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

Tuesday, 19 December 2017

BBC News

• Steam line needs £150,000 to protect vintage carriagesRail enthusiasts are in a race against time to save their 100-year-old carriages from rotting.
• New 70mph speed limit for Queensferry CrossingTransport Scotland said the road will assume full motorway status in the New Year.
• Gender pay gap: Transport tops government departmentsThe gender pay gap is narrowing in Whitehall but unions representing civil servants say not fast enough.
• Manchester Airport: Heavy fog and runway 'defect' suspends flightsHeavy fog and repair work on a runway at Manchester Airport led to all flights being temporarily suspended.
• Train app could help disabled travellersA new app could help wheelchair users get help at railway stations and better access to trains.
• Heathrow cost of third runway cut by £2.5bnTerminals 2 and 5 could be expanded instead of constructing a new terminal building, Heathrow says.
• Boeing and Bombardier set out defence in trade rowBoeing and Bombardier trade verbal blows over claims that the Canadian company gets state aid.

Financial Times

• Several dead after Amtrak train derails in USCarriages tumbled off a bridge on to busy highway in Washington state
• Keeping festive grins is worth more to Ryanair than €1.5bnO’Leary’s shift to ingratiation follows threat of pilots’ strike over holidays

The Guardian

• Road, rail and air travel set to be disrupted as fog sweeps into BritainFlights likely to be cancelled and delays probable on bus and train services as visibility falls to below 100 metresForecasters have warned of likely travel disruption on Tuesday, including cancelled flights, with severe fog forecast to hit much of the UK.Some patches of freezing fog overnight are also likely and the extreme conditions are expected to last until midday on Tuesday. Continue reading...
• Seattle train crash: several dead in Amtrak derailmentTrain was heading south on new high-speed rail route that opened on MondayPictures show derailed train hanging off overpass above Interstate 5An Amtrak train traveling for the first time on a new high-speed route derailed in Washington state on Monday, killing several people and sending numerous cars flying off an overpass on to a busy highway.A US official told the Associated Press earlier in the day that at least six people died and that the number of fatalities could rise, though state officials only confirmed three deaths in an afternoon briefing. Continue reading...

The Telegraph

• Government gender pay gap revealed: Women paid almost 17 per cent less than men at Department for Transport
• US train derails from bridge and hits motorway on first high-speed run leaving at least six dead and dozens injured

Times Online

• Whitehall fails gender pay test [subscription]Women working at the Department for Transport are paid almost 17 per cent less on average than men, the biggest gender pay gap in Whitehall.
• Full speed ahead as 70mph allowed over Queensferry [Subscripton]Motorists using the Queensferry Crossing can experience slightly faster crossings after a series of works were completed.

City AM

• Email reveals Department for Transport forbidding extra HS2 redundancy payments warning of "enormous reputational damage"It has been revealed that the Department for Transport (DfT) wrote to the former boss of HS2 in April last year refusing an extra £1.76m in redundancy payouts at the rail group, saying the proposals could cause significant reputational damage.
• Uber Cambridge license renewed for five years by local councilUber has won approval to operate in the city of Cambridge for another five years the City's local council said today.
• Virgin billionaire Richard Branson is taking up Hyperloop One chairman roleVirgin entrepreneur Richard Branson is taking up a top leadership position at Virgin Hyperloop One, the transportation startup he recently invested in and rebranded under his empire's name.
• Easyjet confirms "milestone" Air Berlin acquisitionEasyjet this morning confirmed it has acquired a substantial part of collapsed carrier Air Berlin's German operations.

Mail Online

• Ryanair bosses 'don't treat crew like humans', say staff Dozens of stewards, including former Italian worker Giulia (pictured), contacted the Daily Mail after we revealed how they are exploited by budget airline Ryanair.

Birmingham Mail

• Emirates has announced these New Year flight deals from Birmingham Airport Airline's sale slashes prices to destinations including Dubai, Thailand, Australia and South Africa
• At least six killed after Amtrak train derails and hurtles off overpass in Washington Seventy-eight passengers and five crew members were aboard

Birmingham Post

• Here's why Chiltern Railways passengers have to put up with trains that are too hot or cold Rail firm admits passengers just have to suffer because train heating settings can only be changed in a depot overnight
• Watch: Drunk passengers rampage on the train lines - and nearly die Almost 500 trains from New Street held up - because of boozed up travellers, new figures reveal            

Bolton News

• No 'silent night' for residents as rail bosses confirm plans for electrification work over Christmas periodTHERE will be no silent night for long-suffering Moses Gate residents this Christmas after rail bosses announced electrification work near the homes would continue over the festive period.

London Evening Standard

• TfL fines hike to £160 'not fair and proportionate', motoring bodies sayMotoring organisations today criticised a hike in Transport for London's fines which will see drivers breaking traffic rules hit by penalties of up to £160.
• Washington train derailment: Donald Trump promotes new infrastructure plan after deadly crashDonald Trump has said the deadly train derailment in Washington state is proof of the need for a nationwide push for new infrastructure.
• Amtrak Washington train crash: At least three killed and 100 injured after train derails onto US motorwayAt least three people are dead and 100 injured after a US train derailed on a bridge and fell onto the busy motorway below.

Manchester Evening News

• Manchester Airport's two runways were shut down as thick fog caused travel chaos across the region All flights in and out of the airport were suspended on Monday afternoon

Northern Echo

• 7 new destinations on offer at Durham Tees Valley Airport CHARTERED flights for seven new destinations flying out of Durham Tees Valley Airport have been announced as the site reveals a programme of summer getaways.

Wales Online

• The 19-year-old chaplain who helps train drivers deal with witnessing suicides Hannah Tuck is the UK's youngest ever railway chaplain

East Anglian Daily Times

• Passengers packed ‘worse than cattle’ as rail disruption continues through Essex despite lines re-openingMajor disruption has been caused to rail services after part of a metal structure which connects to the overhead wires broke off and hit a train at Hatfield Peverel.

Other Regional Press

• Extra carriages being added to Borders Railway trains to tackle overcrowding Transport campaigners have welcomed moves by ScotRail to tackle overcrowding on Borders Railway services.
• Final bids for Welsh rail contract expected this weekBIDDERS hoping to run rail services in south Wales from next year are expected to submit their final offers by Thursday.

Buying Business Travel

• Heathrow reveals plans to cut third runway costsAirport’s revised proposals could shave £2.5 billion from project cost

Rail Magazine

• GB Railfreight buys three Class 47sGB Railfreight has bought three Class 47/7s from Colas Railfreight - 47727 Rebecca, 47739 Robin of Templecombe 1938-2013 and 47749 City of Truro – after Colas decided to dispose of assets that are no longer part of its core business.
• Concern at costs imposed on regional servicesUrban Transport Group has written to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), expressing concern over industry processes that it believes could shift the balance of the railway’s infrastructure costs onto regional services, which it says could damage their futures.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Consider legal action over HS2 redundancies, MPs sayMPs have called for consideration of legal action over excessive HS2 redundancy payouts. The Public Accounts Committee has called the £1.76m of unauthorised payments made during 2016-17 a “shocking waste of taxpayers’ money.” In the committee’s “High Speed 2...

Aviation Industry

• Boeing says it cannot, will not stop Bombardier trade dispute Boeing is beyond the point of no return in its price-dumping trade dispute against Bombardier, company representatives told reporters Dec. 15, and the results are expected to be finalized by Washington officials this week. read more
• Canada counters Boeing claims in Bombardier disputeBoeing's price-dumping case against Bombardier is based on œconjecture, Canada's ambassador to the US told trade commissioners Dec. 18 in Washington DC.

Other News Sources

• Sheffield City Region to launch consultation on transport plans set to grow economy by £500mResidents in the Sheffield City Region will be able to take part in a consultation on transport plans expected to grow the local economy by £500m.