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

Friday, 04 March 2016

BBC News

• How much diesel pollution am I breathing in?How much pollution am I breathing in?
• Airport announces £900,000 expansionThe operators of Inverness Airport announce plans for a £900,000 expansion, including the creation of a new arrivals hall for international passengers.
• Manchester Airport £1bn plan approvedPlans to double the size of Terminal 2 at Manchester Airport are approved by the city council.
• Unions to ballot for Night Tube strikesMaintenance workers on the London Underground (LU) are to be balloted for strikes after union executives reject a deal over the proposed Night Tube.
• Councils' legal threat over HeathrowFour Tory councils threaten to sue the government if plans for a third runway at Heathrow airport go ahead.
• Map for Queen Street tunnel closureA map is produced to show rail passengers how to access and exit Glasgow Queen Street low-level during the high-level tunnel closure.

The Independent

• How to get the best fare on Eurostar from LondonThe short answer is: book at eurostar.com as soon as the trains from London St Pancras to Brussels, Calais, Lille or Paris go on sale for your chosen dates, and travel off-peak.

The Scotsman

• Glasgow to spend �6m on cyclingGlasgow is to spend £6m on making the city the most cycle-friendly in Scotland.

The Telegraph

• Network Rail has spent £16 million hiring cars for staff over the last two yearsThe company which has been heavily fined for causing chaos and delays on Britain's railways, has spent �16 million on car hire in the last two years

Daily Express

• Police blast 'idiot' who flashed LASER LIGHT at pilot as plane came into landA LASER light has been pointed into the cockpit of a plane as it came into land at one of the UK's busiest airports.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• New masterplan for Leeds Bradford Airport envisages 5,000 new jobs, a commercial hub, parkway rail station and hotel LEEDS Bradford Airport has unveiled a new masterplan which is expected to bring thousands of jobs to the area over the next 15 years.

London Evening Standard

• District and Circle line: Commuters hit by delays after signal failure at WestminsterRush-hour commuters on the District and Circle lines endured yet another morning of travel misery caused by a signal failure.
• Tube strikes: Fresh blow to Night Tube as union announces ballot for more walkoutsLondon Underground maintenance staff are to be balloted for strikes in a move which signals a fresh blow to the launch of the Night Tube.
• British man removed from easyJet flight 'after fellow passenger read prayer message on his phone'A Londoner was removed from an easyJet flight by armed police after another passenger spotted a message on his phone referring to "prayer" and mistakenly feared he was a terrorist.
• Southeastern train delays: Charing Cross and Waterloo East stations closed due to broken trackThousands of commuters were today facing rush hour misery after signalling problems and a broken track sparked rail delays.

Wales Online

• What you think of plans to extend Cardiff's 20mph zonesThe city's council want to expand the current pilot area for the speed limit and you've had your say

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Leeds Bradford Airport wish-list includes new train line and stationYORKSHIRE’S biggest airport today set out a 15-year growth strategy which includes new rail connections to Leeds, Bradford, Harrogate and York - despite a report last week branding a conventional train link “technically impossible”.

Yorkshire Post

• ‘No wonder passengers think they’re getting ripped off’: Network Rail spends £23m on car hire NETWORK Rail has forked out more than £23 million on car hire in the space of four years.
• SNOW: Airport closed and drivers warned to take care as heavy flurries affect Friday morning rush-hourPARTS OF Yorkshire have woken up to heavy flurries of snow this morning, causing traffic chaos and Leeds Bradford Airport to close temporarily.

Burnley Express

• “Cut your speed call’ to driversResidents hope to stop speeding motorists in their tracks during a demonstration on Saturday.

Get West London

• Heathrow expansion: Councils warn PM they are ready to take challenge to the courtsFour councils, including Hillingdon and Richmond, have instructed the same law firm behind the successful 2010 High Court challenge against a third runway

North Wales Live

• Easirent launches electric car hire service from Royal Liver Building Move follows firm's relocation from Bootle to new city centre headquarters

Peterborough Telegraph

• Stagecoach vow to investigate after bus crash in PeterboroughBus operator Stagecoach has vowed to investigate the circumstances surrounding a crash involving one of its fleet in Peterborough today, Thursday March 3.

Sleaford Standard

• Fewer lampposts and night-time switch-offs to save Lincolnshire County Council �1.7millionLincolnshire County Council is changing how it manages street lighting to deliver annual savings of £1.7million, including cutting the number of lights and night-time switch offs.

Other Regional Press

• Working group set up to bring high-speed rail to 1066 country The next steps in bringing high-speed rail to 1066 country were discussed by a working group at Westminster set up to do everything it can to make it happen.
• Get ready to see the light at Standedge Tunnel - Britain's longest and deepest canal tunnelRevamped trip boats now have roofs with a view

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Cubic and Transport for London Win for ‘Technological Innovation’ at the Rail Business AwardsCubic Transportation Systems (CTS), a business unit of Cubic Corporation, along with Transport for London (TfL) received another major honour for London’s contactless bankcard system after winning the ‘Technological Innovation’ award at the 18th annual Rail Business Awards. The premier event recognizes excellence and innovation in the United Kingdom’s rail sector. This is the eighth major award for Cubic and TfL’s contactless system.  Launched in 2012, the contactless bankcard system was extended in 2014 to cover London’s entire transit network – ...
• �200m roadbuilding investment on course to deliver Central Bedfordshire economic boostThe two linked projects, which are a key part of the government’s long term economic plan for Bedfordshire, are passing their one year milestone this spring and will be completed in spring 2017. The 2.8 mile, £162million A5-M1 Link scheme is being delivered by Highways England, while the £38million, 1.8 mile Woodside Link project is being completed by Central Bedfordshire Council. Delivering the schemes will unlock up to 40 hectares of land for businesses and provide the infrastructure for 7,000 homes to be built to the north of Houghton Regis. They will also provide better a...
• Network Rail to reopen Settle to Carlisle railway lineEngineers from Network Rail are to repair a 500,000-tonne land slip, which forced a section of the Settle to Carlisle railway line to close near Eden Brows. By making these repairs, the rail service provider hopes to reopen the line over the course of several months of intensive work. The repairs will include the building of a structure underneath the affected area in order to effectively support it once it's finished. Improvements are expected to take a long time, as it will also involve major earthworks to stabilise the embankment. To cope with the closure of this area of the line, Northern ...
• PD Ports expands commercial team to support continued business growthPD Ports has made two key appointments in Michael Parker and Alfred van Wyk to help take forward growth plans at Teesport. Michael has been appointed as Business Development Manager to help develop supply chain solutions which add value for customers importing and exporting dry bulk cargo.  With more than 15 years’ experience in the construction industry, Michael joins PD Ports from Hope Construction Materials, where he was Area Commercial Manager for three years.  Alfred has joined PD Ports as General Manager Business Development bringing with him over 20 years of industry kno...

Rail Technology Magazine

• Row over Network Rail's future worsens as campaign launched to stop station salesActivists are joining the debate over Network Rail’s future as anti-privatisation group ‘We Own It’ has launched a week of protests against proposals to sell off 18 major stations. The protests began at King’s Cross station today and will be followed by actions at Bristol...
• Citigroup to report back on NR station options by end of 2016 - PerryBanking firm Citigroup is to report back to Network Rail by the end of the year on a range of “new models for management and ownership” of its 18 managed stations, according to rail minister Claire Perry MP. As RTM reported last week, Network Rail has appointed Citigroup to consult...
• More rail freight needed for sustainable connectivity in ScotlandMore rail freight is vital for allowing the Scottish government to promote long-term sustainable connectivity, the government’s transport minister has said.
• Ordsall Chord appeal hearing brought forward to MarchThe Court of Appeal hearing into the much-delayed £85m Ordsall Court scheme has been brought forward from April to March, but work on the project will continue at the moment, RTM has been told.
• DfT willing to accept only two ‘genuine’ bids for franchisesLord Berkeley, who sits on RTM’s editorial board, had asked the department what the minimum number of bids for rail franchises should be to create the “necessary competitive tension to ensure value for money for the travelling public, and in particular whether they consider that three bids is sufficient for that purpose”.
• Network Rail scopes out sell-off of electrical power assetsNetwork Rail has triggered the potential sell-off of its electrical power assets in a consultation to test the industry’s interest in buying thousands of its overhead lines, substations and pylons.
• Network Rail sign alliance agreement with GWRA new alliance between Network Rail and Great Western Railway (GWR) is set to encourage co-operation on large-scale improvements to the western railways.

Aviation Industry

• EasyJet founder seeks to dismiss fastjet CEO, director EasyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou, who is also a major shareholder in young African low-cost carrier (LCC) fastjet, has called an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) in a bid to dismiss fastjet CEO Ed Winter and director Krista Bates. read more
• American Airlines submits Cuba flights applicationCarrier proposes services to Havana from US airports including Miami, Dallas and LA

Other News Sources

• Heathrow-London rail link disruption continuesChanges to the route remain in place until at least March 6