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

Wednesday, 07 May 2014

BBC News

• Active Travel campaign urges people to ditch car for short journeysThe benefits of walking or cycling short distances, rather than driving, are being emphasised in a bid get more of people out of cars.
• Metro plans under way in city centreLaying the track of the £130m tram extension in Birmingham is under way in what civil engineers say is one of the most complex projects ever to take place on the city's streets.
• Dumfries and Galloway speed cameras 'cut serious crashes by 81%'New figures show the level of serious crashes in Dumfries and Galloway has dropped sharply since its safety camera partnership was formed in 2003.
• MPs seek major investment in roadsInvestment in England's major roads will need to increase "substantially" during the next decade if traffic forecasts are correct, MPs have said. Transport Committee chairwoman Louise Ellman said a "cross-party consensus" would be required to find ways to fund the investment.
• VIDEO: How accessible are Edinburgh's trams?A visually impaired BBC reporter puts Edinburgh's new trams to the test to find out how accessible they really are.
• Strikes for city's mainline stationsUnion members at London's mainline railway stations will strike for 24 hours in a row over pay freezes and pension cuts.
• Will we see more Tube strikes?Will we see further walkouts?
• Siemens buys Rolls-Royce businessRolls-Royce agrees to sell its energy gas turbine and compressor business to Siemens for £785m.

Financial Times

• Fiat Chrysler plans 2m lift in car salesLatest five-year forecast will depend heavily on growth in Jeep SUVs, which the carmaker plans to start building in six countries
• Stagecoach chairman eyes eastern EuropeChairman of transport group plans to double size of his Polish intercity bus business and is eyeing expansion in neighbouring countries
• Plans to spin off Highways Agency criticisedThe changes, which are to be included in an infrastructure bill in next month’s Queen’s Speech, are opposed by the transport select committee

The Herald

• Top 10: Mini tops list of best ever British carsThe original Mini, first introduced in 1959, is the best ever British car, according to a survey of Autocar readers.

The Telegraph

• Pothole claims soar after severe winterCompensation claims for pothole damage soar after severe winter weather
• HS2 complaint over settlement lettersWoman issues HS2 complaint after missing out on damage compensation letter by width of a wall

This is Money

• British motorists pay highest fuel taxes in the worldUK pump prices overall are some of the world's highest because 60p in every pound spent at forecourts is tax.
• British built cars top most likely to pass MOT first time listAn analysis of 24.5m cars has found a number of British built cars are in the top ten list of those most likely to pass their health check first time.
• CITY FOCUS: Sales are taking off at Heathrow Airport and Terminal 2 has become 'retail heaven', say bossesLast year, Britain’s hub airport took in £1.5billion in ‘aeronautical income’, such as the charges levied on airlines.

Sky News

• Holland-Kaye Poised For Nod As Heathrow Boss The airport's owner is close to naming John Holland-Kaye as its new chief executive, Sky The owner of Heathrow Airport is to announce the appointment of a new chief executive as it prepares for a crucial Government decision about the location of additional runway capacity in southeast England.

Birmingham Mail

• Birmingham-built Mini hailed best-ever British carAutocar magazine readers put motoring classic ahead of McLaren F1, Jaguar E-type and the Range Rover

London Evening Standard

• Commentary: RMT is helping the case for privatisationIt is difficult to identify a less justified strike in the UK over the past 50 years than the one the RMT staged against TfL and Tube passengers in London last week.
• The would-be next Bob Crow 'who revels in bringing London to a standstill'This is one of the militant union officials fighting to succeed Bob Crow as RMT boss.
• Frank Kelly: We have to get to grips with London’s filthy airLast week Boris Johnson declined to testify to MPs about the state of London’s air quality. It’s not an encouraging sign. The UK’s air quality improvements have miserably stalled and in London especially this now poses a significant threat to our health.
• Simon Jenkins: Now Boris Johnson needs a plan to keep the Tube movingToday’s third Tube strike against ticket office modernisation would have been a disaster for London. The policy of the company, London Underground, to wear the RMT union down by attrition appears to have worked, at least in the short term. The expectation that more drivers would trickle back to work was undermining union solidarity. Last week LU supplied roughly 50 per cent of its service and the evidence was that today would have seen more. The LU management deserves credit for standing firm. This aspect of modernisation can proceed.
• HS2 draws line at pledge for one semi but not next doorA mother of three has missed out on HS2 compensation — by the width of  the wall that separates her from her neighbours.
• Tube boss: I won't claim victory after strike is called offTube boss Mike Brown said today he was happy for the RMT union to claim victory after calling off its threatened three-day strike.

Manchester Evening News

• Property magnate buys airport for £1 millionMichael Flack's business has struck a deal to buy a 1,000 acre airfield in Germany
• Arriva ambulances miss targets for getting patients to hospital on time every month for a yearArriva Transport Solutions, which provides non-emergency medical journeys across the region, also saw upheld complaints soar in March this year

The York Press

• Mallard's sister locomotives head home TWO 'sisters' of iconic steam loco Mallard are returning to America and Canada after taking part in the National Railway Museum's hugely successful Mallard 75 reunion last year.

Yorkshire Post

• East-west rail should be priorityMINISTERS need to have a clearer plan for future transport projects which will boost the economies of regions such as Yorkshire including improved east-west rail links, according to MPs.

Other Regional Press

• Heathrow tops Green Party manifesto in HounslowMore 20mph roads and cycle path also feature on group's list of election pledges
• ‘Enormous’ potential of bus stationPreston Bus Station could be the city’s “unique selling point”, according to an official review.
• Manston Airport: Closure date announced as May 15 as owners unable to find 'viable alternative' during consultationThe owners of Manston airport have today set out a final date for closure unless a buyer is found at the 11th hour.
• Manston Airport: RiverOak Investment Corp LLC of Stamford, Connecticut, reveal themselves as bidders for Thanet site as its closure is announcedAn American group which had an offer to buy Manston Airport rejected at the weekend have revealed details of their takeover bid as its closure looms.

Global Rail News

• Bombardier takes over operation of BC commuter lineBombardier has begun a five-year operating contract for British Columbia’s West Coast Express commuter rail system. As well as supplying the double-deck carriages that makes up the West Coast Express fleet,[...]
• Balfour Beatty considering Parsons Brinckerhoff saleBalfour Beatty has hinted at a potential sale of its professional services division, Parsons Brinckerhoff, after anticipating a ’significant’ fall in pre-tax profits. Publishing a trading update, Balfour Beatty also[...]

Railway Gazette

• New York commuter railways introduce mobile ticketingUSA: New York MTA has selected Masabi to provide mobile ticketing for its Metro-North Railroad and Long Island Rail Road commuter rail businesses. Masabi’s JustRide technology, also used on the...

Aviation Industry

• Air India set to join Star AllianceAirline to enter alliance in July

Other News Sources

• Pressure on Chicago for O'Hare noise reliefPressure is growing on the city of Chicago to jettison its resistance to finding ways to reduce noise levels in residential areas caused by planes serving O'Hare International Airport.
• Transport Committee ‘not convinced’ by Highways Agency reformThe Transport Committee has said it is ‘not convinced’ the Highways Agency should be turned into a government-owned company.
• In numbers: 20th anniversary of the Channel Tunnel openingToday marks the 20th anniversary of the opening of the Channel Tunnel, the 50.5-km-long structure connecting Britain with France.