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

Thursday, 20 February 2014

BBC News

• Luton-Dunstable busway vehicle crashes through fenceThree people have been injured after a bus crashed through fencing on the Luton to Dunstable busway, an ambulance service spokesman confirmed.
• Nearly 100 subsidised bus routes cut in Wales in 2011-14Nearly 100 subsidised bus routes have been scrapped by councils in Wales in the past three years, with further cuts expected as authorities make savings.
• £189m deal for free bus pass schemeWales' free bus travel scheme has been awarded £189m funding for the next three years by the Welsh government.
• Condor ferry strike ends after two weeksCrew who have been occupying a Condor ferry in St Malo, France, in a row over pay and conditions will return to work after they agreed new terms.
• A9 speed camera plans delayed and scaled backPlans to install average speed cameras on the A9 have been scaled back and delayed due to technical problems.
• Escalator fall commuter receives apologyA commuter who fell after a railway station escalator developed a fault has received an apology.
• Lincolnshire M11 extension will 'stay in dreamland'The president of the AA believes it is "very unlikely" that the M11 motorway will be extended through Lincolnshire.

Financial Times

• Asia aviation financing takes offLenders’ margins are squeezed as Asian banks and leasing groups muscle in on the once-sleepy business previously dominated by western rivals

The Telegraph

• South West Trains: worst response ever to a pregnant woman's plight?After a pregnant Victoria Poskitt, 40, was forced to sit on the floor of a train because South West Trains refused her access to an empty first class carriage, Louisa Peacock tried to get the company to change its mind. This is SWT's full response    
• Network Rail: Dawlish rail line may not reopen before 'mid-April'Network Rail warns that the flood-hit rail track in Dawlish, which has effectively cut off parts of the south west from the rest of the country, may not reopen before 'mid-April'    

Mail Online

• The great train reunion! Fastest ever steam locomotive is back with its five 'sisters' for first time in half a centuryTwo of the Class A4 locomotives, which weigh more than 100 tons, made the epic journey across the Atlantic to the National Railway Museum at Shildon, County Durham, for the reunion.
• Video shows pilot struggling to land Boeing 767 plane in winds at Birmingham airportThe pilot successfully manages to control the plane, but can't prevent it from bouncing hard on the tarmac, sending up clouds of smoke from the landing gear.

Network Rail

• Plans submitted to improve the railway between Manchester and Liverpool as part of Northern HubNetwork Rail has submitted plans for a new section of railway near Huyton station as part of the £600m Northern Hub investment to provide faster, more frequent services across the north of England.
• Dawlish railway restoration updateFollowing the latest severe storms last weekend, Network Rail has updated its estimate of the time it will take to restore the railway at Dawlish. It has now advised that the railway will be repaired by mid-April and that it will be working night and day with dedicated resources to accelerate this programme.

Bolton News

• MPs and rail operators in talks on train overcrowding BOLTON’S train overcrowding has been the subject of a meeting between MPs Julie Hilling and Yasmin Qureshi and railway operators.

Lincolnshire Echo

• Hundreds stuck at Lincoln city centre train crossings Hundreds of people are stuck at the Lincoln city centre train barriers as they have been down for almost thirty minutes.

London Evening Standard

• First supermarket 'click and collect' opens at Rayners Lane Tube stationTesco opened its first outlet for Tube travellers today, allowing them to pick up their groceries on their way home.
• After leading Tube strike, Bob Crow plans to stand as MEP for 'Left-wing Ukip alternative' Tube union chief Bob Crow has confirmed he will stand as a candidate in this May’s European elections.

Wales Online

• Devolution of rail network franchise 'must be won' to improve network, AMs toldFormer Presiding Officer Dafydd Elis-Thomas said it was 'crucial' devolution of powers was negotiated to improve the rail network

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Video - Terrifying moment plane struggles to land at Birmingham AirportThis is the terrifying moment that a pilot struggles to land his aircraft in high winds at Birmingham Airport.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Bid to ease traffic with new Leeds park-and-ride sitePLANS have been announced for another major park-and-ride site in Leeds.
• Blind man’s call for ‘Talking Bus’ role for all Leeds driversA frustrated blind bus user has launched a campaign calling for drivers to announce the stops on routes around the city.

Carlisle News & Star

• Rail services delayed in Cumbria after landslip A landslip is caused delays to trains coming into Carlisle today.

Other Regional Press

• Double number of Heathrow night flights recommendedTHE Airports Commission plans to recommend more than double the number of night flights into Heathrow from next year, the 2M Group of councils has revealed.
• Show of support for Tallington bypass campaignMore than 750 people have signed a petition calling for a council to help fund a bridge over a level crossing.
• Cradley Heath - the town that Network Rail forgotCRADLEY Heath is the town Network Rail forgot as the level crossing is still closed six weeks after the accident which closed it.
• Pressure ramps up on Network Rail over Oxford railway bridge design planNETWORK Rail has been warned its refusal to put ramps on a new bridge could damage its relationship with Oxford City Council.
• Your questions answered about the new North Gate bus stationThe new bus station in Northampton will open on March 1 and the rights and wrongs, theories and conspiracies have been whirring round the town ever since the plan was first announced.
• Two teenagers assaulted by man who objected to them playing music on Stagecoach bus in AshfordTwo 13-year-old boys have been attacked by a man on a bus who objected to them playing music.
• Plan to counter mass shortage of car spacesA council’s car park could increase in capacity by 50 per cent.

Bus and Coach.com

• First proposes New Bus for Leeds Following the announcement of an April start date for the public inquiry into the planned Leeds trolleybus route, the city's main bus operator, First, has come up with an imaginative alternative using a New Bus for Leeds, developed from the Wrightbus-built Borismaster.
• Gas buses enter Sunderland serviceStagecoach's biomethane-powered Scanias are now entering service on two routes in Sunderland.
• Stagecoach wins Ryder Cup contractStagecoach is to provide 150 double-deck buses to carry spectators to the 2014 Ryder Cup, which is being held at Gleneagles in September.
• McLoughlin praises weather responseFollowing the bad weather which has affected parts of southern England transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin chaired what the government calls “an urgent resilience meeting” with bus and coach operators to ensure that extra services are in place to reduce the impact of severe weather, and to plan for other services that may be needed if the adverse conditions continue.

Global Rail News

• Copenhagen Airport considering high-speed rail stationAn expansion of Copenhagen Airport (CPH) could include building a new high-speed rail station, according to chief executive Thomas Woldbye. Presenting a 25-year masterplan for the airport’s future, Woldbye said[...]
• New tram enters service in KonyaThe first of a fleet of new trams ordered by the Turkish city of Konya has entered revenue service. A total of 60 28T light rail vehicles are being built[...]
• Joint venture completes Bond Street handoverA Costain Skanska joint venture (CSJV) has handed over Bond Street’s Western Ticket Hall Box in central London six weeks ahead of schedule. Bond Street, which will open to passengers[...]
• NS still suffering from Fyra withdrawalDutch rail operator NS recorded a loss of €43 million in 2013 as the company continues to look for a solution to the Fyra crisis. A depreciation in the V250[...]

Aviation Industry

• APD ‘harming’ NI economy, says IAG chief Willie WalshWalsh said Air Passenger Duty is harming airport growth

Other News Sources

• Lawyers earn more than £3m from HS2The government has already spent over £3m on legal fees for High Speed 23 – even though construction work will not get underway until 2017.
• MP calls for alternative Brighton mainline route - the Arundel Chord MP Nick Herbert has made a renewed call for Network Rail to install an alternative route for passengers on the Brighton mainline after widespread flooding caused travel chaos this week.
• Deutsche Bahn delays high-speed London to Frankfurt rail projectTrain operator postpones plans due to technical issues