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

Monday, 07 March 2016

BBC News

• Temporary £3m road in Wiltshire opens to trafficThe route, near Royal Wootton Bassett, has been built to save a 24-mile detour while work is carried out on three railway bridges.
• Is it a bus or is it a train? It's a PacerCommuters have been promised that by 2020 they will no longer be travelling on trains built from the body of a bus.
• The train the UK has struggled to get rid ofHow UK rail came to rely on an unloved train
• VIDEO: New Glasgow subway driverless trains unveiledThe first images are revealed of a fleet of new trains which will operate on the Glasgow subway.

Department for Transport

• New £5 million school bike training programme to create safe and confident young ridersInnovative training will help children and parents stay active and cycle safely.
• Northern and TransPennine Express: proposed yearly premium paymentsResponse about the proposed yearly premium payments for the awarded Northern and TransPennine Express franchises.

Financial Times

• London night Tube plan back on trackTrain drivers’ union expected to vote in favour of pay deal on Monday

The Guardian

• MH370: head of search says 'very likely' plane will be found by JulyMartin Dolan, head of the Australian authority scouring the Indian ocean, is confident aircraft will be located The man in charge of the hunt for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 believes it is “very likely” the plane will be found in the next four months, even as the multimillion dollar search effort enters what is likely to be its final stage. In the two years since the plane disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 227 passengers and 12 crew on board, its only confirmed trace has been a barnacle-encrusted flaperon wing that washed up on the French island of Réunion last July. C...

The Telegraph

• Driverless lorries to be trialled on M6 as government pushes ahead with investmentGeorge Osborne, the Chancellor, is expected to confirm funding for the initiative when he unveils the Budget

Times Online

• Heathrow pollution concerns rejected [subscription]Heathrow’s bid for a third runway has been boosted by a study that found concerns over noise and pollution were not insurmountable.

City AM

• Night Tube: 24-hour weekend service on the Central, Jubilee, Nothern, Piccadilly and Victoria lines could finally get the go-aheadTube train drivers' union Aslef is to vote on a new pay deal tomorrow - and it's going to back the offer.
• London airport expansion: Londoners prefer Gatwick to Heathrow by 12-point margin according to latest YouGov pollLondoners are significantly more likely to support the expansion of Gatwick Airport than another runway at Heathrow Airport, according to a new poll out today.

Mail Online

• Intruder arrested at Heathrow after major security breach sees him break through security fence and lock himself in the cockpit of parked 747 An intruder triggered a major security alert at Heathrow Airport after allegedly breaking through a security fence and locking himself inside an empty British Airways 747 passenger jet.
• How the average speed on A-roads is 8mph in some parts of the UK The slowest roads in the country are in the City of London with traffic moving at an average of just 7.9mph, according to�Department for Transport figures.
• Driverless lorry convoys connected via wireless technology to be tested on the M6 Convoys of lorries, all controlled by a lead driver, would snake along the UK's motorways system delivering goods and produce across the country, helping to free up motorway space.

Bolton News

• High tech ethylene tetra fluoro ethylene roof to be installed at new £48 million bus station TRANSPORT leaders have taken a tour of the new state-of-the-art interchange currently being constructed in Bolton — ahead of the installation of a new high-tech roof on the building.

Manchester Evening News

• New 3am tram service to get early-bird commuters to Manchester AirportThe extra-early start for trams is aimed at shift workers, and will arrive into Manchester Airport for 3.40am
• Leeds nostalgia: Yorkshire rail tunnel marks 175th anniversaryAn important anniversary in the history of railways in Yorkshire passed on March 1. It was 175 years since the completion of the first railway to cross the Pennines enabling trains to run through between Leeds and Manchester.
• Rail services hit by delays after brakes jam on high-speed train at Stockport stationThe issue meant lines were blocked as firefighters and engineers went onto the tracks.Rail services across the region have been hit by delays after a fault with the brakes of a train at Stockport station.

Sheffield Star

• Tram map reveals cost of renting in SheffieldThe areas around West Street and Sheffield Cathedral tram stops are among the most expensive places to rent in the city, new figures have revealed.

Wales Online

• Buses could no longer run in Wales from 2032 if passenger numbers continue to dropThe most recently released annual figures show that six million fewer people used buses in 2014-15 than the year before

Yorkshire Post

• Cycling campaign is handed a �5m funding boostSCARBOROUGH Conservative MP Robert Goodwill has welcomed a Department of Transport announcement that a training scheme to encourage children and parents in England to take up cycling has been handed a £5 million funding boost.
• YP Letters: Existing rail line near airport’s edge offers simple solutionFrom: Brian L Dunsby, Chief Executive, Harrogate Chamber of Trade and Commerce.

Other Regional Press

• Councils threaten court action unless Prime Minister rules out Heathrow expansionLawyers acting on behalf of four councils in south west London and Berkshire are preparing to take court action unless a third runway at Heathrow is ruled out.
• Council in deadlock with First Bus over major bus lane review - first promised TWO YEARS agoTHE council is locked in a stand off with bus operators over a major review of bus lanes - first promised two years ago. ...
• Belfast bus service upgrade a ‘huge step forward’ All Translink buses on its Metro service have been kitted-out with new passenger information systems.
• Pensioners stranded after First axe 'lifeline' bus route FAMILIES are calling for their 'lifeline' bus service to be reinstated.
• Life-saving defibrillators to be installed at train stations throughout SussexALMOST every train station in Sussex could have a life-saving defibrillator installed by this summer.
• Campaigners fight for more train servicesCampaigners are calling for Wakefield Council to back their proposals for improved rail services in the region.
• New rail pledgeNETWORK Rail and Great Western Railway have signed a formal alliance with the aim of improving their service to West Country rail passengers by working more closely together.
• Brake want road safety on the curriculum and shocking video of girl's near miss shows why Watch shocking dashcam video of young girl running into road without looking

Transport Briefing (subscription)

• Stadler and Hitachi land Glasgow Subway dealStrathclyde Partnership for Transport has awarded the main contract for the modernisation of Glasgow's Subway. A joint venture of...

Other News Sources

• Preston tram network strikes deal with Pre Metro OperationsA hint of Preston’s tram network plan being back on the table has appeared.
• Landowners can expect HS2 visitors in coming weeks LANDOWNERS along the route of the proposed high speed rail line through Staffordshire can expect a visit from HS2 representatives within the next few weeks, a Stafford-based surveyor has said.