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

Wednesday, 20 November 2019

BBC News

• Passenger plane came close to drone collision over Scottish BordersThe Airbus A320 was flying at 7,000 feet over the Borders in August when the incident occurred.
• Boeing gets 737 Max vote of confidenceAirlines have expressed interest in buying the troubled aircraft once it is cleared to fly again.
• EasyJet relaunches package holiday businessThe airline is seeking to move into the gap in the industry left by the demise of Thomas Cook.
• US regulators call for updates to Boeing 737 planesThe recommendation came at the end of the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation of a fatal 2018 accident.
• American Airlines admits 'soap spill' did not divert flightThe airline initially made the claim after a flight was diverted because two crew members fell unconscious.
• Dubai Air Show: Emirates boss says he took too long to accept climate crisisEmirates' president Sir Tim Clark says climate change activists helped airlines focus on the need to act.

Financial Times

• EasyJet plans to offset carbon emissions from all its flightsBudget airline outlines move to launch package holiday business as profits fall
• Offsetting Flugscham. EasyJet editionFailure to engage in all-out greenwashing is welcome.  
• EasyJet/CO2:  that sinking feelingShares rose because Tuesday’s annual results were decent, not because the planet has been saved
• Atlantia pulls out of Alitalia rescue deal
• Boeing to redesign 737NG engine cover after fatal accidentUS safety board recommends fix for more than 7000 planes which are flying
• Uber back-up driver faulted in autonomous car deathRegulator criticises company’s ‘safety culture’ and failure to prevent ‘automation complacency’

The Guardian

• David Gilmour in legal fight with composer of French SNCF train jingleMichaël Boumendil has appealed court decision to throw out his case against the Pink Floyd guitarist for alleged misuse of musicDavid Gilmour is in a legal battle with the composer of a ubiquitous jingle that plays at French train stations, Télérama reports.Gilmour heard the four-note jingle for France’s national railway operator SNCF in Aix-en-Provence in 2013 and was charmed. “It makes me want to sing and dance,â€� he told Le Parisien in 2015. Continue reading...

The Telegraph

• How the wheels came off legendary trucking business Eddie Stobart [subscription]potting Eddie Stobart lorries: it’s a quintessentially British pastime. For outsiders, the public’s love of the green and white livery is something of a head scratcher - not unlike the pickle the Aim-quoted company has found itself in.

Times Online

• HS2 gives out wrong signals, says Andy Street [Subscription]Proposed stations for the HS2 railway line have all the “quirkiness and charm” of an airport baggage drop-off area, according to the West Midlands mayor.

City AM

• London councils must make capital 'more open'Local authorities should take more control of privately-owned public spaces to make them accessible, according to a new report. Centre [...] The post London councils must make capital 'more open' appeared first on CityAM.

The Mirror

• easyJet rakes in nearly £4million a day in extra passenger chargesThe budget airline's add-ons from checked-in baggage to in-flight food and drink generated almost £1.4billion in the year to the end of September

Birmingham Mail

• West Midlands Mayor Andy Street says HS2 needs a new name and trains from Birmingham to ParisAndy Street backs HS2 but says supporters of the planned high speed rail line are losing the argument

Birmingham Post

• Speculation continues over Jaguar Land Rover/BMW tie-upThere is talk the Bavarian car maker could be about to take a significant stake in Jaguar Land Rover
• New Manchester Airport to Shanghai route tipped to unlock hundreds of millions of pounds worth of trade, investment and tourism benefitsThe new route will be a boost for the 180,000 people and businesses within Manchester Airport’s catchment area who already travel to Shanghai

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Rare railway photos in new book: Midland Railway Outpost – Lancaster-Morecambe-HeyshamRARE colour photos discovered during the clearance of a house in Haworth have been reproduced in a new book.
• Changes to town's parking described as 'too little, too late' A CHANGE to Ilkley's controversial new parking scheme has been announced.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Airbus pilot screamed 'drone' in dramatic near miss over Gatwick AirportThe A320 was landing at the London airport when the drone came within 20 metres of the plane
• TfW announce more train timetable changes across Wales - and it could hit your weekendsTransport for Wales say Sunday rail services will be transformed by the extra trains

London Evening Standard

• Train strike latest: Crisis talks to avoid 27 days of South Western Railway walkoutsCrisis talks were taking place today in an attempt to avert 27 days of strikes on London's busiest commuter rail routes throughout December.
• Qantas is selling flights from London to Sydney for £205 return to celebrate centenaryThe Australian airline is selling 100 tickets at this price as part of its centenary sale
• You can now buy TfL-approved Tube apparel which represents the 4 regions of the cityWhich one are you: North, South, West or East?

Bucks Free Press

• New road opens as final section of High Wycombe's Alternative Route through the town is completedThe final section of High Wycombe's Alternative Route through the town opened last week.

Burnley Express

• Anger over withdrawal of rural bus route from Cliviger to TodmordenA rural bus service which links Cliviger to Todmorden and Rochdale is to be withdrawn next month, to the fury of a local councillor who says no consultation was carried out with residents.

Other Regional Press

• New smart cards cut queues for commutersA smart card for rail commuters means season ticket holders can skip the queues and claim refunds if their train is delayed.
• ScotRail criticised for ‘awful’ responses on TwitterSCOTRAIL faced a backlash last night over responses by the firm’s Twitter account to social media users.
• Reading buses to operate new Heathrow serviceA three phased introduction to a new bus service connecting Poyle, Colnbrook, Langley and Iver to Heathrow T5 was formally announced on November 18.

Business Live

• Hull Trains gears up for £60m fleet with new director Anne SomersMs Somers has brought to Hull Trains more than 25 years’ experience in customer experience
• The £120m new train station for Cardiff with its own business district for 5,000 staff The public are being encouraged to have their say on Cardiff Parkway and Cardiff Hendre Lakes

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• easyJet to become the world’s first major airline to operate net-zero carbon flightseasyJet has announced that it will become the world’s first major airline to operate net-zero carbon flights across its whole network. The airline will achieve this goal by offsetting the carbon emissions from the fuel used for all of its flights. easyJet will undertake carbon offsetting through schemes accredited by two of the highest verification standards, Gold Standard and VCS.  They will include forestry, renewable and community based projects. Carbon offsetting is only an interim measure while new technologies are developed, so the airline will continue to support innovative ...
• Merseyrail launches smoking ban at all stationsMerseyrail has announced a smoking ban at all stations on its network from 1 December. From this date, passengers will not be allowed to smoke in any public areas of Merseyrail stations or platforms with the exception of car parks. The move comes off the back of the national Stoptober campaign, and is part of Merseyrail’s commitment to cleaner air and the comfort of its passengers across the network. Vaping and e-cigarettes are also included in the ban, and Merseyrail staff and Byelaw Enforcement Officers will be actively requesting passengers to stop smoking on platforms and other ar...
• East Midlands Airport expansion work startsWork to double the size of East Midlands Airport’s immigration hall has begun. The expanded facility will be ready ahead of next year’s busy summer season and will improve the arrivals experience for returning travellers and visitors to the region. As well as having new facilities, the work will also future-proof this part of the terminal to help cater for growth in years to come. The main body of the building, which houses immigration, is part of the original terminal which opened in 1965. It was modified in 2008 when baggage reclaim and the arrivals frontage were extended and a n...
• On the road to digital transformation with UK’s Department for TransportBy Mark Palmer, Head of Public Sector, UK&I, Google Cloud Formed in 2002 and staffed by 3000 employees, the UK’s Department for Transport (DfT) oversees 24 separate agencies and public bodies to support the movement of people and goods. Its responsibilities range from vehicle licensing and aviation security through to supporting regulators, policing and infrastructure projects. Its digital team delivers technology across DfT’s operations and supports the department’s broader modernization goals, which often requires it to search through and consume data produced by its co...
• Uber and AA’s DriveTech launch Road Safety collaborationRoad safety is a global problem with 1.3 million people killed annually. In the UK over 1,700 die with thousands more seriously injured annually. Uber is determined to play its part in reducing these numbers and it is committed to making transport safer than ever before.     Driver education is a key component of road safety, with experience and continuous education helping to raise standards and reduce risks.  This is why Uber are collaborating with the AA through their driver training operation, DriveTech, to produce training videos to help refresh drivers knowledge and u...

New Civil Engineer

• Road user charging call for Oxford to Cambridge arc New research by Oxford University has warned that road user charging may be needed along the Oxford to Cambridge Arc to cope with increased traffic in the long term.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Network Rail to improve accessibility at Spalding station Work to improve Spalding station’s accessibility will begin next month (Dec 3). Improvements to the station include step free access to platform two, more lighting on the footbridge and additional CCTV across the station. More tactile paving is being installed at the station in order to...
• Hull Trains appoints new director ahead of £60m fleet arrival Hull Trains has made a new appointment, as Anne Somers joins the team as commercial and customer experience director. The appointment comes as a way of strengthening its customer experience, with her roles focussing on listening and responding to customer insight and adapting services to meet...

Aviation Industry

• US House reps object to air marshals using counter-drone systemsUS House lawmakers, in a letter to the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), derided an “irresponsible proposalâ€� to have federal air marshals operate counter-drone systems near airports. read more
• US House bill would enhance FAA oversight of foreign repair stationsThe US House Transportation Committee chairman has proposed new legislation that would strengthen FAA’s oversight of foreign repair stations. read more
• Dubai Airshow 2019: Emirates eyes big network changes from 2023 Emirates Airline may end up buying more than the 150 Boeing 777Xs it has on firm order and is considering whether it could add the Airbus A350-1000 to its fleet as it is looking at future options to replace the Airbus A380 fleet. read more
• Dubai Airshow 2019: Boeing wins 50 MAX, three 787 commitmentsBoeing’s MAX sales resurgence continued on the third day of the Dubai Airshow as the company announced a commitment from Air Astana for 30 MAXs and finalized a firm order behind the scenes for 20 more, ATW confirmed. read more
• EasyJet to offset 100% emissions, sees future electric fleetUK LCC easyJet became the first major airline to offset 100% of its network-wide flight emissions on Nov. 19, as well as announcing a new electric-aircraft partnership with Airbus, paving the way toward an all-electric or hybrid fleet in the longer-term. read more
• Seoul Incheon airport begins multi-stage $4.1B expansion project South Korea’s primary air hub Seoul Incheon International Airport has begun a multi-stage expansion project aimed at enabling the facility to handle 106 million passengers by 2024. read more

Other News Sources

• HS2 to streamline procurement process Four of HS2 Ltd’s (www.hs2.org.uk) biggest contractors are to introduce a standardised pre-qualification (PQ) system for sub-contractors in a bid to streamline the process, reduce costs and boost productivity.
• Green Party pledge net zero carbon emissions by 2030The Green Party has promised to spend £100bn a year to make Britain achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030 if they form a government