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

Thursday, 15 January 2015

BBC News

• Rain and gales threaten more delaysPeople across the UK are warned of possible disruption to transport and power as rain and gales sweep in behind the snow that hit many areas.
• Trains moved to 'unsuitable' stationRail passengers were switched to an
• Addison Lee loses EU bus lane bidMinicab operator Addison Lee loses a legal challenge at the European Court of Justice to allow its vehicles to use London's bus lanes.
• Kuoni puts tours business on saleSwiss-based travel operator Kuoni is selling its tour operating business to concentrate on supplying others in the travel industry,

Financial Times

• Trains delayed by ‘trampolines on the track’New hazards are flying out of back gardens
• SoftBank invests in Chinese taxi appInvestment in Kuaidi steps up battle for passengers in China’s heavily regulated taxi industry

The Guardian

• Can you ID a city from a subway sign?The typefaces used on transit systems and walkways – take the Helvetica of New York or the Johnston Sans of the London Underground – are intimately tied to the identity of their cities. Can you guess a city from a sign?• The subliminal power of city fonts Continue reading...

The Herald

• Additional £3m for landslide roadAn additional £3 million is to be invested in further work around the notorious landslide blackspot of the Rest and Be Thankful, but ministers are warned other options still need to be explored.
• Totally Dim: Welsh bus firm grovels after turning away schoolboy with Scots £10 noteA bus company has apologised after a schoolboy was refused travel when he tried to pay with a Scottish £10 note.

The Telegraph

• 'Stealth cameras' to be installed on motorwaysCritics say that the camoflage cameras enforcing a 70mph speed limit will catch drivers unawares on hitherto unpoliced stretches of motorways
• Network Rail bosses could get more than £100,000 in bonuses despite Christmas chaosExecutive directors under pressure to give up bonuses as full scale of rail 'fiasco' at Finsbury Park station after Christmas emerges

Daily Record

• Heavy snow and icy conditions continue to cause travel chaos for commuters across the countryMOTORISTS have been urged to take extra care today as Scotland is once again battered by snow blizzards and icy conditions.

Mail Online

• Railways face trampolines as a new hazard after high winds blow popular toy out of gardens Network Rail said it had cleared five trampolines from lines in Scotland over the weekend amid garden debris and 400 fallen trees on the tracks. It is bracing for more as bad weather moves into England.
• Watch out, new stealth cameras on motorways: Devices on M25 in Kent have caught 700 drivers in two months - and will arrive on M1, M3 and M6 soon  Digital devices, dubbed stealth cameras, which have been introduced on the M25 in Kent, have caught almost 700 drivers in two months who were found to be breaking the 70mph speed limit.

The Mirror

• Train travellers face another two years of chaos because of over-running projectsRailway users are set for further travel disruption due to more engineering works

Network Rail

• Joint statement on performance from Network Rail and SouthernSouthern and Network Rail accept that performance on the Brighton Main Line and routes into London Bridge has not been good enough and we understand passengers' frustration when things go wrong.
• Storm conditions set to affect some West of Scotland rail servicesHundreds of engineers will be deployed across the network tonight and tomorrow to monitor conditions and repair damage Our fleet of snow ploughs and our snow clearing train are ready to deploy to clear routes for passengers Limited number of services being withdrawn from noon on Wednesday when worst of the winds will strike.

Birmingham Mail

• Birmingham roadworks: Transport chiefs to discuss traffic chaosProblems caused by string of repair works to be raised at committee meeting on Friday

Bolton News

• More carriages on Bolton trains - but they'll be 'older and more unreliable' MORE carriages will be put on trains running through Bolton — after a deal was struck between the government and rail operators to combat overcrowding.

Liverpool Echo

• Big Feature: Will plunging oil prices boost sales of gas-guzzling cars? Experts say bigger engines are now 'more viable' as Jaguar Land Rover reporting a 9% surge in sales

London Evening Standard

• Chuka Umunna in Twitter row with rail bosses over 'consistently late' trains Southern Rail should be stripped of its franchise if it fails to improve consistently late� services, shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna said today.
• Black cabs retain exclusive right to use London bus lanes Minicab drivers are barred from using the capital’s bus lanes, a European court has ruled.
• Letters to the editor: The bus drivers deserve a fair deal The current row over bus drivers’ pay dates back to the half-cocked deregulation of the industry under Margaret Thatcher.

Sheffield Telegraph

• South Yorkshire rail protest group fears it will be made ‘a scapegoat’ for budget cutsTravel cuts protesters pushing for the return of rail travel concessions in South Yorkshire say they are worried their group will be blamed for fresh cuts.

This Is Local London Network

• Transport for London to review train fare hike The off-peak cap for travelling between outer boroughs and central London was raised in November, meaning passengers in Zone 6 could be charged £11.70, up from £8.50.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• No U-turn on Leeds City Council street light switch-offLeeds city Council will NOT be reversing its controversial street-light switch off policy, or using a £6.6m ‘windfall’ to install low-energy light bulbs instead, despite a senior parliamentary colleague’s apparent backing for the idea.

Yorkshire Post

• We were right to send passengers to unsuitable station says rail boss in King’s Cross debacleTHERE was no alternative but to switch passengers to an “entirely unsuitable” station when King’s Cross could not open due to the Christmas rail engineering works overruns, the boss of Network Rail claimed to MPs today.

Bucks Free Press

• MP calls for stamp duty review for properties affected by HS2 A south Bucks MP this week called for rules on stamp duty to be relaxed for homeowners who will be affected by HS2.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Passengers call for better communication from Abellio Greater Anglia after being left stranded when trains were cancelledPressure is on Abellio Greater Anglia to give passengers better travel information after reports people are being left stranded at a Suffolk station.

Other Regional Press

• British Transport Police arrest and charge Gillingham man and Halling boy with robberies on Thanet trainsPolice have arrested two teens aged 14 and 18 following an

Rail Magazine

• Scottish weather causes train cancellationsSome trains have been cancelled in Scotland for the second time in a week because of severe winds, with speeds of 100mph predicted.
• Greater Anglia training programme wins accreditationAGA’s ‘Inspire’ training programme wins Institute of Customer Service accreditation

Rail Technology Magazine

• Lander Launches to the Market a Proposal of Gamified Learning for Train Drivers In recent years, training methods for workers have diversified enormously. The heads of human resources and training at companies are making huge efforts to include innovative systems in their training processes.

Aviation Industry

• Industry group’s alternative fuel road-map  The UK aviation group Sustainable Aviation produced a road-map shortly before Christmas which outlines the industry’s perspective of the future potential of alternative fuels in the UK aviation sector. According to Sustainable Aviation, the UK could produce and export alternative …
• Has Southwest Airlines fixed its punctuality problem?Southwest Airlines, whose vaunted on-time performance plunged in the second half of 2013 and remained weak most of last year, appears to have turned things around. The nation's largest airline by domestic Has Southwest Airlines fixed its punctuality problem? Southwest Airlines, whose vaunted on-time performance plunged in the second half of 2013 and remained weak most of last year, appears to have turned things around.
• Ryanair to offer onboard entertainmentNo-frills carrier to trial service on routes from Dublin

Green Miscellany

• Intelligent bicycle for elderly cyclistsCycling is already so well established in the Netherlands, that the country can afford to fine tune its provision for cyclists; the government has developed an intelligent bicycle to make two-wheeled travel safer for the elderly. By 2030, the Netherlands aims to reduce the number of traffic casualties on its roads by 25%, a goal that will save saves many… The post Intelligent bicycle for elderly cyclists appeared first on ETA.

Other News Sources

• Winchester Railway Station to be manned until 11pm to increase passenger safety WINCHESTER commuters have hailed plans to man the city’s railway station late into the evening a success.
• Transport plan may be on hold as it loses £2m A major transport scheme set to change the face of the city centre is facing calls to be put on hold after more than £2 million in government funding was slashed.
• High court rules on car rental logo disputeJudge finds in favour of Enterprise in row with Europcar