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

Tuesday, 07 February 2017

BBC News

• Southern rail: Could drivers reject deal?Some members of the Aslef union say they are unhappy with a deal to avert strike action at Southern rail.
• Toyota says weakening yen will help profitsDespite the upgrade, the carmaker's profits will still be considerably less than a year earlier.
• Do 'longest flight' records matter?Qatar Airways launches
• Ryanair a 'victim of its own niceness'Ryanair is reviewing its free second carry-on bag allowance because some passengers
• Motorists shun diesel cars while eco-friendly sales riseMotorists are turning to more eco-friendly models as diesel sales decline, industry figures suggest.
• Queen Street trains resume after trespass incidentBritish Transport Police say one man was taken to

Financial Times

• Autonomous trains can raise capacity, rail body saysRemote signalling would allow trains to run closer together and ditch driver control
• Free EU Interrail 18th birthday present hits buffersBrussels waters down idea to cheaper proposal for schools travel budget

The Guardian

• A North Channel rail tunnel to raise moraleLetter - In January, amid much fanfare, the UK joined the New Silk Route as a freight container train arrived in London all the way from China (Silk Road route back in business, theguardian.com, 14 January). Now the Northern Ireland ports are on the doorstep of the North Atlantic and the great circle route.
• Railways could use eye scans to charge passengers, say industry plansBiometric technology, including fingerprint and iris scans, could enable fares to be automatically processedRail passengers could be charged for journeys by fingerprint or iris scans, according to the industry’s plan for coping with growing demand.Biometric technology would enable fares to be automatically charged, the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) said.

The Herald

• Scotland's busiest rail routes severely disrupted after children charge station tunnelALL train services to and from Scotland's third busiest railway hub have been cancelled or altered after a number of children ran onto the tracks and into a tunnel.

The Huffington Post

• Uber Drivers Forced To Pay For Sweets For Customers, MPs Told Uber drivers told MPs they had been forced to pay for sweets and water for customers in order to compete for ratings. They told the Commons Work and Pensions Committee on Monday that Uber bullied drivers, paid below the minimum wage, and put employees’ heath and safety at risk. They said the company had added a system for customers to give feedback on whether the car was “fully stocked” with snacks. But they said drivers were expected to pay for the snacks themselves. Uber driver David Dunn told the Committee: “It’s expensive for us and cheap for the pu...

Times Online

• Stansted deal forces Ryanair fare cuts [Subscription]Ryanair has been forced to slash fares this winter, prompting an industry-wide price war, because it has to hit contractual passenger number targets with airports such as London Stansted.
• Driverless cars make human motorists take more chances [Subscription]An increase in the number of driverless cars on the road is likely to promote risky behaviour among human motorists, according to research.
• Come fly for free: O’Leary sings [subscription]Maybe Michael O’Leary actually meant it. Only a few days ago he was going around telling people: “I want to have all air fares on Ryanair free.”

The Mirror

• Rail passengers could pay fares by fingerprint of IRIS SCAN in the future to cope with growing demand The rail network could make use of facial recognition technology similar to that used at UK airports

The Sun

• TAXI CHAIR BIAS BLITZ Taxi drivers who refuse to transport wheelchair users could be fined £1,000 under new Government ruleThe rule will apply to taxi and private hire vehicle drivers with wheelchair-accessible vehicles in Britain

Birmingham Post

• Busy M6 junction to undergo �64m facelift Route used by 8,000 vehicles an hour at peak times will be redesigned to expand capacity and improve safety

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Wrexham easyBus goes up in flames at train stationTwo fire crews tackled the 'well alight' minibus, which is used to transfer passengers to Manchester Airport

London Evening Standard

• RMT union to meet Southern rail for talks despite attacking Aslef dealThe RMT has confirmed it will meet with Southern rail for talks despite attacking a deal between the company and the train drivers' union Aslef.
• British Airways cabin crew to seek support from MPs over 'poverty pay' rowBritish Airways cabin crew will visit Parliament to lobby MPs to mark the third day of a strike over pay.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• New seating plans on Metro trains will make them more London Tube styleMetro passengers have given a thumbs up to seating along the inside wall of the new fleet of trains

Wales Online

• A woman couldn't get a £2.30 ticket because the machine was broken. She was billed £600“I burst into tears. This just put so much pressure and caused me to have a complete breakdown"

Blackpool Gazette

• All aboard for Garstang rail line revivalThe team ADVERTISEMENT of transport enthusiasts have long since dreamed of seeing parts of the route of the former Garstang to Knott End Railway being re-tracked and used by local passengers and tourists

Other Regional Press

• Hull Paragon Interchange £1.4m makeover 'to make it as good as London Kings Cross' The delayed £1.4m facelift of Paragon Interchange will bring the station up to the same standards as London Kings Cross, railway bosses have said.
• HYDROGEN TRANSPORT PUT IN THE SPOTLIGHT AS ABERDEEN HOSTS INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCEAn international summit on hydrogen transport is to be held in Aberdeen next month.

Buying Business Travel

• Ryanair profits drop on Sterling slumpAirline blames the fall in value of the pound for a decline in profits
• Bmi Regional adds Virgin Trains booking option to siteBMI Regional has announced a partnership with Virgin Trains

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Port of London trade jumps more than 10% to 50 million tonnesTrade in the Port of London in 2016 reached the highest this decade, rising 10% to top 50 million tonnes for the first time since 2008.    The strong performance reflects continued growth at terminals along the Thames.  The volumes of oil, containers and building materials all rose markedly.  Prior to 2016, port throughput had been increasing at between two to three percent, year-on-year. PLA chief executive, Robin Mortimer said:
• New report says that bus industry profits driven up in 2014/15Profits in the UK bus industry rose for the second consecutive year in 2014/15, according to new analysis published by the Passenger Transport Monitor website. The 122-page report Bus Industry Performance 2016 presents the results of its annual analysis of 116 local bus companies around Great Britain, in the 25th year of the Bus Industry Monitor project. Revenue grew by 3.8% at a time when inflation was running at around 1%. Operating costs rose by 2.8%.  Turnover across the companies analysed rose to £5,708m, whilst operating costs reached £5,275m. Operating profit was £...

Rail Magazine

• Testing programme in place for first Class 88Direct Rail Services’ first dual-mode Class 88 is expected to undergo a testing programme that will last six to eight weeks.
• Work starts on new-look Paragon stationHull Paragon station is being refurbished, with new toilets and a new waiting room.
• Eurostar opens new Business Premier Lounge in ParisEurostar opened its new Business Premier lounge at Paris Gare Du Nord on February 4.
• Hitachi Rail Europe seeks new recruits for �80m depotHitachi Rail Europe is recruiting 150 staff from the Bristol area for its Stoke Gifford depot.

Rail Technology Magazine

• MPs float longer-term deals as solution to broken franchising modelMPs have raised serious concerns about the UK’s current rail franchising model, arguing that it is unsustainable in the long term without lasting changes. A report by the Transport Select Committee into rail franchising, one of an ongoing series of reports into the future of rail, has...
• RMT accuses Aslef of 'shocking betrayal' in Southern dealThe RMT has lashed out at the truce agreed last week between fellow rail union Aslef and Southern rail in the pair’s long-running dispute over driver-only operated (DOO) trains, calling it a “shocking betrayal” of workers and passengers. Last week Aslef and GTR reached a...
• Camden to build HS2-funded replacement homes for affected residentsCamden Council is currently constructing six apartment blocks to replace homes lost to the construction of HS2 ahead of the HS2 Bill’s expected Royal Assent next month. The blocks, on the Regent’s Park estate, will provide 90 replacement homes for council tenants and leaseholders...

Railnews

• Franchising 'fails to deliver for passengers' say MPs The House of Commons Transport Committee has called for major reforms to the rail franchising system, or else franchising might not be �sustainable in the longer term�. It also says the government has �serious lessons to learn� from the long period of disruption on Southern, which may have moved forward after ASLEF and Govia Thameslink Railway reached agreement on 2 February.
• ASLEF DOO settlement 'a disgrace' says RMT The implications of the settlement between ASLEF and Govia Thameslink Railway over Southern DOO are emerging in the wake of Thursday's announcement, with the RMT angered by the details, which were not released immediately. There are also reports that some ASLEF drivers will oppose the deal. Most of the original Southern plan has been preserved, including moving the responsibility for the doors and train dispatch to drivers. A second member of staff will normally be carried on each train, but not necessarily with specific route knowledge.

Aviation Industry

• Airspace proposals promise better community engagement but limited noise reductionImage Credit: Waldeck via Pixabay� The Department of Transport has launched a major consultation on reforming policy on the design and use of UK airspace. The proposals follow intense community pressure over recent years for the Government to act to …
• Ryanair 3Q profits dip, but full-year figures unchangedIreland-based low-cost carrier (LCC) Ryanair saw its third-quarter profits fall 8% compared to the same period in the previous year, as geopolitical events pushed more capacity into its market and yields fell. read more
• Ryanair to expand Israel servicesIrish low-cost carrier (LCC) Ryanair will expand Israel operations, as the airline heads east in search of new territories as competition increases on its more “traditional” routes in Western and Southern Europe. read more
• Inmarsat concludes testing of European Aviation NetworkSatellite communications provider Inmarsat has completed testing and validation of its European Aviation Network (EAN) Satellite Access Station (SAS), which will enable airline passengers throughout Europe to have improved onboard connectivity. read more

Other News Sources

• Surrey train deaths: How British Transport Police and mental health charities react to railway fatalities Find out how British Transport Police, Network Rail and various charities are working together to prevent deaths on Britain's railways
• Drivers furious over deal to allow trains to run without conductors TRAIN drivers are furious at a deal thrashed out between their union leaders and employers and are gearing up to reject it in a vote.