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

Thursday, 13 August 2020

BBC News

• US holds off on threatened tariff hike in EU Airbus fightThe US will maintain import duties on $7.5bn worth of items including French cheese and whiskies.

ITV News

• Network Rail was warned about 'vulnerabilities' to landslips four weeks before Stonehaven derailmentA health and safety report warned about the "vulnerability" of Network Rail to landslips and severe weather just four weeks before the train derailment in Aberdeenshire.

Financial Times

• Lenders to baggage handler Swissport offer rescue deal Proposal would restructure $2bn debt and could transfer ownership from China’s HNA
• Train companies seek bailout for station retail tenantsLandlords including the government accused of not helping as pandemic hits revenues

The Guardian

• Stonehaven tragedy shows rail industry must adapt to climate crisisUK railways have an impressive safety record but more needs to be spent to counter the growing threat from extreme weather
• UK folding bike maker Brompton to launch subscription serviceCustomers can hire bikes on monthly or annual basis after bike demand rises during pandemicThe UK folding bike maker Brompton is to launch a subscription service next month, letting customers hire bikes on a monthly or annual basis, as demand for bikes has surged during the Covid-19 pandemic.Cycling levels have risen by up to 300% on some days, according to Department for Transport data, as people try to avoid public transport. Continue reading...
• Was this just an easyJet ploy to get out of paying a refund?It suggested that I cancel my upcoming flight in the light of travel restrictions and accept vouchersHow many of you were, like me, contacted by easyJet in mid June, stating that, “as government travel restrictions and safety guidelines evolve, you may wish to cancel your upcoming flightsâ€�? It offered a voucher with an extra £10 credit as a “thank youâ€� to those who applied before 29 June. I, like many others, felt obliged to accept. On 1 July, 48 hours after the deadline, easyJet informed me that it had to cancel my flights and I could apply for a full refund. I did so and, three weeks later, ...

The Telegraph

• Space Checker tool allows First passengers to check if bus will be busyA NEW tool has been launched to help passengers navigate the new normal for bus travel. First Bus has created Space Checker to allow passengers to see when their service is typically at its busiest and choose a quieter time to travel should they want to.
• Wednesday evening news briefing: Deadly train derailment after landslip
• Rail campaign groups call for rail fares to be frozen

Times Online

• Climate change warning after fatal rail landslide [subscription]Bosses were told that network was vulnerable to extreme weather weeks before derailment
• Stonehaven derailment: ‘Our railway is a family, one that is hurting today’ [subscription]For most of the morning a plume of black smoke rising from a valley marked the site of the first fatal derailment in Britain for 13 years.
• Derailed train burst into flames in Aberdeen [subscription]Three people died in a train derailment following torrential rain yesterday at a spot that had been identified as being “greatly affected by earthslips”.

City AM

• Lyft maintains end-2021 profitability goalLyft said today that cuts had put the company on track to reach its goal of becoming profitable on an The post Lyft maintains end-2021 profitability goal appeared first on CityAM.

Sky News

• Three confirmed dead as aerial shots show train devastationThree people have died and six others have been taken to hospital after a train derailed in Aberdeenshire.
• Network Rail was warned about potential problems four weeks before train derailmentNetwork Rail was warned about not keeping up with extreme weather events four weeks before the deadly train derailment in Aberdeenshire.

Birmingham Post

• Bus firm invests £2.1m in new fleet serving East Midlands AirportKinchbus is using them to operate Skylink services from Derby and Leicester

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Bus firm that took thousands to school over 50 years to be stripped of licenceGoodsir Coaches operate 13 buses on school contracts, scheduled services in the Holyhead area and public hire
• This abandoned Anglesey railway line could see trains roll on it once againThe Amlwch to Gaerwen line may be on its way back to into use

Manchester Evening News

• Passenger numbers are now rising on public transport - but there's a problemOn the buses, around 30pc of passengers are still failing to cover their faces

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• What travellers can expect from the new Durham Bus station after plans given the green lightAn outdated County Durham bus station is to be replaced with a brand-new building as planner give the development the green light.

Northern Echo

• Mayor invites local businesses to bid on railway station redevelopment workTEES Valley Mayor Ben Houchen is inviting local businesses to a special event to learn more about how they can bid for work on the redevelopment of Darlington, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool and Teesside Airport Railway Stations.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Prime Minister says ‘most important thing’ is to investigate cause of derailed train south of StonehavenThree people have died and six people are injured after a Inter7City train derailed near Stonehaven.

The York Press

• Parking permits to go virtual - and Piccadilly car park in York to be renamed PLANS for Piccadilly car park to be renamed and for residents' parking permits to become virtual have been given the go-ahead.

East Anglian Daily Times

• School transport arrangements being made for 2,000 pupils on public bus routesA route-by-route review of travel arrangements for more than 2,000 pupils in Suffolk who rely on public transport to get to school is being carried out by transport chiefs.

Hull Daily Mail

• Hull bus passenger's anger as Stagecoach refuses to provide change for faresStagecoach has stopped providing change to passengers who pay in cash and is instead donating the money to charity

Other Regional Press

• Preston and South Ribble road and rail schemes form part of governemnt cash bidPlans to create a dual carriageway between South Ribble and Preston and a new railway station in Leyland are amongst the Lancashire transport projects included in a pitch for government cash to “rebuild and transform the North” in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.
• ‘Get back on the bus’ - People told there’s no need to be afraid of using public transportPeople are being encouraged to get back on the county’s busses as businesses re-open and guidance for the shielding community is eased.
• Second bid for cycling cash includes MORE bus gates for OxfordEVEN more bus gates on top of recently discussed ones could be set up in Oxford, if a bid for government cash submitted last week is successful.
• New bus app works out if you'll be sat or stood on your next busThe app allows passengers to find the quietest and busiest times on routes across Yorkshire
• Buses from Cov to Skegness back on from this weekendSeaside, here we come!

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Minister for Regional Growth and Local Government opens multi-million pound bulks terminal at TeesportPD Ports is celebrating the official opening of a multi-million pound bulks handling facility at Teesport that marks an important milestone in the revival of the Tees Valley following the collapse of the SSI Steelworks in 2015. Simon Clarke MP, Minister for Regional Growth and Local Government, officially opened Teesport Bulks Terminal during a virtual ceremony on August 12th.  PD Ports’ £9.2 million investment to renovate and refurbish its former Steel Export Terminal delivers a modernised warehousing facility that is firmly positioned to handle continued international trad...

New Civil Engineer

• Load testing milestone for Queensferry Crossing structural health sensorsFinal calibration of structural health monitoring sensors on the Queensferry Crossing will take place this weekend.
• Procurement, leadership and digitalisation reinvention key to recoveryA strategic reinvention of how infrastructure is delivered is needed to drive a successful infrastructure-led recovery from Covid-19 but the fundamental challenges of dealing with population growth and the climate emergency remain unchanged by the pandemic, according to a new report.

Rail Technology Magazine

• TfN calls for backing of £5bn Northern Infrastructure Pipeline proposals Today (12 Aug) Transport for the North has revealed its blueprint for a Northern Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), a 30-year investment plan of infrastructure projects to reinforce greener Northern growth. This £5bn pipeline includes rail, road, active travel and smart ticketing proposals...
• Siemens Mobility installs new signalling system at Hither Green Following the final contracts being confirmed for the Hither Green Area Resignalling Project, Siemens Mobility Limited are set to provide the technology to improve passenger services. The new signalling system will create greater reliability and better journeys for passengers, not just through...
• Children remind passengers to wear face coverings and keep distance South Western Railways staff members are using an unlikely voice to spread the message to passengers about face coverings. New station announcement has been recorded by two children of SWR staff members to remind passengers to wear face coverings and keep their distance from each other, thereby...
• Versatile coating system enhances Indestructible Paint rail industry role A highlysatile and robust epoxy coating system has now been introduced by specialist manufacturer, Indestructible Paint Ltd, with particular benefits for the rail industry. The development – centred on the introduction of the company’s RWIP120 product – signals the...
• Rail companies call for polluters to pay their fair share Rail Delivery Group have submitted proposals to influence the government’s Transport Decarbonisation Plan in hope of encouraging passengers to make greener choices when travelling in Britain or to international destinations that are reachable by rail such as Paris or Amsterdam. They have...

Railnews

• Three dead in derailment near Aberdeen Three people have been killed in the derailment near Stonehaven in north east Scotland, and six others have been taken to hospital, with mainly minor injuries. The ScotRail driver and conductor were among the three fatalities.The train affected was an early morning service from Aberdeen to Glasgow Queen Street, worked by an HST with four passenger coaches.
• Government asked to invest £5bn in northern England Transport for the North has unveiled its initial plans for a £5 billion ˜Northern Infrastructure Pipeline™, a 30-year investment programme which would support ˜greener™ growth in the region and boost Northern Powerhouse Rail. Some of the projects, which include railways but also roads, active travel and smart ticketing, could be started as soon as next year, and according to TfN could help to create around 20,000 construction and design jobs in due course. The announcement from TfN has come just weeks after the Government unveiled separate investment of £589 million in Transpennine rail links...

Other News Sources

• New Blackburn cycle lanes are ‘insane’ say residentsA NEW cycle lane on a Blackburn street which residents say appeared overnight has been described as ‘insane’.
• Train safety system ‘works well’, says rail expertWe spoke to Nigel Harris, a rail expert and managing editor of Rail Magazine.