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

Wednesday, 12 March 2014

BBC News

• Bob Crow: The union leader everyone had heard ofBob Crow, who has died at the age of 52, was an intensely divisive figure. But he was easily the best-known trade unionist in the UK.
• Mail Rail to open as tourist rideThe London Post Office Railway to open up
• Passenger numbers rise at airportsPassenger numbers at Scotland's three main airports rose last month, according to new figures.
• Cathay Pacific profits rise 204%Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific airways posts a 204% increase in profits in 2013 to $335m, as demand for flights to southern China increases.

Financial Times

• Government spends £63m on homes blighted by HS2More than 500 homeowners apply to have their property bought under the government’s exceptional hardship scheme
• Aircraft mystery deepens as search shiftsSearch for missing Malaysia Air flight is extended but Air force chief denies saying that military radar located flight near Malacca Strait

The Guardian

• Bob Crow, RMT leader, dies of suspected heart attack at 52Fellow unionists and politicians, including Boris Johnson, pay tribute to union leader who was 'a fighter and a character'Figures across the political spectrum have paid tribute to Bob Crow, whose sudden death has deprived the union movement of arguably its most colourful and successful modern leader.Crow, the general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, died aged 52 early on Tuesday morning at Whipps Cross hospital in Leytonstone, east London, after reportedly suffering an aneurysm and a heart attack.He had been the RMT's leader since 2001, growing a reputation as a mili...
• Confusion over last known movements of missing Malaysia Airlines planeSearch efforts switch focus to different area of ocean, with crew's personal problems among areas of inquiry The mystery, confusion and disarray surrounding the missing Malaysia Airlines plane worsened on Tuesday, after a military official suggested the aircraft had not only been turned around but had flown back across the Malay peninsula.Flight MH370 was bound for Beijing when it vanished in the early hours of Saturday with 239 on board. Until Tuesday, the last known contact with the flight was thought to be at about 1.20am – 40 minutes after take-off from Kuala Lumpur – after the plane cross...

The Herald

• Bid to cut road death rates with free course for young drivers A RURAL council has become the first in Scotland to offer young motorists the chance to complete an enhanced driving course for free in a bid to try and cut road deaths.
• Trade unionists 'have lost fearless campaigner'LONG before a referendum was even on the cards, Bob Crow said he would support independence if he lived in Scotland.
• Allies and opponents pay tribute to Bob Crow after he dies at 52FIREBRAND rail union leader Bob Crow has been hailed by allies and opponents alike as a man who fought tirelessly for his members after his death from a heart attack, aged 52.

The Independent

• Bob Crow obituary: A working class hero who never shirked from industrial action Bob Crow, the left-wing leader of the country's biggest rail union, was never one to shirk from taking industrial action, always fighting for the rights of his members.    

The Telegraph

• Bob Crow: an unlikely capitalistTelegraph View: Bob Crow espoused socialism but did not subscribe to the new Left's snooty disdain for materialism    
• Bob Crow's life and legacy in three Tube stopsFollowing the death of Bob Crow, The Telegraph's Dan Hodges travels to three Tube stops that had particular resonance for the RMT union leader    
• Bob Crow: fears over 'radical' union members poised to fill vacuum at RMTProspect of more strikes on London Underground as senior sources express concern that militant member of transport union will take over following Bob Crow's death    

Parliament

• Rolling stock provision in the North of England - Angela SmithWestminster Hall Meeting 9.30am

Mail Online

• London to Cornwall rail line will reopen in time for EasterMore than 300 engineers have used 5,000 tonnes of concrete in repair work on the coast of Dawlish, Devon, after the main London to Cornwall rail line collapsed.
• 'We have no idea where it could be': Confusion reigns on day of contradictions from baffled Malaysian authorities as they expand Boeing 777 search 350 miles west into the Indian OceanMore than four days after the jet disappeared on a routine flight to Beijing, the nation's authorities admitted they simply do not know which direction the plane and its 239 passengers were heading when it disappeared and they have no idea where exactly to look.

The Mirror

• Missing Malaysia Airlines Flight: Live updates as search enters fifth day and now YOU can help solve mysteryMalaysia Airlines flight 370 is still missing but thanks to detailed satellite images you can now help find the aircraft from your home

This is Money

• Heathrow boss Colin Matthews continues his campaign for new runaway as number of Chinese and Indian passengers soarHeathrow boss Colin Matthews said Britain was ’less well connected than we could be’ as he continued his campaign to ensure that the airport gets a new runway.

Network Rail

• Northampton schoolgirl gets first year’s university tuition paid after winning Network Rail’s ‘Could IT Be You?’ girls in IT competitionA 17-year-old student from Northampton has scooped the top prize of Network Rail's first Could IT Be You? competition, designed to show girls what working in IT is really about and the career opportunities open to them. Zoe Moore, from Sponne School in Northamptonshire, will have her first year's university fees paid for by the rail infrastructure company. Along with five runners up, she will also get a two-week paid work placement with the Network Rail IT team this summer.
• Network Rail opens its Westbury depot doors to aspiring apprentices

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Cambrian coast railway: £10m cost of repairs after storm damageVideo special charts the effects of the extreme weather and the work being done to bring the crucial line back into use
• Bob Crow: North Wales politicians join tributes following RMT union leader's death Anglesey MP Albert Owen and Alyn and Deeside AM Carl Sargeant pay their respects to Mr Crow, who died this morning aged 52

Derby Telegraph

• Derby Telegraph commented Bob Crow was lined up to speak at Derby's Silk Mill March next...UNION leader Bob Crow, who died yesterday, had been lined up as chief speaker at Derby's annual Silk Mill March and Rally next month, it emerged last night. Mr Crow was general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union. He had been a big supporter of Derby's campaign to save train-building in the city when Chris Williamson, who campaigned hard for the Government to award contracts to Bombardier. He wrote:

London Evening Standard

• Bosses cautious over T2 openingHeathrow bosses due to open a new £2.5 billion terminal in a few weeks are determined not to repeat the mistakes which led to the catastrophic launch of the west London airport's Terminal 5 (T5) six years ago.
• Westminster station named London Tube network's worst for broken liftsWestminster station has emerged as the Tube’s most notorious for broken lifts which were out of action for a third of the year, according to new figures.
• HS2 could ease pressure to live in capital, rail chief to claimHigh Speed rail could ease the housing crisis in London, a landmark report by rail chief Sir David Higgins will claim next week.

Sheffield Telegraph

• Sheffield’s new station plan comes under fireA new fire station will starve part of Sheffield of scarce green space, campaigners have warned.

Wales Online

• Bob Crow's death spurs cross-party tributes for rail union leader who was 'straight as a die'Friends and foes alike have praised the commitment of the RMT leader to his members

Daventry Express

• Driverless car bid to go inDaventry district will officially submit a bid to become the UK’s driverless car test area after the proposal was backed by councillors on January 30.

Other Regional Press

• Railway company criticised for lack of action on weedA MAN has spoken of his anger after Network Rail delayed work to remove an invasive weed that has grown over into his garden and damaged a tree.
• Can you help transform the Transporter? Hunt is on for developer to complete bridge workThe Transporter's transformation into a £2.6m visitor attraction is almost complete - and the hunt is on to find a developer to finish the work
• Patient transport service transfer slammed as 'diabolical' THE transfer of a patient transport service to a private company has come under a stinging attack from councillors who have labelled the process ‘diabolical’ and a ‘gargantuan failure’.
• Improvements to station car parkResurfacing works, new ticket machines and standard weekday and weekend prices are coming to Flitwick Rail Station’s car park

Bus and Coach.com

• UK Coach Awards shortlist announcedA total of 49 people, projects and organisations in 16 categories have been short-listed for the 2014 UK Coach Awards.
• Snaith case for Crown CourtA case involving Howard Snaith Coach Travel of Otterburn and 18 of its employees has been referred to Newcastle Crown Court after an initial hearing at the city's Magistrates' Court last week.
• Ebdons gets ten-day suspensionThe O-licence of Ebdons Tours of Sidcup has been suspended for ten days by south-east traffic commissioner Nicholas Denton after he warned the company's transport manager, Peter Lewis, that his repute was unlikely to survive another appearance at public inquiry after he was reported for neglecting his O-licence duties and was disqualified from carrying out MOTs.

Global Rail News

• Industry mourns death of RMT leader Bob CrowIndustry leaders have been paying tribute to RMT union leader Bob Crow who died suddenly in the early hours of this morning at the age of 52. RMT confirmed the[...]
• CSR Sifang produces first ForCity tramChinese rolling stock manufacturer CSR Sifang has built its first ForCity tram after purchasing the license from Å koda Transportation. A prototype vehicle is now ready to be presented to potential[...]
• Budapest places order for new CAF tramsCAF has agreed an order for upto 124 new low-floor trams for the city of Budapest. With funding from the European Union, the Spanish manufacturer will build 37 Urbos trams[...]
• New 10-car South West Trains service launched from WaterlooSouth West Trains has launched its first 10-car service between Waterloo and Windsor in a bid to increase capacity on its suburban network. The train will operate 14  services between[...]
• Amtrak on course to meet PTC deadlineAmtrak has said it expects to meet a deadline set by the US government to install Positive Train Control (PTC) on all passenger railways by 2015. Announcing its 2014 capital[...]

Other News Sources

• Caught on camera: Driver's foul-mouthed tirade at Eastbourne cyclist WITH VIDEO: A motorist has been caught on camera apparently barraging a cyclist with a torrent of abuse.
• Ryanair to partner with TravelportTalks taking place with other GDS providers
• HS2 to send Euston into ‘decade of chaos’FOI request reveals concerns over delays on 40 per cent of long-distance services