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

Tuesday, 25 February 2014

BBC News

• Jersey airport officials told to 'look again' at demolition plansPlans to demolish Jersey airport's arrivals building will have to be rethought after the idea was rejected by the island's planning minister.
• Newcastle Airport business park plan promises 7,000 jobsNewcastle Airport bosses say plans for a massive business park on its site could create up to 7,000 jobs.
• Birmingham Airport's short runway held its development backBirmingham Airport should have extended its runway at the same time that Heathrow and Manchester did, according to its chief executive.
• Dudley street lights switch off 'to save £100,000'Street lights are to be switched off to save money under plans being considered by a West Midlands local authority.
• Aircraft makes historic final flightThe final commercial passenger flight of a DC-10 aeroplane is made from Birmingham Airport in front of enthusiasts from across the world.
• Borders railway fares revealedTransport Scotland unveils the times and prices of services on the Borders to Edinburgh railway which is due to reopen in 2015.
• Tube staff handed strike break bonusTube staff who worked during the recent 48-hour strike are awarded £25 vouchers
• A83 road re-opens after landslipThe A83 road in Argyll re-opens almost 24 hours after a landslip closed the carriageway at Butterbridge.

Financial Times

• Heathrow lifted by long-haul trafficIncreasing passenger numbers, including new routes and frequencies from China and India, and higher tariffs helped to boost airport's revenues
• Aer Lingus considers European M&A optionsAer Lingus could use its €420m of net cash to pursue M&A opportunities in the European airline sector, says Irish airline’s chief executive
• Cathay Pacific: excess baggageThe high-end passenger business is thriving, but the airline’s less glamorous cargo business is suffering from excess capacity and is becoming a drag
• Brazilian sugar group makes $3bn rail bidDeal will create Latin America’s largest rail and logistics group and aims to speed up shipments of sugar, which account for half of the global market

The Herald

• Rest and Be Thankful road closure spurs calls for actionFRESH calls have been made for action on a major road after its eighth closure in five years due to a landslide.
• Borders railway timetable and fares revealedPASSENGERS using the new Borders railway will be able to connect with early morning services direct to London.

The Telegraph

• Heathrow cutting 200 jobs to meet "draconian" CAA rulingHeathrow Airport said it is undergoing a "major" restructuring despite making its first profit since 2006.
• No more road tolling, minister pledgesThere are no 'secret plans' to introduce road tolling after the next election, roads minister Robert Goodwill claims    

Mail Online

• London tube passenger avoids battle for seat by bringing office chair on journeyThe passenger was spotted reading the paper while sitting on a black leather office chair on a Piccadilly Line train.

Network Rail

• Public event gives details of road diversion for Bedford bridge improvementMembers of the public are invited to attend an information event on a road diversion required to rebuild a rail bridge higher to help accommodate future installation of overhead line equipment.
• Network Rail achieves record 7.8% growth in station retail sales in the last quarter of 2013Network Rail has released station retail sales results showing 7.8% growth in like-for-like sales from September to December 2013 – the most successful quarter for Network Rail managed station retailers on record and a significant outperformance over high street sales (+0.6%*).

Birmingham Post

• Pictures: Birmingham Airport bids farewell to legendary DC-10 aircraft More than a thousand passengers were treated to one hour ‘scenic’ flights on the DC-10

Manchester Evening News

• Thousands of jobseekers to be given free bus and tram passesUp to 24,000 tickets will be made available to eligible jobseekers after government cash was secured to fund the scheme

Northern Echo

• Aviation Minister launches Newcastle Airport business parkWORK has started on a 7,000 jobs business park at a North-East airport.

Sheffield Telegraph

• Sheffield road signs ‘confuse’ driversDrivers could be forgiven for being a little puzzled by this pair of signs – which advise contrasting speed limits for the same road.

This Is Local London Network

• Bring your own Tube seat: is this the only way to travel on the Northern Line? Some bizarre pictures have been posted on the internet, presumably to start a new commuter craze of 'bring your own' Tube seat.

Yorkshire Post

• Free bus travel also benefits wider communityWITH reference to the article by Martin Abrams concerning concessionary bus passes (Yorkshire Post, February 18), 
my husband and I are increasingly using our bus passes both for shopping and social reasons.
• ’Bring in the top brains to develop HS2 hub’THE city of Leeds needs to be asking “the best brains in the world” to dream up a new transport interchange for HS2, the council’s chief executive has said.
• Lowering M1 speed limit ‘will damage Yorkshire economy’IMPOSING a 60mph hour limit on a stretch of the M1 motorway through South Yorkshire would be damaging to the region’s economy, the Highways Agency will be told.
• EXCLUSIVE: Yorkshire rail commuters face new parking chargesRAIL commuters across Yorkshire could see the cost of their journey to work rise again as the Government considers plans for new charges at stations in the region.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Essex: New rail station at Beaulieu and improvements to A12 and A120 to be discussed by council’s cabinetNew projects to ease traffic to and through Essex are set to be discussed by the county council’s cabinet today.

Other Regional Press

• 'Abysmal' Barton train serivce under fire - from its keenest supporters There have been so many problems on the railway line serving Barton that even the group's keenest supporters are losing patience.
• 'Only a matter of time until a car gets smashed' at car park where entrance is blocked by busesParked buses often block drivers coming out of Bakers Road undreground car park during peak times
• Investigation launched into how bus got wedged under bridge in Bath An investigation has been launched into how a two-year-old bus got stuck under a low railway bridge in Bath.
• An open letter to Prime Minister David Cameron urging major investment in the West's rail network As business leaders tell the Commons of the impact of our ruined rail network we ask David Cameron to pledge his commitment to the West's economic health
• Gold Arriva bus to celebebrate Winter Olympics victory of Lizzy Yarnold from West Kingsdown and former Maidstone Grammar School for Girls pupilA bus is being painted gold to celebrate the Winter Olympics victory of Kent's Lizzy Yarnold, it has been announced.
• 'I was trapped 11 times by controversial city bus lane camera' Narasimha Kuchimanchi has accrued more than £1,000 worth of fines by using Stoney Road bus lane, near Coventry station
• Network Rail to hold event on rebuilding of Sharnbrook bridgeMEMBERS of the public are being invited to attend an information event on a road diversion required to rebuild a rail bridge higher to help accommodate future installation of overhead line equipment.

Global Rail News

• Osbourne signals support for Euston ‘super hub’George Osbourne has hinted that plans to scale back the redevelopment of Euston Station could be reversed in order to construct a new ’super hub’ for HS2. The Chancellor said[...]
• Costain to electrify Edinburgh-Glasgow routeCostain has been awarded a £75 million contract to electrify the Edinburgh Waverly- Glasgow Queen Street line. The contract is one component of a £650 million programme of works being[...]
• PKP places orders 20 Dart trains from PesaPesa is to build 20 of its new intercity Dart trains for Polish operator PKP Intercity in an order worth 1.3 billion zÅ‚ (€313 million). Pesa Bydgoszcz has been chosen[...]
• E&M contract awarded for Taiwanese high-speed rail stationsThe electrical and mechanical systems for three new stations on Taiwan’s high-speed network are to be installed by Toshiba. The Japanese company will deliver a JPY 2.8 billion turnkey order[...]
• SJ punctuality figures reveal need for investment – FritzsonLower than expected performance figures underline the need for investment, according to the president of Swedish operator SJ. Crister Fritzson said the results highlighted the need to proceed with plans[...]
• Companies invited to prequalify for Fehmarnbelt contractFemern A/S has invited companies to apply for pre-qualification to supply the electrical and mechanical systems for a planned 18-kilometre immersed tunnel between Germany and Denmark. The fixed link tunnel,[...]

Railnews

• South west MP calls for rail resilience conference A new later train to the south west of England will leave London Paddington from tonight, in a bid to compensate for the continuing break in the main line at Dawlish. Meanwhile a Plymouth MP has called for a conference to examine ways of improving the resilience of railways in the south west. Network Rail is now predicting that repairs to the storm-damaged section at Dawlish may not be completed until mid-April, so First Great Western has introduced a new 21.35 Paddington departure.

Other News Sources

• Village bus routes might be axedThere are fears that journeys on rural bus routes around the county could be axed, and fares could rise, after £240,000 cuts by East Riding Council.
• 'I wouldn't a bus driver in Cambridge - it's too congested' says Andy Campbell, managing director of Stagecoach CambridgeshireThe managing director of Stagecoach Cambridgeshire has said he couldn’t be a bus driver in Cambridge – because of the terrible congestion.
• East Lancashire teenager in miracle escape after falling under train A TEENAGER suffered serious injuries after falling onto a railway track into the path of an oncoming train.