000 jobs are being promised as part of a long-term redevelopment of Durham Tees Valley Airport (DTVA).
• Ipswich Tower Ramparts bus station to reopen at weekendIpswich's Tower Ramparts bus station is to reopen on Saturday after refurbishment.
• £30m investment in bus link between Sheffield and RotherhamAbout £30m is to be invested in improving bus links between Sheffield and Rotherham, it has been announced.
• VIDEO: Shipyards: 'In for a very bumpy ride'A union convener at a Glasgow shipyard says BAE workers are
• Cycle deaths leave London bewilderedMany Londoners are bewildered by cycle deaths
• Fifth cyclist killed in nine daysA fifth person in nine days is killed while cycling on London's roads.
• Prestwick Airport passengers rise 5%Passenger numbers at Glasgow Prestwick Airport were up 5% in October compared to the corresponding month last year.
• BAE to cut jobs 'over three years'BAE Systems tells staff at its UK shipyards that 1,775 job losses will be phased in over the next three years.
• Volkswagen recalls 2.6 million carsGerman carmaker Volkswagen announces a recall of about 2.6 million cars worldwide, including 640,000 in China, a crucial growth market.

ITV News

• National Express workers welcome Nick CleggDeputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg stopped to chat with National Express workers as he took a tour of the firm's Birmingham base.

Financial Times

• Call for review of London cycling safetyUK cycling charity says riders are sickened by the contining failure to protect them in the capital, after a fifth cyclist in a week is killed

The Guardian

• Boris Johnson blames cycling victims and ignores the bull in the china shop | Peter WalkerThe London mayor has done a lot for cycling in the capital, but seems wilfully oblivious to the real danger: lorriesThe paradox of Boris Johnson, not for the first time, unfairly blaming poor cycling for a spate of deaths which could more realistically be tied to the patchy bike infrastructure he oversaw, is that London's mayor is otherwise arguably the best cycling champion in British politics.He does use a battered hybrid bike as his habitual London transport, not as a Cameron-style photo opportunity. Last week when Johnson opened a revamped section of the so-called cycle superhighway, in th...

The Independent

• After fifth death in nine days, Mayor Boris Johnson urges safer cycling Boris Johnson has faced calls to review London’s cycling “superhighways” while personally urging cyclists to obey the “laws of the road”, after a fifth cyclist was killed in the space of nine days on the streets of the capital.    

Liberal Democrat Party

• Opinion: Heathrow expansion: big money versus public healthThis week’s ’advertorials’ from Heathrow Hub were just the latest example of the role big money plays in the so-called aviation ’debate’ in West London.

Network Rail

• New bridge coming to Gravesend stationThis weekend, Gravesend station will get its first new footbridge since the 1800s.

Birmingham Mail

• London cycling deaths: Five killed in last nine daysLatest incident last night sees death toll rise to 13 cyclists so far this year, as calls strengthen for urgent action on road safety

Edinburgh Evening News

• Comment: ’Not all air passengers are executives’Under the careful stewardship of Gordon Dewar, Edinburgh Airport has become one of the city’s great strengths. Dozens of new routes have opened up over the last decade offering greater passenger choice. The new security area offers a speedy and welcoming service and the shopping and retail offer has been greatly enhanced.
• Airport parking soars to £1 for five minutesAN Edinburgh car park which charges irate parkers nearly £1 for just five minutes is one of the most expensive in Britain. The cost of parking at the airport short stay has just been hiked to a colossal £2.90 for a 15-minute stay, making it the most expensive in Scotland, and comparable with London City and Luton airports.
• Council hails public’s Twitter transport questionsA NEW series of Twitter ­sessions with council chiefs was launched yesterday – prompting a flurry of 140-character questions from ­Edinburgh voters.

Manchester Evening News

• MAG and Monarch team up to grow routesManchester Airports Group and Monarch have agreed a plan to grow routes and passenger numbers.

Sunderland Echo

• Washington and Sunderland MP blasts East Coast rail sell offA WEARSIDE MP has blasted the Government’s handling of the East Coast Main Line privatisation.

Other Regional Press

• Rotherham: Bus journeys between Sheffield and Rotherham are set to improve thanks to £16m fundingBus journeys between Sheffield and Rotherham are set to improve thanks to new funding which has been confirmed today (Thursday).
• Rochdale Transport Interchange opensRochdale’s new transport interchange opens its doors to the public on Sunday 17 November.
• Demolition of Northampton’s Greyfriars bus station is approvedThe demolition of the Greyfriars bus station has been approved by Northampton Borough Council’s cabinet.

Bus and Coach.com

• South Yorks BRT gets fundingTransport minister Susan Kramer has announced £16million of funding for the planned bus rapid transit service between Rotherham and Sheffield which will also serve proposed development sites in the Lower Don Valley.
• Lower weight Leopard for Euro 6The new Euro 6 Plaxton Leopard is no heavier than the Euro 5 model which it will replace.
• Mechanics CPC rule to be scrappedA rule forcing mechanics to hold a Certificate of Professional Competence so they can drive buses is to be scrapped.
• NatEx seniors discount trialHolders of senior citizen's concessionary bus passes in Southampton can now get a 20 per cent discount on National Express coach fares.

Campaign for Better Transport

• New Combe Haven film is an inspiration for road campaignersFrom the Granny Tree to George Osborne's country house: watch an inspiring and informative short film about the campaigns against the Bexhill-Hastings Link Road. read more

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• £16 million bus package for YorkshireA £16 million package will be used in Yorkshire to update bus services.
• DfT details Q3 road reliability statisticsFigures on road reliability and congestion between July and September have been released by the Department for Transport (DfT) today (November 14th).
• Electrification planned for Manchester's railwayNetwork Rail is set to electrify rail around Manchester and the north-east this Christmas season.

Global Rail News

• Less than a month to go until 125 mph running on Midland MainlineEast Midlands Trains is preparing for the launch of its quicker services, with less than a month to go until the start of regular 125 mph running on the Midland[...]
• ‘EcoTram’ on test in ViennaA new energy-efficient ’EcoTram’ is undergoing live testing along the streets of Vienna. The Siemens-built light rail vehicle (LRV), which will operate on Line 62 until the end of May[...]
• Big reveal for first Aubagne tramAlstom has unveiled the first of a new fleet of Citadis Compact trams, complete with distinctive livery, for the city of Aubagne. City dignitaries and artist Hervé Di Rosa were[...]

Railnews

• Southeastern stays on -- for now The Department for Transport has agreed a six month extension to the Southeastern franchise, as it continues its bid to untangle the franchise programme following the collapse of the West Coast competition in October last year. The agreement includes the continuation of the high speed Javelin service between London, Sandwich and Deal, which had been thought to be under threat.

Aviation Industry

• IAM members reject Boeing deal; 777X may be built outside Washington state Boeing union workers in Washington state have voted to reject a proposed labor contract extension, casting doubt on whether the 777X will be built at Boeing Commercial Airplanes’ facilities in the Seattle area. read more
• Asian carriers urged to speak with one voice on global aviation policiesAsia-Pacific airlines are being held back on global aviation policy-making because they do not have the advantage of speaking with a single voice the way European Union countries and the US do, airline CEOs were told Friday. read more
• Singapore Airlines to increase baggage allowancesAsian carrier also announces increased profits but warns on yields
• Ryanair to boost UK-Dublin capacityAirline says it will add flights to six British airports from Irish capital
• BA fears cuts to early morning Heathrow flightsAirline makes warning despite extension of existing night flight regime
• Easyjet tests ash cloud avoidance systemNo-frills carrier uses artificial ash cloud to test onboard detector

Other News Sources

• Police tackle bother on the busesPOLICE and transport bosses in South Yorkshire have teamed up to tackle anti-social behaviour in a bid to prevent incidents on public transport, at bus stops and interchanges.
• Travel Better London posters by McBessOver the last few weeks, we've noticed some rather special 'tube courtesy' posters running on the London Underground network, each of which bears the inky hallmarks of one man and one man only: illustrator Matthieu Bessudo aka McBess...
• No trains from Sleaford to Lincoln next week East Midlands Trains has announced that from Monday, November 18, until Friday, November 22, the train service will not run.
• Eurostar trains will have on-board WiFi in 2014 as part of £700 Million overhaulParis & London might as well be one city, when you figure that a train ride from the center of Paris to the center of London takes just two hours, leaves every hour, and, with the one-hour time-zone change, only makes you lose an hour in your day; however, that two hour train ride gets pretty long for commuters, who are necessarily roaming in the beginning or that end half of their journey. This trans-chunnel train ride might get a little smoother, as Nomad Digital announced it has signed a contract with Siemens to provide Eurostar trains with on-board wifi.
• New 'London Britannia Airport' to be on man-made island? - USA TodayA six-runway airport could be built in the Thames River estuary about 50 miles east of central London. That's the idea being floated by a consortium formed by London Mayor Boris Johnson, part of an effort to solve London's aviation capacity crunch. The group thinks an airport could be built within seven years at a price tag of about £47.3 billion ($76 billion).
• Heathrow Airport reveals five-year procurement plan Heathrow Airport’s procurement team is implementing a category management approach, improved supplier-relationship management (SRM) and a push on sustainability over the next five years.
• The Barking to Gospel Oak Rail User Group was recognised at an award ceremony this monthA rail user group has been recognised for its tireless campaign work. The Barking to Gospel Oak Rail User Group received the award for Best Campaign at this month’s Railfuture Rail User Groups Awards 2013.
• Accessible Transport Is Good for EveryonePublic transport is an essential part of the infrastructure of any civilised society and therefore if disabled people are to achieve full equality as contributing citizens, it is important that public transport is as accessible as it can be, and by this I do not just mean wheelchair access but also a whole range of features so that transport is accessible to a wide range of people with differing impairments.