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

Wednesday, 19 December 2018

BBC News

• Bristol airport plans to expand by a third by 2025Bristol Airport has submitted plans to increase its capacity by 30%. Airport bosses want up to 12 million passengers a year to use Bristol by the mid-2020s and said operational changes were needed to cope with the demand.
• Bus travel: Fewer passengers as funding fallsDisruptions on England's rail network have been in the spotlight over the past year - but only 20% of all trips on public transport are on trains, although passenger numbers have been rising.
• Rail workers 'two seconds' from being hit by trainOne worker suffered a minor leg injury leaping out of the path of a train travelling at 49mph.
• ScotRail boss Alex Hynes promises improvementsHundreds of services have been cancelled while ScotRail staff are trained on new trains and routes.

The Scotsman

• ScotRail: New ‘plan of action’ pledge to tackle misery of Scotland’s cancelled trainsA “plan of action” has been devised by ScotRail to curb cancellations and ensure services return to normal as soon as possible, transport secretary Michael Matheson has told MSPs.

Times Online

• Greater Anglia signals end of the line for first-class travel [subscription]First-class sections will be scrapped by a train operator to ease overcrowding and create more space for standard passengers.
• Scotrail misery won’t be over by ChristmasCommuters have been told to prepare for more cancellations and delays amid mounting problems for Scotrail.
• The capital is being sold short by its mayor [Subscription]Sadiq Khan seemed a breath of fresh air when he arrived at London’s City Hall two years ago but has failed to deliver
• Yousaf is accused of U-turn over railway policing merger [subscription]Humza Yousaf, the Scottish justice secretary, is looking into alternatives for plans to merge Police Scotland and the British Transport Police north of the border.
• Rail shake-up will let passengers choose between rival services [Subscription]Passengers will be allowed to shun failing train operators in favour of better-performing rivals under plans to allow companies to run the same routes.

City AM

• AA wins multi-million-pound contract to service VW carsThe AA today secured a two-year extension to its contract with Volkswagen in a deal worth tens of millions of pounds.

Bristol Live

• Bristol Airport reveals more details of major expansion plansThere are some big changes coming

Edinburgh Evening News

• MSP calls for Scotrail franchise to end due to their ''wholly inadequate'' performanceScottish Greens MSP John Finnie wants to see the Scottish Government take control

London Evening Standard

• Peter Hendy: You deserve better, so bear with us as we fix railwaysEvening Standard readers will know only too well that recent train performance in London, and indeed throughout the country, has not been good enough.
• London's black cabs 'up to 30 times as toxic as personal cars of same age', research claimsNew research has claimed London's black cabs are up to

Wales Online

• Railway station resembles a pond as torrential rain hits WalesFlooding has left a railway station looking more like a pond as south Wales is covered by a severe weather warning for rain.
• Additional train services have been added between Cardiff and the ValleysAdditional train services are now in operation between Cardiff and the Valleys, including several services that have been added on Sundays.

Yorkshire Post

• The Yorkshire Post says: Action stations over rail chaos – time for Ministers to respond IT IS probably too much to expect Transport Secretary Chris Grayling to respond in person to today’s Parliamentary debate on the unacceptable state of the North’s rail services that has been tabled by Dewsbury MP Paula Sherriff. The Macavity-like Minister has not done so previously and still appears to be in denial about the disquiet here.

Carlisle News & Star

• Farron lobbies for HS2 to come to CumbriaWestmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Farron has written to the Transport Secretary Chris Grayling to make the case for HS2 trains to stop in Cumbria.

Kent Online

• Eurostar launch dating service for one day only on train through KentAll aboard the love train... but not from Kent. The high speed international train service provider Eurostar has announced on Twitter this week that it will be hosting a one off dating service on one of its locos in the new year.

Sunderland Echo

• We deserve better' - Echo readers call for improvements to railway station in SunderlandRail passengers in Sunderland are calling for better facilities at the city's train station. The plea came following the announcement that the station welcomed an estimated 447,702 passengers for the 2017-18 year to the end of March.

Other Regional Press

• Almost £50,000 to be spent to improve pavement and upgrade bus stops in Thorpe St AndrewAlmost £50,000 is to be spent to improve the condition of a pavement and upgrade bus stops

Train Operators

• More standard seats on Greater Anglia trains as First Class to end on most trains from January 2020Extra seats will be available for everyone on Greater Anglia trains from 2 January 2020, when the train company is ending first class on all services except intercity trains.
• East Midlands Trains and Lincolnshire County Council host special 'Grinch' themed Christmas Children's Train.East Midlands Trains worked alongside Lincolnshire County Council to create a special Grinch themed Christmas train ride for over 150 children and volunteers from the East Midlands area.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Rival operators to run on same rail routes in bid to drive up competitionPassengers will have the choice of choosing which train operators they travel with under new plans to allow rival TOCs to operate on the same routes to drive up competition. The new competitive system will be introduced to the rail network from April, allowing ‘open-access’ operators...
• Structural steelwork begins on Glasgow Queen Street transformationThe transformation of Glasgow Queen Street has been revealed as engineers have finished the installation of the west truss and have begun building the steel skeleton for the new expanded concourse. The west truss is the first completed section of structural steelwork to be installed at Queen...
• Workers who narrowly avoided death had no one in charge and 'ineffective' safety arrangements“Ineffective” safety arrangements and a number of unofficial working practices contributed to a group of track workers narrowly avoiding being hit by a train, an RAIB investigation has found. A train service travelling towards London Euston on 11 March narrowly missed the group of...

Aviation Industry

• London Luton Airport names new CEOLondon Luton Airport has promoted planning and investment director Alberto Martin to the role of CEO, replacing Nick Barton who is stepping down to take up another role in 2019. read more
• Aer Lingus to bring back short-haul premium service with A321neo LR Aer Lingus will re-enter the short-haul, business-class market when the Ireland flag carrier begins operating the long-range Airbus A321LR next summer. read more
• British Airways resumes flights to Islamabad, PakistanBritish Airways will resume nonstop flights to Islamabad, Pakistan next year, more than a decade after withdrawing the route because of security concerns. read more
• Europe to test safety of UAVs, aircraft sharing low-altitude airspaceThe European Safedrone project will mount flight demonstrations of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and aircraft sharing low-altitude airspace in Spain. read more

Other News Sources

• MPs Discuss Yorkshire Coast Train ServicesMPs are to discuss the state of trains on the Yorkshire coast today. A parliamentary debate is to take place on services, including TransPennine Express.
• Transport Secretary must bring to an end Abellio’s disastrous ScotRail reignScottish Greens transport spokesperson John Finnie MSP has called on the Scottish Government to end the current ScotRail franchise as chaos continues across the rail network.
• Upgrade hope for Fylde rail servicesA key feature which would double the frequency of trains on the South Fylde line could be set to move a major step closer.
• HS2 could bring hundreds of lorries a day to Solihull streetLocal people have mounting concerns about intense activity on the transport network when work gets underway
• Rupa Huq Holds Public Meeting On Bus Route ChangesEaling Central and Acton MP Rupa Huq hosted a TravelWatch and TFL question and answer session at Parliament, along with 70 constituents, to discuss the proposed changes to bus routes in her constituency.