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

Friday, 05 October 2018

BBC News

• Rail line closure could cost Aberdeenshire Council £3m a dayThe possible emergency closure of the East Coast Main Line due to a deteriorating bridge could cost Aberdeenshire Council up to £3m a day to cover disruption.
• Removing school bus chaperones in Birmingham 'dangerous'Disabled children are being put at risk after chaperones were removed from school buses, parents said.
• Sexual offences up 16% on British railwaysReports of violent crime also increased, according to figures from the British Transport Police.
• A77 and A75 road works during rail closure defendedScotland Transerv says it has done everything possible to minimise disruption on routes out of Stranraer.
• Aviation regulator 'rebuffed' over no-deal Brexit planThe UK regulator attempted to plan for a no-deal Brexit but was rebuffed by its EU counterpart.
• Belfast City Airport security refit 'cuts wait times'Belfast City Airport says a £1.5m refurbishment has reduced security waiting times to six minutes.
• London Underground strike to go ahead as talks collapseTube train drivers will stage a 24-hour walkout on Friday and another strike is planned for November.
• Paris Motor Show: Fantasy concept cars take the stageParis Motor Show: Concept care may never make it into production, but they inspire cars that do.

ITV News

• Legal battle against Heathrow expansion plans reaches High CourtA joint legal battle against controversial plans to expand Heathrow Airport will be heard at the High Court.

Department for Transport

• Transport Secretary welcomes progress on East West RailChris Grayling visits Bicester to see how how enabling works are laying the ground for construction of a world-class rail link.

The Guardian

• Will Nissan stay once Britain leaves? How one factory explains the Brexit business dilemmaIn the 1980s, Thatcher’s government sold Britain as ‘a gateway to Europe’. Nissan came to Sunderland and thrived – but now its future is uncertain. By David Conn

The Independent

• Heathrow third runway objectors take case to High CourtOpponents to a third runway at Heathrow are beginning legal proceedings to try to overturn the government’s plans to expand Heathrow Airport.

The Scotsman

• Brand new ScotRail trains withdrawn over defective brakesScotRail has today taken its brand new fleet of electric trains out of service as a "precaution" over defective brakes, The Scotsman can reveal.
• Alastair Dalton: Why nationalising the railways may not be the answerNationalising the railways has become a popular cause among politicians and disgruntled passengers alike – but careful what you wish for.

Times Online

• Blow for Heathrow airport expansion as campaigners win legal fight over third runway [Subscription]Plans for a third runway faced a setback today as a series of legal challenges against the project cleared a major hurdle.
• Heathrow’s third runway: Where do we go from here? [Subscription]The legal process to build a new runway at Heathrow could lead to long delays for the £14 billion project, it has been claimed.
• Passengers ditch season tickets [Subscription]Rail passengers are rejecting annual season tickets in favour of more expensive walk-on fares as they choose to work from home for part of the week rather than gamble on unreliable services, figures suggest.

City AM

• Easyjet passenger numbers climbed to 8m in September as Ryanair grappled with strikesEasyjet's passenger numbers for last month climbed to 8.8m last month, including numbers it has taken from flying from Berlin's Tegel airport.
• Twenty-four hour strike on Central Line to go ahead tomorrow after talks break downA 24-hour strike on the Central Line will go ahead tomorrow after talks between Transport for London (TfL) and the Aslef union broke down.
• Smiths Group boosts its heating and ventilation arm with deal for US-based Airbus supplierSmiths Group will buy US engineering firm United Flexible to boost its heating and ventilation arm, the company said Thursday.
• Legal challenges against Heathrow third runway given green light for full hearing next yearFive separate legal challenges against the government strategy for the third runway at Heathrow have been given the green light for a full hearing, most likely to be heard next year.

Belfast Telegraph

• GTR and Northern investigated over passenger information during timetable chaosThe May 20 timetable change saw services crippled in the north and south-east of England.

Liverpool Echo

• This is what a bus with an enormous butter knife is doing on Lime StreetThere are strange things appearing in Liverpool this week - and we think it's something to do with the Giants visit

London Evening Standard

• Central line Tube strike: Londoners face travel chaos as Tube and rail strike triple whammy gets under wayFollow our LIVE updates as the Tube and rail strikes get under way

Sheffield Star

• Sheffield Rotherham ‘Tram Train’ services to start in THREE WEEKS The UK’s first Tram Train services between Sheffield and Rotherham will begin in three weeks, it was announced today.

Wales Online

• Cardiff Bus driver quits over 'homophobic remarks by managers'A bus driver has quit over homophobic remarks allegedly made by managers about him and other employees.

Coach and Bus Week

• Meet the Warrington teamFollowing on from our coverage of Warrington’s Own Buses in CBW1357, James Day speaks to some of the key figures responsible for keeping the municipal operation running smoothly
• Waterside storyJackie Withey, Fiona Campbell and Bob Johns talk to Andy Izatt about the continuing success of Hythe & Waterside Coaches in Hampshire
• Bus18 introduces new measures to help young bus usersBus18, a partnership between First West Yorkshire, Arriva Yorkshire, Transdev Blazefield and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, has introduced measures to make it easier for young people to access cheaper fares.
• CityFox Group expands into local bus operation in NewportCityFox Group subsidiary Snowdonia Travel Limited has registered a new bus service to be operated in Newport, South Wales.
• Section of Centrebus service to transfer to Delaine BusesCentrebus has announced that service 9, which operates between Oakham and Peterborough, will be revised from 22 October.
• Wrights Group profits down due to ‘overseas costs and R&D investment’Group says that balance sheet remains ‘exceptionally strong’ after an anticipated reduction in full year profit
• Express Motors directors found guilty of fraudJudge warns Eric Wyn Jones and his sons to expect a custodial sentence The owner of Penygroes-based Express Motors Eric Wyn Jones and his three sons – Ian Wyn, Keith and Kevin Wyn – have each been found guilty of fraud

New Civil Engineer

• Full court hearing set for Heathrow expansionThe High Court will rule on legal challenges against the government’s plans to build a third runway at Heathrow Airport in March 2019.

Route One

• In-house training: The way forwardIn-house training is the only way forward. This seems to have fallen by the wayside since the introduction of the Driver CPC. Although it is necessary, it is a baseline vocational qualification akin in status to the annual vehicle test in an operator’s vehicle maintenance programme, i.e. a bare minimum requirement. It does not address the detailed operational requirements of a particular employer.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Director promotion at Trentbarton Vicky Williams has been promoted to Director of Commercial services at Trentbarton.
• Scottish Citylink launch improved services Service improvements for customers travelling between Stirling and Edinburgh have been announced by Scottish Citylink.
• New route a ‘game changer’Commuters travelling through the Midlands are set to benefit from a new multi-million-pound route linking the M54 to the M6.
• ‘Buses are in crisis’ stats show The Department for Transport‘s Quarterly Bus Statistics for England April-June 2018, show local bus passenger journeys in England have decreased by 1.7% since 2017, and fares have increased by 2.2% in metropolitan areas and 6.6% in non-metropolitan areas.
• CPT expresses concern over no-deal Brexit falloutUK plans to rejoin Interbus agreement, but ‘important questions remain unanswered,’ says Salmon
• ‘Stash’ your bags with megabus.comStasher, described as ‘the Airbnb of luggage’, is the world’s largest luggage storage network with more than 600 StashPoints in over 80 cities across four continents. Since the company began in 2015, they have “stashed” over 100,000 bags world-wide.
• Time to ‘modernise’ London’s bus network?Transport for London (TfL) has published its proposals to “modernise” central London’s bus network.
• CEO of TfGM heads for SydneyJon Lamonte, Chief Executive of Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), has announced he is leaving the organisation to take up a post as CEO of the new statutory authority of Sydney Metro.
• Scottish affairs debated at 43rd CPT conferenceThe CPT Scottish Conference is the top annual event for coach and bus operators in the country to consider future challenges. Stagecoach co-founded Sir Brian Souter addressed the 140 delegates
• Indcar Wing midicoach to make UK debut at EBEMoseley companies set to fill gap in 29-seat segment with Iveco-based model to meet ‘strong demand’
• Below six months to Brexit: What about coaches?What does Brexit mean if you run coaches? Nobody seems to know. That includes the government, which has taken the remarkable step of advising operators who have bookings for continental trips that take place after 29 March 2018 to examine whether they will be able to subcontract that work to EU operators.
• McGill's launches new passenger appScottish bus operator McGill’s has launched a new app aimed at being a ‘one stop shop’ for passengers.
• CityFox Group unveils new South Wales bus operationBristol-based CityFox Group hopes its new South Wales venture offering bus services between Bettws and central Newport from 3 December might lead to route expansion across the city and other areas.
• 2 Guildford services launch 24 hour optionsUniversity students are among passengers set to benefit from new 24-hour operating bus services six days a week on two Stagecoach routes in the Guildford area.

Aviation Industry

• EU regulators urged to take action on labor loopholesTen European airlines and two bodies that unite Europe’s pilot and transport workers’ unions have called on European Union (EU) regulators to take action on atypical-employment structures, arguing that these practices distort competition. read more
• AerCap leases 62, buys 12 aircraft in 3QNetherlands-based aircraft lessor AerCap signed lease agreements for 62 aircraft in the 2018 third quarter, comprising nine widebodies and 53 narrowbodies. read more
• Icelandair may break bond terms after profit warningIcelandair has started talks with bondholders who invested $190 million in the company, cautioning that it may not be able to meet the original terms of the financing following a recent profit warning. read more

Other News Sources

• Network Rail halt work after Grove Park greenspace controversyNetwork Rail has halted work over community concerns about the “destruction” of greenspace in Grove Park.
• Heathrow: Five legal challenges against third runway granted Judicial ReviewThe legal battle over the government's controversial decision to approve the construction of a third runway at Heathrow Airport is set to continue, after the High Court today granted permission for five legal challenges against expanding the airport to proceed to full hearings.
• ScotRail axes direct trains to GlasgowDirect train links between Broughty Ferry and Glasgow will be axed as of the end of the year, operator ScotRail has confirmed....
• Air-filtering bus takes to the streets in the UKUK transport operator Go-Ahead has launched a bus with a rooftop filter that removes air pollution as it travels.
• Dismay as vital shopping bus to Chichester Tesco is axedTesco’s decision to axe its free shopping buses to its Chichester store has angered customers who say they will lose a vital lifeline