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

Monday, 13 August 2018

BBC News

• Cardiff Airport scheme allows autistic boy to fly againFive-year-old Harrison was so stressed on his last holiday that his mum had decided not to book again.
• Heathrow Airport passport queues reach 2.5 hoursThe airport's border force missed its target for non-EEA visitors nearly every day last month.
• Northern cancels Sunday rail services againServices across north-west England have been affected due to train crew scheduling

Financial Times

• MTR’s woes highlight weakness of UK rail franchise systemLosing your chief executive and facing a criminal investigation might harm most companies’ chances of winning a public tender. But even after that happened this week to MTR, the Hong Kong-based transport operator, the company still has a strong chance of winning the UK’s West Coast rail franchise.

The Guardian

• Welsh rail tunnel could reopen as two-mile walk and cycle routeCampaigners hope to convert disused Rhondda tunnel for benefit of locals and tourists
• Rail passengers should get automatic compensation for delays, says Which?Rail companies are being urged to introduce automatic compensation across the whole network for passengers whose trains have been delayed or cancelled.
• HS2 and the continuing north-south divideMixed reactions to Simon Jenkins’ call to halt the planned high-speed rail link between London and the Midlands
• Border queue times at Heathrow fail to meet targetsAirline bosses criticise waiting times after Border Force meets target on only one day in July
• Passengers face fare rises despite waves of train cancellationsSeason ticket prices could increase by hundreds of pounds as consumer satisfaction slumps

The Independent

• Northern Rail cancellations: 80 trains axed as timetable curtailed for third Sunday running‘We are advising anyone thinking of travelling on Sunday on these routes to plan their journey carefully’
• Rail passengers warned to expect 3.5 per cent fare rise in 2019Government told it 'cannot keep telling passengers increases are justified' amid timetable chaos

Times Online

• Chris Boardman attacks Tories’ ‘dangerous cycling’ tweet [subscription]The transport minister apologised last night for a tweet that claimed that the Conservatives were “cracking down on dangerous cycling”.
• Labour plans windfall tax to freeze train fares [Subscription]The Labour Party would use a windfall tax on rail company profits to freeze fare prices for passengers affected by disruption.
• Northern Rail cancels 80 more trains [subscription]Passengers in Liverpool, Greater Manchester and across Lancashire were hit by delays yesterday after Northern Rail cancelled 80 of its services for the second Sunday in a row.
• Wrong Track [subscription]The frequent cancellation of services by Northern Rail will only give a false plausibility to demands for renationalisation, to the detriment of passengers
• Passport delays of two and a half hours at Heathrow [subscription]Airline passengers are having to queue for up to two and a half hours at Heathrow because of delays at passport control.

Mail Online

• Average waiting time for passport checks at Heathrow Airport was two and a half hours last month The UK Border Force achieved its target of processing 95 per cent of passengers from outside the European Economic Area within 45 minutes on just one day in July.
• Only one in four passengers trust the nation's train companies after another year of chaos The damning verdict adds doubt to claims from UK rail industry bosses that rising passenger numbers in recent years mean they must be doing a good job.
• Cyclists react with fury as ministers talk of protecting ‘most vulnerable road users’ FROM bikers The laws are being proposed by the government after Kim Briggs, 44, was knocked over and killed by bicycle courier Charlie Alliston in east London in February 2016.

Bolton News

• New Sunday train cancellations branded ‘outrageous’ TRAIN users across the region face further misery on Sunday with the cancellation of dozens of services.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Cyclists on Bradford to Leeds Cycle Superhighway make it a record breaking yearA RECORD number of cyclists have taken advantage of the good summer weather and got on their bikes.
• Ambitious plan would see walking route extendedPARISH councils are supporting ambitious plans to extend the Great Northern Railway Trail.

London Evening Standard

• RMT calls for Northern Rail to be stripped of franchise after company cancels train service AGAINThe biggest rail workers union had repeated calls for Arriva Rail North to be stripped of its franchise and

Burnley Express

• New £3m bus fleet for Accrington and The ValleyA NEW £3million fleet of 16 buses will be launched on the route linking Hyndburn and Rossendale to Greater Manchester next month.

Other Regional Press

• Helen Jones MP - I won’t hold my breath for changes to HS2 planIN recent weeks the HS2 Ltd bandwagon has, yet again, rolled into town with ‘information days’ held in the villages of Culcheth and Hollins Green.
• Greater Anglia launches reliable new train serviceGreater Anglia has launched a new hi-tech commuter rail service which promises to be its most reliable ever.
• This eye in the sky is checking the local railway line for faultsNetwork Rail is now using helicopters to check faults on the Weymouth-Waterloo line.

The Business Desk

• Airport expects more turbulence after drop in profitsBirmingham Airport expects another “challenging year” after profits fell 10% last year.

Aviation Industry

• Travelport: Over half of business travelers willing to pay for extrasA Travelport study has revealed that 55% of US business travelers are willing to pay for travel upgrades out of their own pocket and 80% prefer to have direct control over their plans. read more

Other News Sources

• People power brings back Bridport bus servicePeople power has resulted in bus service being brought back to Bridport.
• Long-distance rail commuters 'face £150 annual fare rise'Rail commuters are being warned to expect a 3.5% fare increase next year.
• Missing land causes transport plan Hyndburn hiccupSENIOR county councillors have authorised the compulsory purchase of the last tiny parcel of land needed to complete the £40million Pennine Reach public transport and highway scheme.