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

Friday, 14 June 2019

BBC News

• More Aberdeen International Airport strikes announced by UniteThe action follows stalled talks between the AGS Airports group and the Unite union over pay and pensions.
• Coastguard base at Prestwick 'one of UK's busiest'The search and rescue helicopter base at Prestwick responded to 318 call-outs last year.
• Publicly-owned Prestwick Airport put up for saleThe Scottish government, which bought the airport for £1 in 2013, is looking to return it to the private sector.

The Guardian

• UK public transport rolls out 'chat day'There will be ‘chat carriages’ on Friday as part of BBC scheme to get strangers talking. Buses, coaches, trams and trains will be a bit chattier than usual on Friday as a day-long experiment to encourage travellers to talk to strangers is rolled out on Britain’s transport network.

The Scotsman

• Former transport boss: Give workers £400 to ditch their carsDrivers who switch their commute from car to public transport should be paid a £400 a year bonus from the proposed workplace parking levy, a transport expert urged today.
• When will river traffic return to the forgotten Clyde? - Alastair DaltonThe Clyde has gone from a busy river to an empty one in just a few decades.

The Telegraph

• Commuters with flexible working hours shun rail season tickets, new figures revealCommuters with flexible working hours are shunning rail season tickets, new figures reveal, as industry experts call for a "radical overhaul" in fares.

Times Online

• Boris Johnson drops opposition to Heathrow third runway [Subscription]Boris Johnson has suggested that he will drop his longstanding opposition to a third runway at Heathrow if he becomes prime minister.
• The next prime minister has to get serious about transport in the north [Subscription]Andy Burnham and Sir John Armitt. On Monday, 33 northern news titles came together to demand politicians of all colours commit to tackling the North-South divide. This unprecedented intervention turns up the temperature on the candidates vying to be our next prime minister, many of whom have made overtures about bringing the country back together.
• Invitation for bids as state looks to sell Prestwick airportThe Scottish government is aiming to drum up interest in Prestwick airport in a bid to return it to private ownership.
• Pay commuters to ditch cars, says expert [subscription]Drivers in Scotland should be paid £400 each year to abandon their cars and commute to work on public transport, one of Britain’s foremost experts in the sector has said. David Begg said that Scotland was not as radical as it likes to believe and must “get serious” about tackling climate change and the obesity crisis.
• Troubled Kier to sell off assets [subscription]Contractor wants to offload housing division to bolster finances. One of Britain’s biggest contractors is preparing to sell its housebuilding unit amid increasing evidence of financial pressure on the group.

City AM

• Train giant Govia awarded extension to Southeastern franchiseTrain giant Govia has been awarded an extension to the Southeastern franchise until November, giving the government more time to consider who the new winner will be.
• Scottish government puts Glasgow Prestwick Airport up for saleThe Scottish government has put the publicly owned Glasgow Prestwick Airport up for sale, just six years after taking ownership of it.
• Rail passenger journeys soared to a record 1.8bn over past yearRail passengers travelled 67.7 billion kilometres during the course of last year, equivalent to flying to the moon and back almost 88,000 times.

North Wales Live

• Airbus site that developed Concorde reveals plane that could revolutionise wing-designThe AlbatrossOne could transform the wings made at Broughton in the future

Coach and Bus Week

• Scania writes open letter on apprenticeship funding cutsSarah Taylor, Human Resources Director at Scania, has written an open letter to Secretary of State for Education Damian Hinds MP, Minister of State for Apprenticeships and Skills Anne Milton MP and Chair of the Education Select Committee Robert Halfon MP regarding proposed cuts to apprenticeship funding.
• Gallery: Go North West begins operationsThough the vast majority of its buses remain in the colours of First Bus, Go North West has started operating bus services in Manchester, with a new logo covering the First brand. Julian Dolman was on the scene to document the changeover
• Go North East orders Yutong electricsGo North East has confirmed an order for nine Yutong E10 electric buses, after it secured funding from the Government’s Ultra Low Emission Bus Fund.

Construction Enquirer

• Bidders day for £900m Heathrow rail tunnel projectNetwork Rail is to hold a bidders days to set out contract plans for a 6.5km new rail link from Reading and Slough to London Heathrow Airport.

New Civil Engineer

• Hydrogen trains and drones among 24 rail innovations backed by DfT The Department for Transport (DfT) has announced 24 winning projects which will receive government funding to improve the UK’s railways.
• DfT to publish Heathrow southern rail guidelines after months of silenceThe Department for Transport (DfT) is to publish guidelines for a southern rail connection into Heathrow next month, over a year after it first invited bids for the route.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• CPT's new CEO: Partnership is key to the futureGraham Vidler is into his fifth week as Chief Executive of the Confederation of Passenger Transport. He faces a tough task in uniting the industry – but after a strong start, he is already upbeat about its future
• GNE orders 45 from Wrightbus and ADLGo North East (GNE) has ordered 45 buses from Wrightbus and ADL. New StreetDecks will include trial vehicle with six-cylinder engine The bulk of the order is for 31 double-deck StreetDecks from Wrightbus, with Micro-Hybrid 3 technology.
• Borders Buses launches real-time websiteBorders Buses has used £25,000 funding to build a new website with live tracking, real-time updates and directions to bus stops.

Aviation Industry

• New bidder emerges for Alitalia; deadline may be delayed again The chairman of Rome’s S.S. Lazio football club, Claudio Lotito, has become the latest possible investor to express interest in Italian flag carrier Alitalia, which has been under special administration since May 2017. read more
• Iceland’s Keflavik airport reopens for restricted flight testsIceland’s airport and air navigation services operator Isavia is re-opening Keflavik International Airport for the limited use of crosswind flight testing of new aircraft. read more