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

Tuesday, 07 March 2017

BBC News

• 'Big increase' in drug use at Wrexham bus stationBus driver Gavin Rodda publishes
• New £192m bypass opens linking M6 and M56 motorwaysThe new road is designed to ease severe congestion on the A556 route between Knutsford and Bowdon.
• High-speed 'hover train' plans submitted for NorthPlans for a high-speed
• Heathrow to Wales flights 'could bid for funds'The Welsh Government says airlines wanting to fly from Wales to Heathrow will be able to bid for a share of a �10m route development fund.
• Coal collapse drives down UK carbon emissionsA collapse in the use of coal has driven UK carbon emissions down to levels barely seen since the Victorian era, new figures show.
• BA to offer less legroom than Ryanair on some planesBritish Airways will cram in more passengers on some of its aircraft used for European flights.
• Vauxhall deal prompts cautious optimism from UK governmentThe government seeks to reassure workers at Ellesmere Port and Luton car plants after Vauxhall's sale.

The Guardian

• Peugeot-Citroën chief vows to save jobs in Vauxhall/Opel takeoverPSA Group buys carmakers from General Motors for £1.9bn and wants to turn them around without plant closures or job cutsThe chief executive of the French company behind Peugeot and Citroën has vowed to turn Opel and Vauxhall around without factory closures or job cuts, after agreeing to buy General Motors’ lossmaking European arm for €2.2bn (£1.9bn).The acquisition of Opel/Vauxhall, which generated revenues of €17.7bn last year, will transform PSA Group into the second-biggest carmaker in Europe, after Volkswagen. Continue reading...
• UK flights cancelled as French air traffic controllers strikeEasyJet, Ryanair and British Airways forced to reduce number of flights to and over France as five-day action beginsEasyJet, Ryanair and British Airways have cancelled flights on Monday as French air traffic controllers (ATCs) start a five-day strike.Flights to and from the UK are among more than 1,000 likely to be scrapped this week. Continue reading...
• The Guardian view of the car industry: an electric future | EditorialThe world is moving faster than we think towards more automated vehicles powered by renewable energyGone are the days when cars made in Britain were British. Monday’s sale of Vauxhall/Opel to Peugeot meant only the transfer of two large English factories from the German subsidiary of an American firm to a French company, accompanied by the ritual promises that jobs would be safe. These seem insubstantial, given that the new management plans to save €1.7bn a year from the old Opel operation, while the Vauxhall factories made a heavy loss after the pound’s post-referendum slide. Yet the contorti...
• Peugeot sale is an 'opportunity', says Clark. An opportunity for pigs to fly | John CraceBusiness secretary begs MPs to see Vauxhall sale in positive light as Labour’s Rebecca Long-Bailey asks if 40,000 jobs are guaranteedBritain is open for business, insisted Greg Clark. The only fly in the ointment was that it was principally open for overseas companies flogging their UK assets to other overseas companies. But the business secretary is by nature an optimist and was determined to cast General Motors’ sale of Vauxhall to Peugeot in a positive light. The devaluation of the pound against the dollar as a result of the Brexit vote was just a total coincidence and the US-firm General M...

The Scotsman

• Peugeot plays down job loss fears after buying Vauxhall sitesFrench car giant PSA Group has sought to play down fears of plant closures after confirming it is to buy the European operations of General Motors, including Vauxhall in the UK, for £1.9 billion.

Times Online

• Uber to transport NHS patients and carers [subscription]NHS patients are to be ferried around in Uber taxis under a new deal signed with Cera, the social care company.

Mail Online

• EasyJet, Ryanair and BA cancel flights after French strike EasyJet, Ryanair and British Airways called off more than 80 flights between them as the five-day strike begins – and there is a separate call to strike tomorrow by Air France workers.
• Diesel car sales drop my 9% New car registrations fell to 36,981 in February – a year-on-year drop of 9.1 per cent, figures show. Meanwhile, sales of petrol cars rose 5.8 per cent to 42,826 over the same period.

The Mirror

• Fly the flag for Vauxhall and ensure we save thousands of British jobs The Tory Government must engage with the new £1.9billion owner over the Channel and safeguard plants making Astra cars and Vivaro vans

Belfast Telegraph

• Bus workers' dispute could spread across country, warns McCluskeyA bus workers' dispute over pay and industrial relations could spread across the country unless it is resolved, the leader of the country's biggest trade union has warned.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Wrexham bus driver says public back him for highlighting drug abuse at bus station The Daily Post published Gavin Rodda’s images of drug paraphernalia and what he claims are addicts slumped on the floor at the King Street site

Liverpool Echo

• The ambitious Liverpool transport schemes that never saw the light of day - and one that might We take a look back at the ideas which never came to fruition

London Evening Standard

• Budget 2017: Northern cities could derail plans for Crossrail 2 linkLondon's vital Crossrail 2 plans could be derailed by competing demands from northern cities for High Speed 3, MPs warned today.
• Ryanair, EasyJet and BA flights among over 1,000 cancelled due to latest French air traffic control strikeMore than 1,000 flights are expected to be cancelled this week due to the latest strike by French air traffic controllers.

Manchester Evening News

• Thugs who repeat offend on public transport could soon be BANNED from using trams and buses Transport bosses prepare for new battle on abuse and vandalism on public transport

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Proposed 350mph underground train could travel from East to West of UK in 29 MINUTES A 'levitating train' propelled by electrically charged magnets is now being spoken of in the North West

Wales Online

• Jobs fears in Wales as Vauxhall's Ellesmere Port plant sold to Peugeot as part of £1.9bn deal There are 450 Welsh car workers at the plant
• Bloody needles and people unconscious in the street - the shocking pictures that claim to show drug use in a Welsh town A bus driver took the upsetting pictures and said he wanted to highlight the problems

Other Regional Press

• MPs slam upgrade plan as costs soarTHE troubled Great Western rail line has been labelled as an example of how not to deliver on major infrastructure schemes.
• Hundreds sign petition after residents fear Sankey for Penketh station will closeA PETITION to save Sankey for Penketh station has been launched after residents fear its days are numbered thanks to plans for for a new train station near Chapelford.
• MP slams government Severn Bridge toll plans PLANS to cut tolls on the two Severn bridges to £3 for cars have been branded “the techniques of the fairground”, by Newport West MP Paul Flynn.
• Hundreds of people sign Bettws congestion petition MORE than 350 people have signed a petition in less than a week, asking Newport City Council to address the issue of traffic congestion in Bettws Lane.
• Dartford Crossing's east tunnel 'flooded' as fire sprinkler system tested Footage shows 2,500 litres of water pour from the ceiling per minute as safety checks are carried out on the underground road.
• Dartford Crossing not included in assessments of air quality as it was wrongly classed as ruralDartford's crossing - which carries 160,000 vehicles every day - has been wrongly classified by the government... as a rural road!

Buying Business Travel

• US flight bookings fall after Trump banGlobal air sales to the US dropped in the week after initial travel ban

Rail Magazine

• October 2019 - Northern Pacers’ final termination dateWithdrawal dates for Northern's Pacer fleet revealed in Government document.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Hill International and CH2M picked for Valley Metro Rail's transit projects Hill International and CH2M have been selected as programme and construction management consultants for Valley Metro Rail’s future transit projects in the US.
• Mechan Acquired by Major French Rail Group Rail depot equipment specialist, Mechan, is joining France's CIM Group - one of the industry's most ambitious international suppliers of integrated solutions.
• Do we have credible costing methods for major projects?Lord Berkeley, chairman of the Rail Freight Group and member of RTM’s editorial board, questions the methodology of estimating costs on major projects, including Great Western electrification.
• South West Trains MD steps down after a year in postThe managing director of South West Trains (SWT), Christian Roth, is preparing to step down from the role after one year in the position. It also marks the end of a decade-long tenure at the rail operator. Roth joined the company in 2008 having led the UK rail business for Siemens. During his...
• NR launches '20 by 20' scheme to inspire greater gender diversity in workforceA new programme has been launched by Network Rail (NR), setting a target to increase the number of women working in the industry by 20% by 2020 in an effort to involve more women in the male-dominated workforce. The scheme, ‘20 by 20’, has been brought in to combat the rail...

Railway Gazette

• ScotRail EMU refurbishment contract awardedUK: Leasing company Eversholt Rail has awarded Knorr-Bremse RailServices a contract to undertake a...

Aviation Industry

• Alitalia to finalize new business plan by March 12Etihad Airways equity partner Alitalia is making some amendments to its “re-launch business plan,” which it expects to finalize by the end of this week. read more
• Trump imposes revised, narrower travel ban starting March 16US President Donald Trump has issued a revised, narrower travel ban than his previous executive order that was blocked by US federal courts, this time temporarily excluding citizens without already-issued visas from six countries from entering the US for 90 days starting March 16. read more
• DOT freezes regulatory process on Obama-era airfare transparency proposalsThe US Department of Transportation (DOT) has indefinitely suspended comment periods on two late-term Obama administration regulatory actions related to how airlines display airfares and ancillary fees, essentially freezing the regulatory process on the actions. read more

Other News Sources

• Newcastle Airport calls for government support in face of Scottish tax reductionsNewcastle International Airport is urging the government to introduce measures which support English, regional airports from the impacts of Air Passenger Duty (APD) devolution to Scotland.
• First refurbished Class 170 train about to enter service for a better journey in Norfolk, Suffolk and CambridgeshireRail passengers in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire are to benefit from cleaner, smarter trains with more seats and plug points, as Greater Anglia’s first refurbished Class 170 trains re-enters passenger service.
• UK car industry seeks jobs reassurance in wake of Peugeot Vauxhall dealPSA Group’s acquisition of GM’s European operations will make the French firm the second largest automotive company in Europe, but the deal has led to uncertainty over UK jobs. Under the €2.2bn deal, PSA – which owns Citroen and Peugeot – will acquire the Opel and Vauxhall brands, along with 12 facilities across Europe and […]
• High-tech future requires keen new talentJason Ford, news editor There can be little doubt that the automobile is undergoing its own revolution right now, whether it’s by redefining the driving experience itself, or the methods in which they are assembled. Only last week Nissan took to the streets of east London to demonstrate how a suite of technologies including millimetre […]
• Potholes on Sir Richard's Bridge 'clearly need repairing' as county council and Network Rail dispute the cause"In an ideal world, Network Rail would fix the structural problems and the county council would come along and fix the road," a local councillor said
• 'Don't ditch diesel, keep Britain trading' FTA tells GovernmentThe Freight Transport Association (FTA), the UK’s largest membership association representing the country’s freight and logistics industry, is ...
• Takeovers: Angela Eagle and Michael HowardLabour MP Angela Eagle, former shadow business secretary whose Merseyside constituency includes many workers at the Vauxhall plant, and Lord Howard, former leader of the Conservative party.
• Fears for jobs as Peugeot buys VauxhallFor a shade under £2bn, French car makers Peugeot have snapped up General Motors' loss-making European business, including Britain's Vauxhall.