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

Wednesday, 06 September 2017

BBC News

• UK car sales fall for fifth month in a rowSales decline again, industry figures show, with demand for diesel cars sinking by more than 20%.
• Nissan launches longer-range electric carThe Leaf, the world's best-selling electric car, faces growing competition in the green car market.
• Travel disruption as Hurricane Irma forces flight cancellationsHurricane Irma forces airline flight cancellations, with customers told to check before travelling.

Department for Transport

• Skills Minister John Hayes brings together transport and further and higher education experts in new advisory groupThe Education Advisory Group will discuss best practice in promoting transport through education.

Financial Times

• A hard landing for the Gulf’s high flyersThree airlines face disruption to their role as ‘superconnectors’ as the state-owned groups fight to justify a business model built around hubs in a volatile region
• UTC and Rockwell eye economies of scale from $30bn dealBoeing warns of possible action against proposed tie-up of suppliers

The Herald

• Unions welcome Government's shipbuilding strategy but want further guarantees to secure jobs into futureTRADE unions have today welcomed the UK Government’s new National Shipbuilding Strategy but have called for further guarantees to ensure thousands of Scottish jobs are not lost in between contracts.

The Independent

• Scotland to 'phase out' new petrol and diesel cars by 2032Nicola Sturgeon outlines plans to 'massively expand' pilot projects to encourage uptake of electric vehicles

The Scotsman

• Glasgow-Dundee rail journeys to be disrupted until May 2018Passengers travelling between Glasgow and Dundee are being warned to expect disruption to rail services until May next year.

Times Online

• ‘Shroud of secrecy’ over Edinburgh tram row [Subscription]A former leader of Edinburgh council has described how she was kept in the dark by her officials over the failures of the company involved in the city’s £776 million trams fiasco.

City AM

• Ofo and Urbo are the latest dockless bike-sharing startups to hit London's streets after oBike and MobikeMobike, obike, o not another bike... cycle-sharing is about to get even more crowded in London.
• Here's how much Ryanair's passenger numbers increased last monthSome 12.7m passengers flew on Ryanair routes in August, the airline said today – up 10 per cent from the year before.
• Three new driverless cars hitting UK roads: A Range Rover Evoque, Ford Fusion and Mondeo unveiled by Oxbotica and Transport for London group DrivenThree fresh prototypes for driverless cars have been unveiled by a top group with ambitious goals of getting the vehicles onto Britain's roads by 2019.

The Mirror

• National Shipbuilding Strategy deals fresh blow to British steel over Royal Navy warshipsThe blueprint will offer no guarantees - triggering fresh condemnation of ministers' commitment to UK industry

Belfast Telegraph

• New app launched to help rail passengers secure best ticket pricesA price predictor uses historical and current trends to inform people when Advance fares are likely to become more expensive.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Cycleway delays must end, council is warned DELAYING a major transport project over concerns from some businesses could put the whole scheme in jeopardy and “damage Bradford Council’s reputationâ€� according to a new report.
• Council leader urges Government to grant Yorkshire devolution by 2018 BRADFORD Council's leader has called for an urgent meeting with Government ministers to help break the “deadlockâ€� over Yorkshire devolution so a deal is in place by next year.

London Evening Standard

• Fresh bike hire scheme launches in London with hundreds of cyclesAnother bike hire company is set to launch in London amid concerns that similar schemes are blocking pavements and attracting vandalism.

Northern Echo

• Council plans to cash in on 'under performing' Darlington's railway history could boost visitor spending by £26m a year A COUNCIL strategy and action plan is aiming to boost spending by visitors in Darlington by £26m a year and cash in on the town’s title as birthplace of the railways.

Crewe Chronicle

• Bus service cuts will mean patients can't get to doctors or hospital Campaigners are calling on Cheshire East to re-think planned cuts to subsidised services

East Anglian Daily Times

• School bus changes may improve services in part of Suffolk, says councilProposals to reduce the number of school bus services for pupils across Suffolk could give residents of rural areas better access to services, the county council has said.

North Wales Live

• This is why rail passengers will have to get the bus into Liverpool later this month Works are to be carried out at two sites in south Liverpool

Other Regional Press

• Train guard who saved young woman from 'creep' says he was only doing his jobIdentity of Merseyrail official who helped Ellie Ward get away from a man acting suspiciously is revealed
• MP meets with train bosses to raise concernsTHE city’s MP met with train bosses to discuss issues such as delays on the Greater Anglia services in and out of Chelmsford.

Buying Business Travel

• EU backs loan to keep Air Berlin flyingGerman government’s €150 million loan endorsed by European Commission
• Taxify set to take on Uber in LondonRide-hailing app due to launch services this week

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• New round of multi-million tech competition launches to improve rail journeys Lightweight energy-saving carriages, software telling passengers how busy arriving trains are, and personalised ticket machines that help customers with their ongoing journeys are just some of the projects that have won funding in the government’s railways innovation scheme. Now another £7.9 million is on offer to develop cutting-edge ways to improve the network for passengers in the next round of the Accelerating Innovation in Rail (AIR) scheme, run by the Department for Transport (DfT) in partnership with Innovate UK. The competition is open to companies of all sizes across th...
• Leading safety forum to tackle terrorism threat to transport and logistics operationsThe Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport’s (CILT) Transport & Logistics Safety Forum will be hosting its Transport and Logistics Safety Conference on Wednesday 8th November 2017 at Palletforce’s state of the art facilities in Burton-upon-Trent. This year’s theme is: Delivering safety first: for the vehicle; the driver; the load and at the delivery location and focuses on the safety and security of what’s on board, who is on board, the vehicle and the delivery process itself, giving delegates a unique opportunity to explore the issues and concerns which are...

Rail Magazine

• Train quality is East Midlands Trains' passengers’ main concernAge and quality of rolling stock on EMT is passengers’ single biggest area of concern, according to research conducted by Transport Focus
• Remodelling to remove Great Yarmouth platformNetwork Rail confirms remodelling plan for Great Yarmouth station

Aviation Industry

• Virgin Atlantic completes Wi-Fi roll outUK long-haul carrier Virgin Atlantic has completed its Wi-Fi roll-out, which the airline said makes it the first European airline to be fully connected. read more
• Airberlin to cut long-haul routes from Berlin following insolvencyAirberlin—which filed for bankruptcy last month—plans to close all long-haul routes from Berlin Tegel and reduce its Dusseldorf network. read more
• Berlin Brandenburg Airport sets new completion date in 2018Construction work of the much-delayed Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BER) is expected to be completed by the end of August 2018. read more
• United Airlines skill for Alexa-enabled devices goes liveChicago-based United Airlines passengers can now utilize Amazon’s Alexa-enabled devices to access flight information, with the Sept. 5 unveiling of a new United Airlines’ Alexa skill on Amazon’s website. read more

Other News Sources

• Logistics hubs clamour for slice of Heathrow businessMore than 120 sites across Britain have responded to Heathrow Airport Limited's (HAL) invitation for interest in becoming one of four logistics hubs for the airport's third runway expansion project. The selected sites will be used to pioneer off-site manufacturing to reduce overall construction costs, as well as serving as materials and equipment handling centres.
• Motorists 'deserve some sort of punishment' if they abuse parent-and-child parking spaces, new survey revealsOne in 10 respondents to a recent parking survey said they want to see parking offenders temporarily banned from supermarkets
• Government offers £7.9m funding for rail tech innovatorsThe Government is offering companies a slice of a £7.9m funding pot for the development of new technology to improve the UK’s rail network.
• £50 million investment in Worcestershire rail network - including new Kidderminster stationMORE than £50 million is being invested in Worcestershire's rail network supporting the booming economy - including a new multi-million pound Kidderminster station.
• Evidence of blacklisting on the Crossrail project has been put before the House of Commons by Streatham MP Chuka Umunna.Mr Umunna claims to have incriminating documentation that certain construction workers were blacklisted from working on the Crossrail project for reasons other than their ability to do the job. He has also sent the documents to the government minister responsible for business.