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

Wednesday, 15 January 2020

BBC News

• Birmingham car ban: How would the scheme work?A scheme to stop cars travelling across the city has been proposed, but how would it actually work?
• Congestion charge plan in Cardiff clean air schemeCardiff could join London and Durham and charge city centre drivers to meet clean air targets.
• HS2 could threaten irreplaceable natural habitats, report warnsWildlife group says rare species could be wiped out by rail link and calls for a
• Least used railway station Redcar British Steel gets visitor boostDenton in Tameside and Stanlow and Thornton in Cheshire inherited the title from Redcar British Steel
• 737 Max crisis: Boeing sees lowest orders in decadesThe 737 Max has been grounded for 10 months after two crashes that killed 346 people in total.
• Flybe: Government strikes a deal to rescue troubled airlineThe airline’s investors will put more money in while the government will review air passenger tax.

ITV News

• Heathrow says sorry to disabled passengers for their treatment at the airportThe airport has spent £23 million improving access and support but that hasn't stopped some feeling that their ability to fly is being restricted.

Financial Times

• Germany signs off on landmark €86bn rail investmentDeal establishes Deutsche Bahn as central to Berlin’s ambitious plans to fight climate change
• Andrew Tinkler dumps Stobart stakeFormer CEO and fifth-largest shareholder severs ties with group that sacked him
• Flybe saved after rescue deal brokered with governmentRegional airline in line for tax deferrals, potential state loan and cash injection from owners
• Boeing cedes crown as largest plane maker to AirbusOrder figures show weakness in widebody aircraft as well as fallout from 737 Max crisis

The Guardian

• 10 car-free trips to inspiring eco-friendly places in the UKIn the first of a new series on trips to do by train, bus, boat or bike, our car-free columnist kicks off with green projects, from nature reserves to a breweryThere’s art as well as nature among these 280-plus hectares of woods, marshes and wildflower meadows, with the River Wensum winding through them. Dutch garden designer Piet Oudolf created one of four on-site gardens: a waterside oasis that looks good even in winter with intricate seed heads, golden grasses and a Monet-style bridge. The gardens and sculptures integrated into the park intensify the natural shapes and colours in the wider,...
• HS2 will destroy or damage hundreds of UK wildlife sites, says reportSurvey reveals internationally protected natural habitats are among the areas at risk. HS2 will destroy or irreparably damage five internationally protected wildlife sites, 693 local wildlife sites, 108 ancient woodlands and 33 legally protected sites of special scientific interest, according to the most comprehensive survey of its impact on wildlife. Swaths of other irreplaceable natural habitat will be lost to the new high-speed line, with endangered wildlife such as willow tit, white-clawed crayfish and dingy skipper butterfly at risk of local extinction.

The Independent

• Flybe: Rescue deal agreed for airline'This will be welcome news for Flybe's staff, customers and creditors and we will continue the hard work to ensure a sustainable future,' said business secretary Andrea Leadsom

The Telegraph

• Being named Britain's loneliest train station boosts business, figures show

Reuters News

• Manchester Airport could face regulation after rapid growthBritain's Manchester Airport could be regulated to ensure it does not overcharge airlines on fees after its passenger numbers jumped by a third over a decade, giving it more market power.

Daily Express

• Horror as tube station's roof ripped off by dramatic Storm Brendan sparking travel miserySTORM BRENDAN has caused more travel chaos tonight as a roof collapsed at a tube station in London.

Sky News

• Breakdowns caused by potholes continue to riseVehicle breakdowns caused by potholes were up 20% in the last three months of 2019 compared to same period in the previous year, new figures suggest.

Birmingham Mail

• Full Flybe and government statements after collapse rescued by dealThe Treasury announced on Tuesday evening the loss-making carrier would continue operating after the review of the tax featured in rescue talks
• HS2 will unleash 'vast scale of destruction' new report warnsThe Wildlife Trusts want PM Boris Johnson to order an immediate 'Stop and rethink' of HS2 after its new report says 930 nature sites will be hit by a 'vast scale of destruction'

Birmingham Post

• North East LEP appoints three new board membersJohn McCabe, Erika Leadbetter and Carole Botten has joined the board
• Flybe collapse averted as APD review revealedFlybe, which is Europe’s largest regional carrier, confirmed it will “continue to operate as normalâ€� following the deal with its shareholders.
• Skanska wins £143m contract for West Midlands motorway projectSwedish group will deliver a new link road and other work for Highways England at notoriously congested junction serving Birmingham Airport and NEC

Bolton News

• Motorists warned of delays as work starts to build £14,000 traffic islandCOUNCILLORS are hoping that a new £14,000 traffic island will keep pedestrians safe in a busy street.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Leeds Bradford Airport expansion plan criticised by environmental campaignersCAMPAIGNERS claim revised plans for new road and rail infrastructure around Leeds Bradford Airport are ‘incompatible’ with climate change targets.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• New railway station takes shape on the Cambrian Coast lineOpening to passengers in 2020, Bow Street will include new facilities for passengers
• Wales bus pass replacement: Third of active holders have not re-applied for Concessionary Travel CardTransport For Wales has said that more than half a million bus passes have already been renewed

London Evening Standard

• London Waterloo named UK's busiest station for 16th year in a row
• Government agrees deal with Flybe shareholders to keep airline runningThe Government has announced that an agreement has been reached to keep Flybe operating.

Wales Online

• Congestion charge expected to be part of Cardiff council's proposals for tackling pollutionCardiff council today publishes radical plans to address the city's air quality problems and global warming

Cambridge News

• Celebrating Cambridgeshire's worst roads on National Pothole DayWe're mourning the loss of our hubcaps on this special day

Get Surrey

• 11 unusual things about Waterloo station you probably didn’t knowWaterloo train station usually extremely busy with connections to all over Southern England plus there's the adjoining station of Waterloo East with other services across the South East.
• 11 unusual things about Waterloo station you probably didn’t know It's a station steeped in history

Other Regional Press

• More train services between Nuneaton and Coventry plan de-railedPlans for an extra platform to increase rail services between Nuneaton, Bedworth and Coventry have derailed - again.

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• TfL investment to create nearly 8,000 new cycle parking spaces across London’s boroughsTransport for London (TfL) has awarded more than £3.5 million of investment to 30 London boroughs to create 7,800 new cycle spaces in town centres, stations, schools and residential areas. This investment will enable thousands more cycle journeys to take place each week by ensuring more journeys begin and end with a place to park, with the first spaces set to be in place by the spring. The investment has been carefully targeted to add spaces where they are most needed. Areas set to benefit include: • In Bromley, 24 schools will have 480 new spaces to enable more pupils to cycle to...

Rail Magazine

• Alstom wins £642 million contract with Avanti for Pendolino refurbishment and maintenanceAlstom has won a seven-year deal with Avanti West Coast worth £642 million for the refurbishment and maintenance of 56 Class 390 Pendolinos.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Zonegreen boosts safety at NorthamCast your mind back 18 years to the beginning of the millennium. In its infancy at the time, was depot safety technology that went on to revolutionise the way we protect rail staff and equipment. Developed by Sheffield-based Zonegreen, the Depot Personnel Protection System (DPPS) automated...
• Network Rail to improve Beverley railway station Network Rail has announced today (Jan 14) a £600,000 investment into improving Beverly railway station, to improve passenger experience and enhance the station’s aesthetic and general condition.   The footbridge at the station will be fully refurbished, including strengthening...
• Balfour Beatty completes rail line electrification Balfour Beatty, as contracted by Network Rail, has successfully completed the electrification of 77km of the Great Western Railway (GWR) line between Bristol and Cardiff. It comes as part of a wider Greater Wester Electrification Programme from Network Rail to electrify 275km of train line...

Railnews

• Goverment may tackle ˜shortcomings™ of rail fare-setting RPI The Government is placing the highly controversial Retail Prices Index or RPI under the microscope, the Chancellor has confirmed. The RPI each July is used as the basis for rail fare changes, but it has been criticised because the Office of National Statistics no longer recognises it as a realistic measure.

Railway Gazette

• ‘The wow effect is coming’ as German government signs €86bn rail programmeGERMANY: The €86bn LuFV III railway operating and financing agreement running to 2030 was signed by Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer, Deutsche Bahn CEO Richard Lutz and Board Member for Infrastructure Ronald Pofalla on January 14, at a ceremony attended by Federal Minister of Finance Olaf Scholz.

Green Miscellany

• Why do drivers close pass cyclists? Spoiler alert: it’s nothing to do with high-visNobody knows for certain why some drivers insist on overtaking cyclists too close. However, it’s almost certainly not because they’ve failed to spot the person on the bicycle. If this sounds counter-intuitive, take note of Dr Ian Walker, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Bath University – his research focuses particularly on the safety of vulnerable road users and their interactions with motorists, considering such… The post Why do drivers close pass cyclists? Spoiler alert: it’s nothing to do with high-vis appeared first on ETA.

Other News Sources

• Kings Sutton villagers lose their evening train to Banbury after railway axes their early evening trainA King's Sutton man has objected officially to the axeing of a train that gives the village access to Banbury for the evenings.
• Major revamp of Reigate's M25 junction will take 15 months and won't start until 2021Highways England had initially scheduled the major project at the motorway's A217 junction to begin this month