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

Monday, 11 April 2016

BBC News

• Scepticism over motor track locationA senior figure in a motor circuit owners' group says the motorsport industry is sceptical about locating the proposed Circuit of Wales track in Ebbw Vale.
• VIDEO: 'It felt as though the train had derailed'A tractor driver has suffered serious injuries after a train and a tractor crashed at a level crossing in Norfolk.

The Guardian

• Richard Branson: ‘Millions of people would love to become astronauts’Eighteen months on from the fatal crash that left Richard Branson’s space tourism project in doubt, Virgin Galactic is back. We report from the unveiling of a new ship in the Mojave desert and talk to BransonDrive north-east out of Los Angeles, and when the suburban sprawl finally gives out, the terrain looks more and more unearthly – parched scrub, lunar ridges and vast cloudless skies. This is the Mojave desert, offering few attractions to the casual visitor but the perfect environment in which to test aircraft.It’s in these barren parts that the Edwards air force base is located, w...
• Inflatable room delivered to the International Space StationThe bedroom-sized pod offers a new way of living in space and on other planetsA SpaceX Dragon cargo ship delivered the first inflatable room for astronauts to the International Space Station on Saturday, two days after launching from Cape Canaveral.Astronauts, including the UK’s Tim Peake, orbiting 250 miles above Earth used a robotic arm to capture the Dragon, which holds three tonnes of freight and had as part of its payload a soft-sided compartment built by Bigelow Aerospace. Continue reading...
• Nasa scrambles to save Kepler spacecraft from state of emergencySpacecraft, which has detected almost 5,000 planets, remains in lowest operational mode to conserve fuel while Nasa assess issue that began last weekNasa was on Sunday trying to save its Kepler spacecraft, the ageing planet hunter that has survived several crises and has once again slipped into a state of emergency, nearly 75 million miles away from Earth. Related: Earth 2.0: Nasa says scientists have found 'closest twin' outside solar system Continue reading...

The Huffington Post

• Norfolk Train And Tractor Collision Leaves Passengers Injured At RoudhamA driver is believed to have been seriously hurt and a number of passengers injured when a train hit a tractor on a level crossing. The passenger service was reportedly carrying around 135 people when it crashed into the vehicle in Roudham, Norfolk, The Press Association reports. Police, ambulance and fire services were called to the scene at around 12.30pm on Sunday. British Transport Police said the train operator and a number of passengers were treated at the scene by paramedics. Passenger Tom Smith tweeted:

The Scotsman

• Government’s plan to sell Edinburgh Airport to QatarSelling Edinburgh Airport to the rulers of Qatar was top of Alex Salmond’s agenda during a trade mission, according to civil servant papers.

The Telegraph

• Crewless 'drone ships' will be sailing the seas by 2020Remote-controlled “drone ships” will be plying the sealanes without crews on board by the end of the decade, according to Rolls-Royce.
• Network Rail revaluation adds £100bn to accountsThe Government’s balance sheet will be boosted by at least £100bn this summer because of an accounting change that will significantly increase the value of Network Rail.

Times Online

• B-52 brought back to beef up fight against Isis [Subscription]The B-52 Stratofortress strategic bomber has joined the fight against Isis in a dramatic psychological expansion of the air campaign in Syria and Iraq.

Daily Express

• Snooping councils ‘use drones to fly over HOMES in bid to ramp up planning checks’DRONES could be flown over homes by “busy-body” councils who claim to be using the controversial vehicles to check planning applications.

Mail Online

• Karakoram Highway video shows bus being washed away in Pakistan amid heavy flooding Several passengers escaped with their lives when the bus they were travelling in along the Karakoram Highway in Pakistan was swept away in a raging torrent of flood water.
• Crane carrying an Air India plane crashes to the ground next to Hyderabad Begumpet Airport in India Workers ran for their lives as a huge aircraft came crashing down when the crane that was carrying it collapsed. The incident happened at the Hyderabad Begumpet Airport in India.

This is Money

• Could Britain's booming car factories help save our steel industry? Changes to Government policies and big investment in the technology required to make the quality of steel needed for cars could help British steel-makers ride the automotive boom.

Birmingham Post

• Midlands sees rise in Land Rover Defender thefts Insurer claims it has seen a increase  in the number of claims from owners of the iconic vehicles after production stopped in January

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• STOP THE DANGER DRIVERS: Police campaign starting to make public feel safer PEOPLE in Bradford are starting to feel safer on the district's roads - thanks to a crackdown on danger driving, according to comments made to West Yorkshire Police.

London Evening Standard

• London company 3D prints bamboo bike in just 8 hoursA London company has 3D printed a bike that is made with bamboo in just eight hours.
• Several injured after Norfolk train carrying 135 people crashes into tractorA tractor driver has suffered serious injuries after a train carrying 135 people hit his vehicle at a Norfolk level crossing.
• Revealed: 57 London Tube stations at 'high and rising' risk of flooding A London Underground report has revealed 57 Tube stations are at high risk of flooding from heavy rain and burst water pipes, with the danger increasing.

Northern Echo

• Vintage bike race will see penny farthings ride through the streets of Darlington DARLINGTON’S smartest cyclists will be out in force for an unusual race this month.
• More traffic woe ahead for Durham drivers as work continues to improve journey times MOTORISTS who have faced months of traffic troubles are due to face further woes as the next phase of scheme to improve journey times on the main route through Durham City begins on Monday (April 11).
• Calls to ban laser pens after hundreds of police calls in the region in just two years HUNDREDS of incidents of people shining laser pens at cars, planes and homes have been recorded in the region, leading to calls for them to be classed as offensive weapons.
• Wave of Land Rover Defender thefts in North Yorkshire and North-East sparks security appeal INSURERS and police have urged owners of a Land Rover Defenders to increase security measures after a 69 per cent rise in thefts of the vehicle in the North-East.
• Motorists rescued after becoming trapped by the sea on Lindisfarne Two people had to be rescued from a car after becoming stranded by the sea on a tidal causeway.

The York Press

• 200 bikers take to York streets TWO hundred bikers�have�met in York this weekend.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Leeds airport bosses call for crackdown after thousands of laser incidents reported to policeLEEDS airport bosses are calling for tighter restrictions over the use of laser pens after police received thousands of reports over their misuse – putting pilots and passengers at risk.

Yorkshire Post

• Railways stations ‘will deliver thousands of jobs and homes’Thousands of jobs and homes are set to be created by “the biggest programme of rail improvements since the Victorian age”, the Government has said.

Blackpool Gazette

• Calls to improve safety at danger road junctionRenewed calls have been made for action to be taken over a controversial road junction after a motorcyclist was injured following a collision with a car.

Daventry Express

• VIDEO: See the ​ISS glide across night skiesThe International Space Station (ISS) with UK Astronaut Major Tim Peake on board, will glide across the night skies over the next week.

Doncaster Free Press

• Nearly 350 laser pen incidents reported to South Yorkshire Police in less than two yearsPolice in South Yorkshire were called out to 349 incidents involving laser pens in less than two years, new figures reveal.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Tractor driver seriously hurt in train crash at Roudham level crossing - 10 people injuredA tractor driver was seriously hurt and nine other people injured when a Greater Anglia train carrying 135 passengers hit the tractor at a level crossing in Roudham, near Thetford, on Sunday lunchtime.
• Railway near Thetford reopens after train and tractor level crossing crashThe railway line between Norwich and Ely has reopened this morning after a serious crash near Thetford yesterday.

Reading Evening Post

• Reading Buses services will not stop at Blagrave Street due to building works in Reading Routes Jet Black 1, Lime 2/2a and Scarlet X9 will be affected from Monday, April 11 until Sunday, April 17

Other Regional Press

• Early and late trains to be affected as electrification work begins at Newport Station COMMUTERS are being reminded to check their train times as work to prepare Newport Station for the electrification of the South Wales Mainline starts today.
• Motorway misery looms for drivers as roadworks start on M62Series of repair schemes under way on busy motorway
• All the planned West Midlands roadworks for April 11-17 Don't get caught out on the roads this week by using a comprehensive list of planned works
• Electric car visits Swindon as part of Britain's answer to Route 66 WHILE America’s Route 66 is internationally known, Britain and Ireland’s Route 57 is more of a mystery.
• PHOTOS: World's newest cruise ship arrives in Southampton The world’s latest and, claimed to be, most innovative cruise ship will arrive in Southampton later today.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• New National Express straight-to-the terminal Stansted servicesThousands of extra seats daily   National Express is making it easier than ever to travel to Stansted Airport with brand new routes adding almost 5,000 extra seats a day – an annual equivalent to more than ten times the population of Brighton.        The new services, which launch on Monday, April 11, will for the first time see the UK’s largest coach operator serve Stansted from new stops at Paddington, Waterloo and Southwark.   The news is likely to be particularly welcomed by travellers journeying to Stansted from areas south of the River Thames - w...
• Driverless cars to be trialled on motorwaysA trial of driverless cars is to be carried out on motorways, Highways England has confirmed. The organisation believes a connected corridor could see cars and infrastructure being linked wirelessly, so drivers would receive alerts of congestion and road closures in advance. This forms part of a wider �150 million drive to harness innovative new technology, which will also involve trialling radar technology on motorways and in tunnels so breakdowns can be detected more effectively. Andrew Jones, the roads minister, commented:

Rail Magazine

• Alliance Rail accuses DfT of blackmail over East CoastAlliance Rail has accused DfT of blackmailing ORR by threatening to withdraw funding for ECML upgrades if it allows more open access services to run.

Aviation Industry

• Singapore Airlines could buy Virgin Australia to block ChineseInvestment involved in Virgin's big push into the business market leaves its balance sheet in something of a weakened space. Singapore Airlines has the financial firepower to make a bid for the remainder of Virgin Australia, but it may not do so unless a Chinese rival makes an offer for Air New Zealand's 25.9 per cent stake, according to aviation experts.

Other News Sources

• Cranleigh society claim Downs Link would not be viable to reopenThe £25m busway would reportedly alleviate pressure on the A281 between Horsham and Guildford but the society disagree
• Brookwood railway station to shut for three monthsSouth West Trains is closing the station from Monday April 25 and could reverse the "hazardous" entrance and exit

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