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

Monday, 02 December 2013

BBC News

• Eamonn Holmes lets fly over Belfast airport's new taxi systemTV presenter Eamonn Holmes has been left fuming at George Best Belfast City Airport after changes were made to the taxi system.
• Great Central Railway bids for £10m lottery cashA team hoping to create a new railway museum in Leicester has submitted a bid for £10m to the Heritage Lottery Fund.
• West Sussex council considering resurfacing minor roadsWest Sussex County Council has said it is "seriously considering" spending millions of pounds on resurfacing unclassified roads.
• Life on the Line [Audio]A special report into the hundreds of lives lost on Britain's rail and tube networks each year.
• Virgin Trains releases proposed Shropshire to London timetableDetails of a proposed timetable for a new direct rail link between Shropshire and London have been released.
• Tube staff to start strike voteLondon Underground workers will start voting this week on whether to launch New Year strikes in protest at job cuts and Tube ticket office closures.
• 'Fewer commuters' cycling to workOne in five cyclists in London say they have stopped cycling to work following a recent spate of deaths on the capital's roads, a poll for BBC London finds.
• Saab to resume making cars in SwedenSaab will restart production on Monday as the firm's new owners look to get the carmaker back on track, two years after it went bankrupt.
• 'Most still commute by car' to workThe vast majority of people in England and Wales - more than six in 10 - still commute to work by car rather than public transport or cycling, according to a new report.

Financial Times

• Japan to take up China air zone with USWhile Japanese politicians will raise their concerns over China’s new air defence zone with the US, their citizens are largely unperturbed
• Four dead as New York metro train derailsSenator raises questions about adequacy of equipment, tracks and maintenance and repair practices after crash in which over 60 are injured
• Rail operator’s record in the spotlightDespite long-term concerns over investment levels, rail remains a far safer means of travel around greater New York than the region’s roads

The Guardian

• Andrew Cuomo announces probe into New York train derailmentGovernor counts out curve in track and previous derailment as factors after four are killed and 63 injured in train accidentThe governor of New York state, Andrew Cuomo, has announced the beginning of a potentially lengthy investigation into the derailment of a passenger train, in which four people were killed. The incident, which occurred outside Spuyten Duyvil station in the Bronx borough of New York City at 7.20am on Sunday, also left 63 people injured, 11 of them critically.The New York Fire Department coordinated a rescue effort involving hundreds of firefighters, police and railway worke...
• Over 1,000 cyclists stage die-in protest outside Transport for London HQUpset by the recent road deaths across the capital and the way the finger of blame seems to be pointing at them, London cyclists took to the streets to call for greater investment in road safety

The Independent

• Engineering HS2: Andrew McNaughton is the man whose job is on the line For a man with the weight of the country's largest infrastructure project since the construction of the M25 on his shoulders, Andrew McNaughton doesn't seem overly concerned about intense political pressure, angry protests or budget over-runs.    

The Telegraph

• Britain's road signs could disappear under EU plansStandard road signs could be introduced across the EU to enable a new 'intelligent' form of car to read signs and help cut deaths    

Mail Online

• How 12m tonnes of rock and soil dumped on the Chilterns from HS2 will 'desecrate area of outstanding beauty'Protestors claim plans to redistribute surplus materials in the Chilterns, south east England, pictured, will 'desecrate' the area of 'precious natural heritage'.

The Mirror

• More motorists driven into hardship by relying on the car to commute to work Some 16.7m workers - six out of 10 of those in employment - in England and Wales get to work either by driving themselves or catching a lift

Bolton News

• Worried parents call for afternoon school bus WORRIED parents are urging transport bosses to bring in an afternoon school service so their children are not “wandering the streets in the dark”.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Fake car crash scam 'worst in country' Three Bradford postcodes are in the top five ‘crash for cash’ list of shame with one declared the worst in the UK, it was revealed today.

London Evening Standard

• I've never felt in danger on London's roads, says Cycling Minister Robert GoodwillThe Cycling Minister said today he saw both very good and very bad infrastructure on a ride around the capital but denied he felt in danger at any time.
• Thousands of cyclists lie down in the road for rush hour protest outside TfL's Blackfriars HQMore than 1,000 cyclists lay sprawled across a central London road this evening in protest at dangerous traffic conditions.
• Four dead as train derails A New York City commuter train has derailed on a sharp bend, killing four people and injuring dozens more.

Northern Echo

• Darlington Borough Council leader unconvinced over HS2A NORTH East council leader has questioned whether the government’s HS2 high-speed rail project will benefit the region at all.

Wales Online

• Welsh bus cuts could end up costing more than they saveOperators and councils fear the Welsh Governments free bus cuts could cost more than they save
• How Wales is more dependent on cars than England - and cycles less tooWales is considerably more dependent on the car than England despite high profile campaigns to encourage people to walk or cycle to work

Yorkshire Post

• MPs to meet Energy Secretary in bid to land £210m port planTWO Hull MPs are to hold crunch talks with Energy Secretary Ed Davey tomorrow to seek assurances over plans to lure engineering giant Siemens to the city for a multi-million-pound green energy development.

The Shields Gazette

• Siemens jobs are safe for nowTHE jobs axe is not set to fall at a major South Tyneside engineering firm for at least a year after plans were unveiled to switch work to India.

Other Regional Press

• Second evening of frustrated queuing at Bath railway station Bath Spa railway station was engulfed by frustrated queueing passengers for the second time in a week last night. Unprecedented queues formed in front of the station as people leaving the city after shopping at the Christmas Market or watching Bath Rugby's clash with Exeter went to go home.

Other News Sources

• Winchester 'cycle hub' proposed at town forum A WINCHESTER cycling campaigner has called for a 'bike hub' in the city centre.
• Winchester civic chiefs to hold public meeting over revamp plans for railway station area THE Winchester public must be involved at the early stages of a potentially massive redevelopment of the railway station area, the town forum heard last night.
• Train companies defend plans to build bigger Winchester rail station car park TRAIN companies have defended parking restrictions introduced after the start of building a bigger car park at Winchester railway station.