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

Friday, 06 November 2015

BBC News

• VIDEO: 'Distress' of fans at rugby rail chaosRugby World Cup organisers say it was unacceptable for fans to wait up to four hours for trains after matches in Cardiff.
• Bigger Heathrow 'could cut night flights'Heathrow airport bosses tell MPs they will reduce night flights if a third runway is built, but do not say by how much they would be cut.
• Uber taxi app to launch in EdinburghThe controversial Uber taxi app is launching in Edinburgh after the company reported

Department for Transport

• Improved road surface along the A1 in NorthumberlandDrivers will benefit from an improved road surface when work starts on Monday 9 November to resurface sections of the A1 in Northumberland.
• Scottish businesses get HS2-readyFirms across Scotland find out how to bid for more than £10 billion of contracts generated by HS2.

Financial Times

• Toyota boycott compounds Takata woesJapanese carmaker to no longer use inflators containing ammonium nitrate
• Low-cost airlines dress to impressRyanair’s new crew uniforms are part of a move among budget carriers to more sophisticated marketing
• Poland lifts curtain on new iron highwayPKP Cargo creates freight corridor from Baltic to Adriatic

The Guardian

• Docklands Light Railway strike explodes 'driverless Tube' theoriesThis week’s shut down of the capital’s automated light rail system shows that as long as London’s trains are staffed by human beings industrial action is a possibility Normally, any strike disrupting rail transport services is in London is accompanied by calls for “driverless trains”. These vehicles, it is proclaimed, would end the power of the beastly unions to bring the capital to a halt. Boris Johnson himself has given credence to this belief when wanting to look tough in the face of stoppages on the Tube or when in need of votes. Often, champions of the “driverless” solution cite the Dockl...
• Eurostar sold off despite ministers believing its value would rise – reportNational Audit Office says government wanted to offload 40% share in London-Paris train service before general electionBritain’s stake in Eurostar was sold for £757m even though the government believed its value would rise, because ministers wanted to offload the state’s share in the cross-Channel train service before the general election, a report has concluded.The report by the National Audit Office into the sale, published on Friday, found that taxpayers had invested four times more in Eurostar, approximately £3bn, than the sum recouped from the sale in March.
• Airlines to return British holidaymakers from Egypt without luggageAs flights get ready to leave Sharm el-Sheikh, the BBC reported that the UK security services think a bomb was placed in the hold of doomed Russian planeThousands of British tourists will fly back from Sharm el-Sheikh without their luggage on Friday, after David Cameron gave the go-ahead for air travel to resume with very tight security restrictions.About 25 flights will take off from the Egyptian beach resort, clearing a backlog of up to 4,000 stranded holidaymakers who had been due to return since the Foreign Office advised against all travel through the airport on Wednesday night. Continue ...

The Herald

• Union warns Scotrail job losses 'put at risk safe running' of rail servicesThe Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) says the ability to run services on time would also be

The Telegraph

• Soaring bills for councils as UK faces pothole repairs on every eight miles of roadAuthorities spent �1.6 million in compensation for drivers as more than 31,000 road dents need filling in
• Zero tolerance speeding policy blasted by Transport SecretaryPatrick McLoughlin says plans to use speed cameras to raise revenue for police forces is a breach of official guidelines

Daily Record

• Proposed job cuts 'put at risk safe running of ScotRail', according to transport unionTHE Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) says the ability to run services on time would also be "completely undermined".

The Mirror

• Brit tourists at Sharm el-Sheikh airport 'offered chance to skip security queues for �20' Tourist Dale Parkyn said: "At no point did my luggage go through any scanner. When I think now, it was bizarre"

Network Rail

• ScotRail Alliance roadshow launches as Network Rail gets set for winter weather This week, a specialist snow-clearing train visited Glasgow Central station – the first stop on this year’s ScotRail Alliance winter roadshow for passengers – marking the start of Network Rail’s winter weather preparations across Britain.

Bolton News

• Petition calling for new speed camera in St Helen's Road after spate of high-speed crashes SCORES of residents living in one of Bolton’s worst accident blackspots have signed a petition calling for urgent action to be taken to stop 'lives being put at risk.'

London Evening Standard

• Police condemned for plan to raise cash through M1 speed camera blitzA cabinet minister today condemned a police force’s plan to blitz thousands of M1 drivers with speeding fines to rake in millions of pounds.
• Police condemned for plan to raise cash through M1 speed camera blitzA cabinet minister today condemned a police force’s plan to blitz thousands of M1 drivers with speeding fines to rake in millions of pounds.
• Government fails to curb Uber because it is besotted by US tech firms, says BorisBoris Johnson has claimed the Government is failing to crack down on minicab-hailing app Uber because it is “absolutely besotted” by Californian tech giants.
• Network Rail driving out independent shops, says Oddbins bossThe boss of off-licence chain Oddbins has accused Network Rail of the “systematic social cleansing” of London’s independent traders.
• London Overground passengers face 'severe delays' on after faulty train at Liverpool StreetTransport for London said disruption to services was likely to last for a couple of hours with some cancellations expected

Nottingham Evening Post

• Nottingham Post published John Flynn: Now the tram is done, what about an airport...John Flynn from Burton Joyce, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, says an airport tram link is the next logical extension. It is exciting news for transport that there is now the imminent prospect of a combined Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Authority. Transport has always been bedevilled by the way each local authority looks after transport within its own area, without being overly concerned about transport to other areas. In Nottinghamshire there have been wide...
• Nottingham Post published Giuseppe Labellarte: Now extend the tram to a full networkWith the tram and A453 finished, what now for Notts transport? Giuseppe Labellarte from West Bridgford gives his views. "Better late than never." This saying applies perfectly to Nottinghamshire's transport infrastructure, which I believe is finally fit for purpose after years of delays. This month, I went on the A453 for the first time since it was finally dualled, and I was taken aback by how smooth and flawless a drive it is. I experienced three years of hell commuting on it...

The York Press

• Faulty kit causes huge backlog in York speeding blitz - but 16 new projects now planned Transport bosses are now working to clear the backlog and have identified priorities

Wales Online

• Motorists rack up �1.9m of fines for driving in Cardiff's bus lanes The fines were introduced last year as part of a council clampdown to keep Cardiff moving

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Leeds Bradford based airline ‘Mo-narch’ gets Movember moustache feverHolidaymakers jetting off from Leeds Bradford airport this month could be flying on board planes with moustaches.
• UPDATED: Rail workers stage protest in Leeds city centreRAIL workers were protesting in Leeds city centre this morning amid claims the government is set to cut job, services and safety on rail services across the north of England.

Blackpool Gazette

• Infrastructure is the road to success for FyldeBosses across Lancashire say investing in physical rather than digital infrastructure would boost business best, according to a new survey.

Bucks Free Press

• Arriva buses display giant poppies to show support for poppy appeal Arriva will be displaying giant poppies on its buses to show support for the Poppy Appeal.
• 70 drivers caught speeding along one road in speedwatch operation A total of 70 people were caught speeding along one road on what police described as ‘Black Monday’ last week.

Burnley Express

• 200th anniversary of Leeds-Liverpool CanalA year of special events will take place in 2016 to mark the 200th anniversary of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Cycle track plans unveiled as Colchester could become regional hub for the sportColchester could become a “semi-regional” cycling hub under ambitious plans revealed by the borough council.

Get West London

• Heathrow not ready to commit to ending night flights even with third runwayAirport chief says it could reduce night flights with expansion, but he stops short of agreeing to the ban demanded by the Airports Commission

North Wales Live

• Freight operator to increase Irish Sea sailings due to Liverpool2 terminal Port owner Peel says end users and shippers will benefit from the economies of scale provided by the £300m facility

Sleaford Standard

• Free CallConnect buses to Christmas markets in LincolnshireLincolnshire County Council’s CallConnect bus service will celebrate Christmas this year with a special festive gift for bus users throughout Lincolnshire this November and December.

The Shields Gazette

• South Shields MP hits out after block is put on bus revamp planSouth Tyneside’s MP has hit out after the brakes were applied to plans for a major bus services shake-up for the borough.

Other Regional Press

• Rail line delays harm economyA railway scheme set to boost the local economy by more than £70 million a year may be shunted into the sidings until 2022.

Railnews

• Rugby organisers criticise railway overcrowding Delays and overcrowding at Cardiff Central station during the earlier stages of the Rugby World Cup in September were 'unacceptable', members of the Welsh Assembly are being told. Some fans had to wait four hours for their trains after the first two games in September, and Great Western Railway has apologised for underestimating the number of people who would use rail to reach Cardiff. GWR agreed that the results were 'embarrassing'.
• Drivers' strike looms on Arriva Trains Wales Train services in Wales could be badly disrupted next week by a 48-hour strike in a dispute over pay. The RMT said its drivers working for Arriva Trains Wales will strike from 00.01 on Thursday 12 November. Members of Aslef are set to walk out at the same time. However ATW said 'progress has been made' with negotiations, which are continuing.
• Eurostar sale left taxpayers more than �2bn out of pocket The sale of Eurostar left taxpayers more than �2 billion out of pocket, a National Audit Office report has concluded. The NAO said although the sale was 'run well', its timing was 'primarily driven' by the Government's desire to complete the deal before the election in May this year. One union leader condemned the deal as a 'gross rip-off'. It has also been revealed that the Treasury was concerned about the high costs involved, of some �8 million, which was shared by financial adviser UBS and legal adviser Freshfields.

Railway Gazette

• Bombardier opens Indian railway control systems officeINDIA: Bombardier Transportation has opened a Rail Control Solutions engineering and product...
• Eurostar sale ‘represented value for money’ says NAOUK: On November 6 the National Audit Office published a report into the £757·1m sale of the UK's...

Aviation Industry

• Ryanair expands schedule from BirminghamNew routes announced to Madrid and Verona for next summer
• Lufthansa to sell flights directly on GoogleAirline’s move will allow direct bookings from search engine
• Aer Lingus to expand long-haul fleetIrish airline will receive two new Airbus A330 aircraft next year
• Heathrow and Gatwick row over air qualityAirports continue arguments on pollution impact of Heathrow expansion
• Lufthansa one-week strike to go aheadLast-minute talks with cabin crew fail to reach deal

Other News Sources

• Heathrow refuses to rule out night-flights, raising fears over expansion plansBoris lashes out at Heathrow’s resistance to night flight ban
• Engineer’s report questions local transport and energy resilience in ScotlandThe Scottish Government should consider the use of tolls to fund crucial improvements in the country’s highways network, according to a report from the Institute of Civil Engineers (ICE)
• Welsh Government responds to FTA calls to fund driver trainingThe Freight Transport Association (FTA) says the Welsh Government has responded to its calls for support with the announcement of a significant ...

News from Europe

• €7.6 BILLION OF EUROPEAN INVESTMENT TO SUPPORT KEY TRANSPORT PROJECTSThe Commission is launching the second call for proposals of the Connecting Europe Facility, with more than €7.6 billion of investment to finance transport projects. €6.5 billion are earmarked for countries with Cohesion Fund eligibility.