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

Thursday, 31 March 2016

BBC News

• VIDEO: Birmingham flights to Doha startBirmingham Airport is to get a new regular service to Doha, flown by Qatar Airways.
• M4 'dead in water' on Labour-Plaid dealPlans to build an M4 relief road would be
• Mayoral hopefuls set transport policiesTory and Labour mayoral candidates launch their transport manifestos, with one promising a
• Gold supercars given parking ticketsA fleet of gold supercars is slapped with parking tickets in London's Knightsbridge.
• Takata denies $24bn airbag recall reportJapan's Takata Corp denies it has calculated the cost of a faulty airbags recall, after a Bloomberg report said it could be $24bn (�16.7bn).
• Boeing to cut more than 4,500 jobsThe world's biggest plane manufacturer Boeing will cut more than 4,500 jobs by June to reduce costs, as customers cut back on orders.
• Crossrail boosts house pricesCrossrail - the new train line across London - appears to be boosting house prices, a year before it begins to open.

The Guardian

• Huge cruise ships will worsen London air pollution, campaigners warnResident groups mounting a high court challenge to plans for a new wharf in Greenwich say diesel emissions from docked liners would breach legal limitsToxic fumes from large cruise liners powered by giant diesel engines will worsen London’s air pollution and could prevent the city from meeting its EU legal limits on deadly nitrogen oxide emissions, says resident groups opposing a new terminal.Plans for a wharf in the Thames that would be able to handle 240 metre-long cruise liners carrying up to 1,800 passengers and 600 crew were approved by Greenwich council last July but are being challenged...
• Boeing to cut 4,000 jobs as battle with Airbus continuesDespite record order completions last year, US aerospace giant is attempting to cut costs against resurgent European rival Boeing is cutting about 4,000 jobs and could double that number this year to slash costs as the world’s biggest aeroplane maker faces intense competition from Europe’s Airbus.The Chicago-based company said it would reduce the headcount in its commercial airlines division by 4,000, with around one-third through voluntary layoffs and the rest by leaving positions unfilled, a spokesman said. Continue reading...
• Mexico City orders all cars off the road one day a week to tackle air pollutionIn addition, vehicles must stay off the road one Saturday a month as the Mexican capital grapples with its worst air-quality crisis in over a decade Authorities in Mexico City have temporarily ordered all cars to remain idle one day a week in response to this notoriously smoggy capital’s worst air-quality crisis in over a decade.Until now vehicles have been exempt from the Mexican capital’s “no circulation” rules if owners obtain a holographic sticker from a smog-check centre certifying them as lower-emission. Continue reading...
• Australian first person in the world to order Tesla Model 3 electric carAndreas Stephens waited outside the Sydney dealership for 48 hours to pre-order the as-yet-unseen model, expected to retail for about A$45,000 in 2018An Australian who waited outside Sydney’s Tesla dealership for 48 hours has become the first person in the world to order its hugely anticipated electric car.Andreas Stephens pre-ordered the Model 3, an as-yet-unseen model expected to retail for about A$45,000 (US$35,000) when it is eventually released in Australia in 2018. Continue reading...
• Passengers using Dubai airports to pay new taxDubai announces first airport fees on passengers to fund further airport expansion as Gulf region seeks to adapt to dwindling oil revenueThe emirate of Dubai, whose airport is the world’s busiest for international passengers, has announced a new tax on travellers to help finance expansion, as Gulf governments grapple with plummeting revenues. Related: Emirates plane completes world’s longest non-stop scheduled commercial flight Continue reading...
• Modern rail travel is a slow-grinding nightmare of too many people and too little space | Stuart HeritageWhen the police are needed to clear passengers from a dangerously overcrowded train, you know Britain’s railways have reached a new lowI have seen the face of the devil. I prised open his slippery mandible, and peered into his gaping maw as the acrid talons of his breath tore away at my flesh and hair until I was left quivering against the wind, having glimpsed cruelty in its rawest form.Which is to say that I got a Great Western train from Paddington to Cornwall on a bank holiday once. But, you know, that’s basically the same thing. Continue reading...
• US airline aborts flight after passenger opts for yoga over sitting downHyongtae Pae threatened to kill passengers and shoved his wife after being told to sit down for meal service during flight from Hawaii to Japan, court hearsA Japan-bound airplane returned to Hawaii because of a violent passenger who wanted to do yoga instead of sit in his seat, the FBI said. Related: Why Justin Trudeau and other world leaders love a yoga pose Continue reading...
• Boy of eight held at Paris airport for more than a weekFrench child rights campaigners horrified at ‘imprisoning’ of child who arrived unaccompanied from Indian Ocean islandAn unaccompanied eight-year-old boy has been held at Paris’s main airport for more than a week after trying to enter France with false identity papers.Children’s rights campaigners have accused the French authorities of breaking international child protection laws by refusing to let the youngster join relatives in France. Continue reading...

The Herald

• Ministers vow crackdown on 'clocking' cars to boost re-sale valueMinisters have promised to take action to stop the

The Telegraph

• Satnav's destroying our basic navigation skills, experts warnExperts fear the world is losing its way due to over-reliance on navigation aids

Mail Online

• Bank station tube worker 'refused to help woman who saw man carrying out sex act' The woman saw an elderly man performing the lewd act at Leytonstone on Monday, but when she reported it to TfL staff at Bank station she was told there was 'nothing they could do.'

The Mirror

• Is your Tube line the most dangerous? Figures reveal which routes have more sex assaults, beatings and robberiesA staggering 12,527 crimes were recorded on the London Underground last year - including hundreds of sex assaults, robberies and drug offences

Network Rail

• �250m upgrade improves railway near Stafford as new Norton Bridge flyover opens Passengers are benefiting from a better railway through the Stafford area and can look forward to improved services in future after a new section of track and a key rail-over-rail flyover opened to trains at Norton Bridge yesterday morning (Tuesday 29 March).
• Completed Easter improvements part of £40bn upgrade plan for Britain’s railwaysMore than 15,000 men and women worked day and night during the long Easter bank holiday weekend to successfully deliver more than 450 projects across Britain’s railway, despite Storm Katie impacting many areas of the country, especially the South.

Birmingham Mail

• �13,000 electric car built in India goes on sale in the UK in April All-electric four-seat city car here next month, starting at £13,000

Birmingham Post

• New Honda hydrogen car will go on sale in 2017 New York unveiling precedes US and Japanese sales – with Britain in the diary for early next year
• This electric car can be driven by a five-year-old A new car can be driven by motorists from the age of 5 - but parents can switch it off remotely.
• Cheap parking deal scrapped at two Birmingham city centre car parksShoppers will no longer be able to park for up to five hours for £3 at the Navigation Street and Town Hall Multi-Storey car parks from April

Bolton News

• Council blasts Government for 'short-changing' Bolton with flood-damage cash COUNCIL chiefs have blasted the Government for providing what they say is less than half the cash needed to rebuild flood-damaged roads in the borough.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Warning to check flights as strikes disrupt flights from Leeds Bradford Airport PASSENGERS travelling from Leeds Bradford Airport are being warned of possible delays and cancellations to flights due to strike action in France.
• Jobs on the district's railway 'under threat', trade unionists warn today SERVICES and jobs in the North’s railways are under threat, trade unionists will warn at a rally in Manchester today.
• Bradford among UK's crash for cash hotspots - see tips on how to avoid being lured into a smash BRADFORD is rated one of the worst places in the country for

Liverpool Echo

• Liverpool2 gearing up for summer opening amid 'significant' industry interest £300m Port of Liverpool in-river berth on course for summer opening

London Evening Standard

• Huge rat filmed crawling onto sleeping commuter on New York subwayThis is the stomach-turning moment a huge rat climbed onto a commuter as he slept on the New York subway.
• Rail operator reprimanded over 'misleading' advertA rail company has been told to stop suggesting that it was publicly owned after an advert was found to be misleading.
• Lightning strike sparks rush hour chaos on London rail servicesCommuters faced hours of delays as they tried to get home after a lightning strike sparked rush-hour train chaos.
• Mayor rivals clash on fares and 'waste by TfL bosses'Zac Goldsmith and Sadiq Khan clashed over fares today as the Tory candidate for Mayor said a freeze would endanger plans for 270,000 new homes, while his Labour rival accused transport chiefs of presiding over "waste, excess and inefficiency".
• Man forced out of seat after row with 'racist' passenger on trainA man claims he was forced to stand on a train from London from Plymouth after a row with a "racist" passenger which forced him out of a carriage where he had booked a seat.
• Owner of luxury fleet of gold supercars in Knightsbridge hit with hundreds of pounds in parking finesThe owner of a fleet of gold supercars, which have caused a stir after they arrived in one of London's poshest areas, has been hit with hundreds of pounds in parking fines.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Roadworks in Byker on a busy bus route to cause rush-hour miseryConstruction on water pipes under Shields Road in Byker has caused massive back-ups on the busy road, and will continue to do so until the weekend

Northern Echo

• Millions more to fix Durham's roads - but is it all smoke and mirrors? A CASH-strapped council has announced a major increase in roads investment – but the move was instantly dismissed as
• Appeal to find £200,000 to get train back on track AN AMBITIOUS plan to revive Britain’s most powerful express passenger steam locomotive needs financial help to stay on track.

Sheffield Star

• Plan for new Rotherham railway station to be developed with �100,000 studyAround £100,000 is to be spent developing plans to build a new railway station in Rotherham.

Yorkshire Post

• Council minibuses to continue axed routesA FLEET of minibuses will be used to provide public transport on two routes in Northallerton and Richmond that would have otherwise lost their service.
• South Yorkshire council leaders hatch plan for multi-million investment in economyHUNDREDS of millions of pounds could be poured into roads, business parks and other infrastructure in South Yorkshire within a few years after the area finalised its devolution deal with the Government.

Blackpool Gazette

• Airport is ‘open to big jet return’The door will remain open for ‘big jets’ to return to Blackpool – despite fears from campaigners that talk of major airline operations re-starting is ‘misleading and full of false hope’.

Crewe Chronicle

• 'HS2 is one step closer' Pete Waterman: 'In 10 years time we'll have a railway'

Other Regional Press

• Wye Bridge work plan submitted to Monmouthshire council DETAILS for preparatory works on a Grade II listed bridge in Monmouth ahead of extensive work on the town’s busiest road junction have been submitted to Monmouthshire council.
• Royal Navy tracks Russian ships through English ChannelA Royal Navy warship has escorted a Russian naval task group as it travelled through the English Channel and along the east coast of the UK.
• Rejected bid for station rebuild funds ‘a slap in the face’ for Luton, MP saysA failed bid for funds to redevelop Luton railway station is a ‘slap in the face’ for the town, MP Gavin Shuker has said.
• New Lancashire service to fill the gap following massive bus cutsVillages are to get a new bus service from next Monday following the huge changes due to cut-backs.
• Calderdale Council plans blitz on potholes after securing �200k from GovernmentResurfacing work planned for A641 Bradford Road, Brighouse
• Transport on track as busway is launchedTransport bosses have officially launched the flagship multi-million pound guided busway ahead of this weekend’s first passenger services.
• HMS Somerset shadows Russian warship in English Channel A ROYAL�Navy warship has shadowed a Russian Naval Task Group transiting through the English Channel and up the East Coast of the UK.
• Headington Quarry residents calling for re-think on new �1.2m pavilion OXFORD City Council has made a U-turn over plans for a �1.2m pavilion after Headington Quarry residents complained having a car park would be dangerous for children.
• Truckers urge BMW to help stop foreign delivery drivers ruining laybys HAULAGE workers and councillors have urged BMW to take action to stop lorry drivers from abroad clogging up laybys across the city.
• ‘This has to stop’ says Great Northern train operator as investigation reveals £750,000 bill from Baldock bridge strikesA fresh bid is to be made to keep lorries away from a railway bridge where repeated truck strikes have run up a huge repair bill and caused regular misery for commuters.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Nat Ex orders more Platinum busesNational Express is expanding its fleet of ‘premium’ two-tone grey Platinum buses following their successful introduction to the West Midlands. They give passengers free Wi-Fi, extra legroom and high-backed seats. It plans to buy 65 more in 2016 to serve every district of the Black Country, with the first to be on the road in the summer. A fleet of 58 ADL Enviro400 Euro Platinum buses were introduced in May 2015 on eight routes (900, 957, X51, 997, 934, 935, 936 and 937) across the West Midlands. The Birmingham-Walsall X51 has seen 25% growth and there’s been 10% growth on...
• Edinburgh Airport 'worth almost �1bn to Scottish economy' says reportEdinburgh Airport contributes nearly £1bn to the Scottish economy annually and supports more than 23,000 jobs, a new report has suggested. Consultancy firm Biggar Economics was asked to look at the site's economic impact. It is Scotland's busiest airport and handles more than 11 million passengers a year. The study predicted that by 2020 it would be worth between £1.1bn and £1bn GVA per year. The report considered both the direct and indirect benefits of having an airport in Scotland's capital city, Edinburgh. As well as looking at value of airport operations and on-site...
• Liverpool John Lennon Airport welcomes new Vueling link with BarcelonaSpanish airline Vueling, part of the International Airlines Group (IAG) that includes British Airways, operated the first flights of their new summer service between Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LJLA) and Barcelona on Good Friday. Celebrations took place both inside and outside the Airport terminal including a traditional arch of water aircraft ‘baptism’ as the Airbus A320 taxied in. The three times weekly service operates on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday with a schedule to suit both leisure and business passengers. Passengers can also connect onwards to other destinations serve...
• Network Rail unveils choices for Wales’ rail futureNetwork Rail has unveiled proposals to meet future growth in passenger and freight journeys in Wales and the borders. With rail travel into Cardiff expected to continue growing significantly over the next 30 years, the number of journeys to and from Cardiff Central – Wales’ busiest station – is forecast to grow from 13 million to 33 million by 2043. A major redevelopment of Cardiff Central station, the modernisation of the railway across North Wales, and improved rail links throughout Wales and the borders are among the choices facing funders in the Welsh Route Study, publi...
• North West’s first guided busway welcomes first passengersPassengers will be travelling in first class comfort and style from Sunday (3 April) when new services launch on the North West’s first guided busway. The 4.5-mile bus-only guideway between Leigh, Tyldesley and Ellenbrook provides super-smooth, rapid connections for passengers thanks to a unique concrete track.  It forms the flagship element of Transport for Greater Manchester’s (TfGM) bus priority investment, a  £122 million overall package enabling people to enjoy faster, more punctual and more reliable bus services across the region, to, from and through the ci...

Rail Magazine

• Osborne gives green light given for HS3 planningChancellor George Osborne throws his weight behind the High Speed 3 (HS3) rail project to reduce journey times between Manchester and Leeds
• Luton council calls for more trains for airportLuton Borough Council has called on the Department for Transport to introduce four trains per hour between London Luton Airport (LLA) and central London.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Contract for Ordsall Chord construction partnership signedManchester’s Ordsall Chord is set to go ahead after the contract for the new partnership was signed. Network Rail formed an official construction partnership with Amey, Skanska, Siemens and BAM Nuttall to build the chord, which will link Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria for...
• South West Trains unveils �800m improvement programme at WaterlooAn £800m improvement programme for South West Trains was unveiled at Waterloo Station today, which includes plans to significantly expand one of Britain’s busiest stations. The improvements, to take place over the next three years, will include expanding Waterloo station, introducing...
• East-west Northern Powerhouse Rail options revealedFurther details of preliminary options for the budding Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) have been revealed in Transport for the North’s (TfN’s) spring report, ahead of the scheme’s design development stage in 2017. Options for the NPR network – a rail link connecting the...

Aviation Industry

• Virgin Atlantic boosts UK regional links with Flybe codeshareVirgin Atlantic has signed a codeshare agreement with UK-based regional Flybe for a network of routes connecting its London Gatwick, Manchester and Glasgow operations with 18 regional airports in the UK and Western Europe. read more
• Lockheed Martin wins first order for hybrid airshipsUK startup Straightline Aviation (SLA) has placed a letter of intent for up to 12 Lockheed Martin Hybrid Airships. The deal, the first for the new airship, is potentially worth up to $480 million. read more
• Virgin Atlantic signs Flybe codeshare dealAirline also announces new US flights from Manchester
• Brussels airport opening delayedBrussels airport is still closed to all passenger flights following last week’s attacks.

Other News Sources

• Review into M65 lighting after tragic road deaths A FRESH inquiry into the impact of shutting off lights on the M65 is underway after the deaths of two friends in an early-hours smash, the Lancashire Telegraph can reveal.
• Petition calls for road safety measures at A49 crash site A PETITION calling for more road safety measures on the A49 has gathered almost 2,500 signatures.
• New Heathrow to Waterloo rail link would connect airport with Surrey rail network The Southern Rail Access proposals would connect the airport to Waterloo, Guildford and Basingstoke, possibly via Feltham and Hounslow
• Sinkhole caused by broken sewer appears in Woking Traffic signals have been placed at the junction of Old Woking Road and White Rose Lane

Other Subscription Services

• Waboso quits Tube to spearhead digital railway Network Rail has lured London Underground capital programmes director David Waboso to lead its flagship digital railway initiative.In his current role at LU Waboso is responsible for annual...
• Four contractors form Ordsall Chord alliance Network Rail has signed contracts with Amey, BAM Nuttall, Siemens and Skanska to build and deliver the Ordsall Chord in Manchester.The new rail connection will link Manchester Victoria and...
• Great Western rapped for rebranding slogan Train operator Great Western has been told not to rerun an advertisement that appeared to suggest that its rail franchise is publicly owned.As part of rebranding from First Great Western to Great...
• Greater Manchester busway ready for passengers Leigh guided busway will open to passengers on Sunday (3 April).The 4.5 mile bus-only guideway between Leigh, Tyldesley and Ellenbrook consists of concrete 'track' and forms the flagship element of...