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

Friday, 22 January 2016

BBC News

• Tougher strike rules for Tube workersThe government announces Tube staff will fall within the definition of
• TfL to take over suburban rail routesTransport for London announces it will be taking over the running of the capital's suburban rail network.
• Rail electrification 'four years late'The electrification of some routes across the south of England is running four years late, Network Rail reveals.

ITV News

• Airport runway decision 'could delayed beyond summer'The Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said he hoped the Government would finally make its choice between expansion at Heathrow or Gatwick by the summer. But he added that the referendum was one of a number of issues competing for ministers' attention in the months ahead.

Financial Times

• Jumbo jet’s demise comes a step closerBoeing to make just six 747s a year from September as air cargo market recovery stalls
• TfL to run all south London trainsCapital’s transport authority given responsibility to ensure better services on the network
• Train groups derailed by commoditiesShares in Union Pacific and Canadian Pacific tumble as quarterly net income drops

The Guardian

• Suburban rail deal shows power and importance of Transport for LondonThe capital’s transport body is to take command of key rail routes during a period of great challenge and change
• Wait for a bus and then tell me the market knows best Deregulation of buses in 1986 was a disaster for those unable to afford a car. Municipalisation is the key to a fairer systemOf the issues differentiating the metropolitan mindset in the capital from opinions voiced elsewhere, the starkest is probably transport.

The Herald

• Scottish Government accused of "idling" on transport policyOFFICIAL publicity and rail improvements aimed at encouraging motorists to leave their cars behind are 'going nowhere' after the number of people using public transport in Scotland over the past decade actually fell, according to campaigners.

The Huffington Post

• TfL To Takeover Suburban Rail Services From London Bridge, Victoria, Charing Cross, WaterlooThe government has announced it supports plans to bring London's entire suburban rail network under public control in an effort to improve services and end misery for millions of commuters. Transport for London (TfL), the not-for-profit public body responsible for transport in the capital, will take responsibility for metropolitan services as rail franchises end over the next decade to simplify journeys and provide greater consistency. The move brought unexpected joy to those who suffer regular delays on lines affected. The tyranny is over! @SW_Trains days are numbered! Haven't felt this ha...

The Telegraph

• TfL to take control of London's suburban rail servicesRail services within the capital will be run by the London Overground

Daily Express

• Transport leaders accuse SNP of ‘wasted decade’THE SNP have been accused of making “absolutely no progress” on public transport over the past 10 years.

Mail Online

• London Underground drivers are offered �500 in talks over all-night Tube� Union negotiators handling the overnight services have recommended London underground strikes planned for next week and February be called off after being offered a new deal.

The Mirror

• In-flight entertainment for the 21st Century: Soon you'll be able to stream YouTube and Netflix at 30,000 feetThe days of getting on a plane, switching off your phone and your laptop, and checking out for a few hours could soon be over

The Sun

• David Cameron could duck out of Heathrow expansion decisionMaking a choice between Gatwick and Heathrow may be left until after the EU referendum

Office of Rail and Road (ORR)

• Other contract decisionsAll other track access decisions made in the last six months...

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Welsh Government intervenes after gritting fiasco in North Wales Cardiff Bay could issue guidance to councils after 69 crashes took place in six hours on ungritted roads last week

London Evening Standard

• Plan to class Tube service as 'essential' to curb strikesTube workers will find it harder to bring the capital to a standstill with strikes after ministers today announced Transport for London would be reclassified as an "essential" public service.
• Regent's canal partly drained this weekend and open to the public50,000 gallons will be drained from Kentish Town lock, and the Canal and River Trust are encouraging the public to get a rare glimpse of the river bed
• Can you spot the spelling blunder on this Northern Line Tube sign?An eagle-eyed Londoner has noticed a spelling mistake on a Northern Line Tube sign.
• London commuters welcome TfL plans to control capital's suburban rail networkLondon commuters today welcomed the prospect of Transport for London taking control of the capital's suburban rail network.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Northern Powerhouse: North East devolution by summer would be a 'miracle'Leaders on the North East Combined Authority call on civil servants to get back round negotiating table and say how mayor model will work

The York Press

• Police seize hundreds of untaxed cars in two months NORTH Yorkshire Police have seized more than 200 untaxed cars in two months after taking on new powers.

Reading Evening Post

• Changes to Wokingham Courtney bus routes, timetables and fares across the borough Wokingham Borough Council is changing its bus routes and the way it charges bus users from Monday, February 1

West Sussex Gazette

• Call for bus stop to be removed after A24 crash chaosResidents have called for bus stops to be removed along the A24 after a crash involving a van and a bus full of passengers.

Other Regional Press

• Could bus company offer job lifeline for former Watchet Paper Mill workers? FORMER employees of Wansbrough Paper Mill in Watchet have been offered the chance of employment at Somerset bus company Crosville Motor Services, providing a lifeline to many who lost their jobs when the Mill closed at Christmas.
• Disaster for Burnham if Weston-super-Mare gets the new Bridgwater Bay Barrage road says MP Burnham faces a disaster if Weston-super-Mare win out in the war of the bypasses. That’s the conclusion of the MP James Heappey following his attempts to gauge the opinions of residents over a new road in Berrow.
• Volunteer bus service could be set up to run routes axed by cuts A NEW community bus service could be set up in Witney amid fears threat to subsidies could leave vulnerable people in villages stranded.
• Oyster card service to extend to SevenoaksA change of rail operator means the Oyster card service is set to extend to another Kent station.

Rail Magazine

• Edinburgh Gateway on course for December openingNetwork Rail says that poor weather affecting Scotland has not delayed progress of Edinburgh Gateway station, and that it remains on course to open in December.
• DRS to add third set for Northern’s Cumbrian Coast A third locomotive-hauled rake of coaching stock will be provided by Direct Rail Services to support Northern Rail’s trains on the Cumbrian Coast.
• Eurostar sale “well handled” but DfT under fire from PACPublic Accounts Committee says Government’s sale of its stake in Eurostar was “well handled and secured a good return for the taxpayer”.
• Elliot to chair HS2 community funds panelCathy Elliot has been appointed independent chairman of the panel overseeing the delivery of HS2 Community and Business Funds.
• Task force established to rebuild damaged Kent lineA task force has been formed to help with the work to rebuild the line between Dover and Folkestone.
• Perry salutes Crossrail for developing female engineersCrossrail hailed by Rail Minister Claire Perry for its role in attracting more women into engineering.
• 30 years of London Underground poetryThe first ever poems to be displayed on the London Underground network under the Poems on the Underground scheme are now back on display

Aviation Industry

• Ryanair to sell ‘Business Plus’ through AmadeusAirline targets the corporate market

Other News Sources

• Local Transport Strategy agreedA Local Transport Strategy (LTS) for Aberdeen from 2016 to 2021 was agreed by the City Council's Communities, Housing and Infrastructure committee yesterday.
• Three successive years of passenger increases Shannon Airport has achieved growth again in 2015, with its passenger numbers for last year showing a 5% increase on 2014.This is the third successive year of passenger number increases at the airport. 2015 passenger numbers grew to 1,714,872 – the first year since 2010 that the airport has exceeded the 1.7m figure. The 2015 year figure is up over 22% on the total passenger numbers since the airport became independent in 2013. Source: Transportweekly
• Reigate MP calls on rail minister to improve performance of Southern RailReigate MP Crispin Blunt took Claire Perry to task for the ongoing performance problems on Southern Rail including severe delays and high fares
• Freight industry needs ‘One-Stop-Shop’ from Government - claims FTAThe freight industry needs a single online point where logistics operators can log in to find all their Government-held transport data, is the ...
• Balfour Beatty-Vinci JV names HS2 MDPeter Anderson has been named as managing director for High Speed 2 by the Balfour Beatty Vinci joint venture.
• Aerozone smashes first year visitor target in six monthsStansted Airport’s award winning education centre, Aerozone Stansted, has smashed its predicted first year visitor numbers in just six months.
• MP tabling a railway public ownership bill A BILL to bring railways back under public ownership is being presented to Parliament today by Caroline Lucas MP