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

Wednesday, 15 August 2018

BBC News

• Hotel manager calls for Edinburgh city centre bus overhaulA hotel manager believes Edinburgh City Council's plans to look at transport in the capital should be used as an opportunity to overhaul how buses and coaches move around the city centre.
• Lewes MP bombards Chris Grayling with Southern rail complaintsAn MP is receiving so many complaints about the performance of Southern rail that she is sending them on to the transport secretary on a weekly basis.
• RMT angry at Chris Grayling's rail fare index suggestionChris Grayling suggested rail fares and staff wages should be calculated using a lower inflation measure.
• Scientists create battery that refuels electric cars in secondsA team at the University of Glasgow develops a liquid battery that would revolutionise clean transport.
• Rail fares rises: Grayling pleads with unions and train firmsChris Grayling asks the industry to use a lower inflation measure for future fare and wage increases.

The Guardian

• The line that ate London: our critic's verdict on the £15bn Crossrail colossusWith its cavernous passageways, 200-metre trains and district-engulfing stations, Crossrail is a momentous architectural achievement. But will passengers just see a blur of beige?
• Grayling proposal could lead to smaller rail fare risesTransport secretary says fares, and staff pay, could be pegged to lower inflation measure

The Herald

• Pursuing railway nationalisation is a fruitless exerciseAS regular as clockwork and the changing of the seasons comes the annual outcry against rail fare increases

Times Online

• Dozens killed as Polcevera bridge in Genoa collapses during fierce storm [subscription]Rescuers in Genoa were searching through tonnes of rubble for survivors today after a road bridge collapsed during a violent storm, killing at least 25 people and injuring 11.
• Rail workers facing cap on pay rises [Subscription]The transport secretary has caused anger after telling rail unions he wants to stop the industry basing increases including pay rises on inflation linked to the retail prices index.

Mail Online

• Transport secretary promises to take steps to stop rail fares rocketing In a letter to union bosses, Chris Grayling outlined plans to cut the link between annual UK rail fare rises and the widely discredited Retail Price Index (RPI) measure of annual inflation.

This is Money

• VW's electric and hybrid cars contain a poisonous metal VW officials maintain that the metal is securely housed within the high-voltage battery chargers and won't cause harm to owners.

Network Rail

• £18m investment in rail freight spells good news for construction industryThe environment, the economy and the regional road network are to benefit from an £18m investment in the railway in the Peak District.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Green Party calls on Government to halt rail fair hikeTHE Green Party has called on the Government to suspend rail fair increases for commuters on Northern until the company improves its performance.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Aberdeen Airport £2 drop-off period reduced to 10 minutesBosses at Aberdeen Airport have reduced the amount of time drivers are allowed to spend in the drop-off zone to just 10 minutes.

Wales Online

• The shocking cost of bus travel in Swansea compared with CardiffBut Swansea bus operator First Cymru claims the two cities can not be compared

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Campaigners protest in Leeds against hike in rail faresProtests will be held outside railway stations amid mounting anger over an expected 3.5% increase in regulated train fares.

Yorkshire Post

• Protests at Leeds railway station over 3.5 percent ticket increases Protests will be held outside Leeds railway station today amid mounting anger over an expected 3.5 per cent increase in regulated train fares.

Blackpool Gazette

• Airshow rail farce sparks more anger Rail operator Northern has been ridiculed for cancelling Blackpool-bound trains –on the same day it was sponsoring the resort’s Air Show.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Woman spotted crossing railway tracks at Ipswich stationA woman reportedly seen crossing the tracks at a train station has sparked a fresh safety warning about the dangers of railway trespassing.

Kent Online

• Manston Airport: Planning chiefs agree to look at RiverOak Strategic Partners bid to reopen siteGovernment planning chiefs have agreed to take a look at plans to reopen Manston airport four years after it closed.

Londonist

• An Investigation Into London's Disappearing BusesTake a good look at the photo of two C2s above. Really study all the details. Why? Because you probably won't get a chance in the near future — TfL has launched a consultation to stop running the bus.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Up to 50 more battery-powered trams on the way for West MidlandsAs many as 50 new battery-powered ‘Urbos 3’ model trams could be on the way for transport in the West Midlands as part of the combined authority’s £3.4bn investment in transport in the area. Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), the transport branch of the West Midlands...
• New access to York station as part of major brownfield redevelopment plansNew plans including a new access point to York station and the expansion of the National Railway Museum headline groundbreaking proposals of creating 6,500 jobs in the city. A collaborative partnership between Homes England, Network Rail, York City Council and the museum submitted an application...
• Peak District freight sidings get £18m Network Rail boostAn £18m rail investment in the Peak District will come as good news for the construction industry, benefitting the environment, economy and regional road network, Network Rail has said. As part of the Great North Project, the investment will go towards lengthening freight sidings in Buxton...

The Business Desk

• Land sale paves the way for new rail stations after 50 year absencePlans to bring rail services back to Darlaston and Willenhall after an absence of more than half a century have taken a major step forward.

Aviation Industry

• KLM pilots want labor agreement by Aug. 17Pilots at Dutch carrier KLM have given the airline until Aug. 17 to agree a new collective labor agreement (CLA) or face industrial action. read more
• FAA workgroup urges low-speed rejected takeoff guidance An FAA-sponsored working group has recommended the US agency develop guidance requiring demonstrations that aircraft can be controlled when an engine suddenly loses thrust during the low-speed portion of a takeoff run, as well as training recommendations for pilots on how to respond to the rare but potentially tricky events.
• Abu Dhabi Airports names new CEO as AUH expansion plans ramp up Abu Dhabi Airports has appointed Bryan Thompson as CEO as the company continues to implement a multi-billion dollar re-development and expansion of Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH), which is designed to increase overall capacity.
• IATA: 2018 passenger traffic growth slows on 60% rise in fuel costsGlobal air passenger traffic was up 7.8% in June, reflecting a healthy start to the peak summer travel season in the northern hemisphere, but overall demand through June has moderated in 2018 compared to the first-half of 2017, according to IATA’s latest Air Passenger Market Analysis.

Other News Sources

• Mark Beaumont backs new cycle hire schemeThe fastest man to cycle around the planet has thrown his weight behind Edinburgh's new cycle hire scheme.
• Rail fares have risen over twice as fast as wages in past decade, finds TUCRail fares have increased at more than twice the speed of wages since 2008, according to new analysis released today (Tuesday) by the TUC.
• Hyperloop at 5: Sci-fi transport quickly becoming more sci than fiFive years ago billionaire Elon Musk open-sourced his plan for a supersonic train-like thing. Today it's still a work in progress.
• UK rail passengers 'paying ten times more than French counterparts'As rail fare increases are announced, the rail union RMT says that British passengers are paying more than ten times the French equivalent, and rail fares are rising twice as fast as UK wages.
• How to get the railways back on trackBARELY a day goes by without another nightmare rail tale. For the third Sunday running, Northern Rail cancelled dozens of scheduled services as new timetable disruptions persist. That’s the ‘new’ timetable introduced as long ago as May.