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

Tuesday, 09 June 2020

BBC News

• Car parts firm Sertec Group 'to cut more than 400' jobs'The majority of staff at the firm, which supplies Toyota, Nissan and JLR, are currently furloughed, the Unite union says.
• Tesla battery supplier Catl says new design has one million-mile lifespanBattery-maker Catl says it is ready to make a product that could power a car over 1.2 million miles.
• Coronavirus: Cathay Pacific gets $5bn state-backed bailoutThe restructuring package comes as the global airline industry has been hit hard by the pandemic.

Financial Times

• Shipping lines face formidable foeThe industry has navigated the crisis with some skill, but pressure to cut prices is growing

The Guardian

• Travel refund update: readers on holiday flights and trainsGuardian Money readers tell us if BA, Ryanair, easyJet, Eurostar and others have have given cash backAmid the complaints about airlines and travel operators not reimbursing readers for cancelled trips, there has been a noticeable number of reports of refunds being made. GG, from Malvern, wrote this week to praise Jet2, which has just refunded his “very expensiveâ€� flight to Turkey that should have left in May. Other readers have reported being similarly impressed by Jet2.Elsewhere, some – but not all – readers have reported receiving refunds from British Airways. Ryanair, easyJet and KLM, and o...
• First arrivals under UK quarantine rules: 'They didn't even check my temperature'Passengers at Heathrow express surprise and confusion over new coronavirus controlsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageAs the UK government’s easing of lockdown restrictions is gradually introduced, new quarantine regulations mean that passengers arriving in Britain from Monday will need to stay at home for 14 days.Under the new rules most people arriving in the UK will need to fill in an online form with their contact and travel details. They will also need to include the address where they will be staying in quarantine. In England, random checks will be carried out by...
• 'We sold eight bikes in 20 minutes!' Will the cycling boom last?Shops can barely keep up with demand as bikes – and even parts – sell out. But experts say time is running out to grasp the ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunity to change how we travelIt takes Sarah Cain, a medical secretary at the Callington Road hospital in Bristol, 40 minutes to get to work. Correction: it took Sarah Cain 40 minutes to get to work – until the day we speak, when it took 16 minutes. Because Cain, who previously walked to work, has got herself a bike. “It was a bit nerve-racking,â€� she tells me on the phone. “It’s been years since I’ve been on a bicycle.â€�But she set off early, the ...

The Telegraph

• Travel updates: UK quarantine could be lifted in July for holidays to Europe

Times Online

• Two more directors bale out as storms surround Easyjet [Subscription]The resignations of two more directors has increased still further the turbulence that is rocking the boardroom at Easyjet.
• Coronavirus: Scots airports warn of job losses as restrictions extended until July [Subscription]Quarantine will be extended until the end of July, the justice secretary has said amid warnings the tourist industry faces devastation.
• £6,000 scrappage grants to swap petrol cars for electric [Subscription]Motorists could be given a £6,000 grant to trade in petrol or diesel cars for zero-emission models under government plans to reboot the economy.

Mail Online

• Police will not punish arrivals for flouting quarantineAll arrivals to the UK - including Britons - must now fill in an online 'contact locator' form setting out where they will live for a fortnight. Refusal to do so risks a £1,000 fine.
• Tom Payne finds chaos in Heathrow on first day of new quarantine rulesThe chaos began shortly after landing when it quickly became clear that the majority of people on my flight were blissfully unaware of the new restrictions.

The Mirror

• Ryanair, EasyJet and travel firms slash prices to give Brits chance of a holidayRyanair, Easyjet, TUI and Jet2 area all offering big discounts as travel operators bank on Britain agreeing to quarantine-free 'air bridges' with European holiday spots

This is Money

• Motorists who drive 5,000 miles pay most for insuranceThe most popular annual mileage bracket for car cover is between 5,000 and 6,000 mile - but they pay £215 MORE than those who do double that distance.
• Quarter off car prices now showrooms are out of coronavirus quarantineFollowing the opening of car dealerships in England last Monday - and with Northern Ireland and Scotland and Wales set to follow suit - we reveal the biggest savings available to new car buyers.
• Boris Johnson is considering slashing prices of new EVs by £6,000It could mean that the price of the British-build Nissan Leaf EV falls from £26,845 to just £20,845 and would see a new VW ID.3 zero-emission hatchback cost around the same as a petrol Golf.

Belfast Telegraph

• France announces multi-billion aid package for aviation industryFrance’s government has announced 15 billion euros (£13.3 billion) in aid for the virus-battered aerospace industry, including plane-maker Airbus and national airline Air France.

Birmingham Post

• Sales of leisure vehicles rise due to Covid impact on travelDon Amott Group takes £1m in deposits over last three weeks alone

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Rural bus services to resumeTWO local bus routes will re-start next Monday after being paused due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
• 20mph zones, cycle paths and tree planting - new look for Manningham LaneA TWO-way cycle lane, 20mph speed limits, tree planting, more pedestrian crossings and small park areas are some of the features that could be seen along Manningham Lane in the near future.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Manchester Airport updates rules as part of 'safe system of travel' The airport is keeping its travel guidance under constant review amid the coronavirus pandemic

London Evening Standard

• Quarantine rules branded 'confusing' by passengers arriving at ghost-town airports in UKThe controversial 14-day quarantine for UK arrivals came under fire on day one as passengers told of
• Drone fighter planes 'being programmed for mid-air dog fights against human pilots'Drone fighter planes capable of thinking for themselves in mid-air dog fights against enemy human pilots are being developed by US military researchers.

Manchester Evening News

• Taxi drivers blasted for 'putting people at risk' after failing vehicle checksAn annual licensing report showed that since last April, 1,044 taxis – 41 pc – had failed a vehicle test in Oldham

The York Press

• Cycle lane could be created between Park&Ride and city centre PLANS to get more people walking and cycling in York include creating a cycle route from Rawcliffe Park&Ride to Bootham, more bicycle parking in the city centre and changes to traffic light timings to reduce the number of pedestrians waiting at crossings.

Cambridge News

• Children playing on railway tracks almost hit by train The incident has prompted Transport police to warn parents

East Anglian Daily Times

• Roads and junctions to be shut as Suffolk boosts walking and cyclingRoads and junctions in towns across Suffolk are to be closed to motor vehicles in a bid to encourage more walking and cycling in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

Leeds Live

• Extra 100km of cycle paths to be added to Leeds roadsThey will form the basis for new low traffic neighbourhoods across Leeds

Reading Evening Post

• The ingenious way bridge carrying M4 over Thames has been widenedHighways England is working to increase the capacity of the motorway in Berkshire

Other Regional Press

• Oxfordshire submits £47m all-electric bus bid for Oxford after deadline worriesA BID to make Oxford the first city in England to have an all-electric fleet of buses has been made, after worries it could be scuppered by technical details.
• Oxfordshire submits £47m all-electric bus bid for Oxford after deadline worriesA BID to make Oxford the first city in England to have an all-electric fleet of buses has been made, after worries it could be scuppered by technical details.
• Jet2 travel update to holidaymakers as holiday flights pushed backThe airline confirmed another delay in its bid to resume flights in the wake of the coronavirus crisis
• This is when you'll be able to fly to these holiday destinationsMainland Europe is beginning to reopen as coronavirus case numbers fall
• Setback for holidaymakers as Jet2 extends cancellation of flights and holidaysIt was originally meant to restart journey's on July 1
• How should it be made easier to cycle and walk in Bradford?Consultation launched to help reduce pressure on public transport
• Action at Huddersfield danger junction is taking too long, say councillorsSeveral accidents have happened at the junction of Penistone Road with Station Road and Fenay Lane
• Extinction Rebellion's cycle lane on Buxton Road criticised An unlawful stunt by campaigners to create a makeshift cycle lane along a main Weymouth road has been condemned as

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Contraflow keeps motorway open as huge gantries installed for M6 upgradeIn just seven days the gantries, which weigh between 13 and 32 tonnes each, were installed on the northbound carriageway between junctions 13 to 14 in Staffordshire as part of a motorway upgrade. Seventeen miles of the M6 between junctions 13 (Stafford) and 15 (Stoke-on-Trent) are being upgraded and when the work is completed the gantries will house electronic signs to alert drivers to changes in the speed limit, lane closures and incidents ahead. Thanks to the contraflow system in place - which runs for almost the length of the works - traffic was able to travel in that lane enabling worker...

Railnews

• Rail union claims ˜confusion and conflict™ over facemasks The RMT has protested to the transport secretary that there is ˜confusion and conflict™ over the forthcoming changes to facemask rules on trains and other public transport from next week.

Other News Sources

• Heathrow Southern RailwayBaroness Jo Valentine, Chair of Heathrow Southern Railway Ltd (HSR), has confirmed that in spite of consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic the alternative rail scheme to Heathrow is pushing ahead. It is privately funded.
• Parking charges to be reintroduced at Herefordshire Council car parks PARKING charges will be reintroduced in Hereford as lockdown restrictions look set to ease further next week.
• Millions to be spent on preventing potholes in Sussex MILLIONS of pounds will be spent on preventing potholes across Sussex.

EIN News Subscription

• Ryanair to fly through ‘rubbish’ UK quarantine, says O’Leary … what the boss of Europe’s biggest budget airline called a “rubbishâ€� … from flying to Europe and prevent Europeans from visiting cities … London’s Heathrow Airport, Europe’s busiest, warned that … discussed with some top European destinations such as Portugal. …
• Ryanair, EasyJet and travel firms slash prices to give Brits chance of a holiday … persuade people to fly again.â€� Budget airlines have already sparked a price … says the pandemic has cost European airlines £280billion.
• #TimeForTravel: EU aims to lift internal restrictions in June; Emirates adds 16 further destinations; Spark returns to Vancouver Airport … Airport increases the ease of social distancing Europe The EU … the EU’s Ministers of Home Affairs, European Commissioner … the community from non-EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, … According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), evidence …
• Coronavirus: Boris Johnson wants cross-EU quarantine exemption … wants to agree a cross-EU exemption, which would allow … Britons to visit EU countries without having to … I use public transport to travel from the airport to my isolation … between their countries, but the EU Commission insisted it would break …