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

Tuesday, 18 August 2020

BBC News

• Coronavirus: Cancelled buses leaving Ogmore Valley 'under curfew'Residents of Ogmore Valley say they have been
• £50m M49 junction at Bristol unused as link road unbuiltThe route near Bristol - the M49's only junction - remains unconnected to a retail distribution park.
• Longer overnight diversion for Rest and Be ThankfulThe Old Military Road on the A83 in Argyll is closing through the night for work on a new culvert.
• Roof sliced off double decker as it hits rail bridge in WishawThe First Bus double decker hit the railway bridge in Wishaw on Monday morning.
• Ryanair cuts flights as EU virus rates hit bookingsThe airline said activity for September and October

Financial Times

• Carlyle staff told to avoid public transport on London office return Private equity group expects employees to walk or cycle if possible as HQ reopens after pandemic shutdown
• Ryanair cuts autumn capacity after European Covid-19 cases spikeLow-cost carrier to reduce number of passengers by 20% and easyJet confirms cutbacks at 3 UK hubs
• Uber and Lyft’s California operations hang in balanceCourt battle over making drivers employees could have far-reaching effects on gig economy legislation elsewhere
• Wizz Air expands UK operations with plans for Gatwick baseBudget carrier sees crisis in air travel as opportunity to grab market share

The Guardian

• Ryanair's flight cuts are no surprise and signal an aviation nosediveDecent test-and-trace systems at airports might help sector as Covid-19 cases rise in Europe. That didn't take long. A rise in Covid-19 cases in Europe has prompted Ryanair to cut flight capacity by 20% for September and October.
• Cut rail fares to counter Covid slump in train travel, watchdog urgesTransport Focus joins unions and campaigners in calling for short and long-term incentives. Rail fares must be cut to entice travellers back on to trains after Covid-19, according to the passenger watchdog, which has urged the UK government to subsidise similar money-saving deals to those for the restaurant sector. Transport Focus said a radical shake up of the fares system should go beyond a fares freeze to include cut-price deals and flexible season tickets for people who may in future only be commuting part-time.

Times Online

• Costain waits for road to clear in Wales before revealing results [subscription]A long-running dispute between Costain and the Welsh government over a key road contract has prompted the construction company to delay publishing its half-year results.
• Freeze train fares to get people back, watchdog urges [subscription]Next year’s increase in rail fares should be scrapped as part of a huge shift towards flexible season tickets, according to the passenger watchdog.

City AM

• London advocacy groups call for Waterloo and City Tube line to reopen.London lobby groups have called for the reopening of the Waterloo and City Tube line to help increase the number of people going back to their offices.

Birmingham Post

• HS2 launches next phase of ideas accelerator with Innovation BirminghamHigh-speed rail project is looking for innovation companies and ideas from the West Midlands business community

Bolton News

• Ryanair cancel 20 per cent of flights after travel restrictions hit bookings Ryanair are to cut a fifth of their flights for the next two months after bookings plunged on the back of new coronavirus travel restrictions.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Jet2 to make 102 pilots redundant YEADON-based Jet2 is to make 102 of its pilots redundant across most of its bases, a union has said.

Bristol Live

• Why dozens of coaches passed through Bristol earlier todayThe coach industry is in dire need of financial support from the government

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Airlines give updates as new countries could be added to the quarantine listNew figures have revealed a coronavirus spike in a number of countries

The York Press

• LETTER: When will cyclists realise they’re not invincible? It was ironic to see the photograph of members of the York Cycle Campaign in the Press last Wednesday (Cycle campaign slams cash bid, August 12).

Bucks Free Press

• Amersham train users could save £1,800 due to coronavirusRecent figures have shown that Amersham residents have saved around £1,800 by cutting their rail commute.
• EasyJet to stop flights from several UK airports and axe hundreds of jobs Budget airline easyJet has confirmed plans to close several bases across the UK and end all flights from those airports.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Ipswich business leader ‘flabbergasted’ at new bill for Lowestoft bridgeA business leader is “flabbergasted” Suffolk County Council is pressing ahead with plans for a new bridge in Lowestoft despite pulling the plug on the proposed Upper Orwell Crossings in Ipswich.

Hull Daily Mail

• Hull Trains to return after 137 days with incredible offerServices were suspended more than four months ago but will return this week with fantastic offers this weekend

Kent Online

• Gravesend's £4.1 million bus hub plans to be scrutinisedPlans to create a multi-million pound bus interchange in Gravesham will be scrutinised by councillors in four weeks' time.

Other Regional Press

• Direct Shrewsbury to London train service to restartA direct train from Shropshire to London will restart next month, it has been confirmed.
• Flights cancelled as easyJet closes major Newcastle Airport hubBudget airline took 'very difficult decision' to close base at Newcastle and two other major hubs from September 1
• Oxford Train Station: Glimpse of what future upgrades look like A SECOND entrance to Oxford’s train station could be built in the future, as a glimpse of a new ‘master plan’ for the railway hub has been revealed.
• York Council made almost £8m from parking before lockdownIt is less than the £8.2 million the local authority made the year before

Train Operators

• Greater Anglia managing director welcomes customers back to the railway with pandemic safety messageThe managing director of Greater Anglia is welcoming passengers back to the railway and assuring them that the company is doing everything possible to keep them safe from Covid-19 while travelling.

British Trams Online

• Funding in place for new tramstop and Park and Ride on Supertram Tram-Train lineRotherham Metropolitan Borough Council have confirmed that £46 million will be allocated to transport projects in the area – this will include two Park and Ride sites and a new tramstop on the Tram-Train line to Rotherham Parkgate alongside various road improvements.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Innovative imagery survey set to improve passenger journeys Funded with a £394,000 grant from the Department for Transport through the First of a Kind 2020 programme, a ground breaking way of inspecting the railways is to be used this summer. Using high-quality imagers across the Thames valley, west London, the west and south west, the work is part...
• Avanti West Coast announce more services from September Avanti West Coast will be reinstating numerous destinations from the 7th of September as part of alterations to its timetable. Blackpool, Wrexham, Shrewsbury and Edinburgh will all see the return of direct Avanti West Coast services to and from London for the first time since lockdown measures...
• HS2 launches second wave of Innovation Accelerator recruitment Today (17 Aug) HS2 Ltd has launched the second wave of recruitment to its Innovation Accelerator programme, after a huge response to its first call out to tech start-ups and pioneering SMEs earlier this year. The company is looking to recruit five further small firms with new ideas on how people...

Other News Sources

• Plans to reopen Beeston Castle and Tarporley railway stationPLANS to reopen a train station which has been closed for more than half a century have moved a step closer.
• LNWR announce plans to reopen Bletchley-Bedford lineRail operator London North Western Railway has announced plans to reopen the Marston Vale Line between Bletchley and Bedford.
• Coventry Railway Station £21,000 "temporary" flash crossing removedAt the time, it was said that the blue zigzag crossing had a lifespan of up to five years
• Hundreds back petition to save Carmunnock to East Kilbride bus routeA PETITION with more than 470 signatures has been submitted to First Bus to reverse the changes to the number 31 service.
• EasyJet to stop flights from several UK airports and axe hundreds of jobs Budget airline easyJet has confirmed plans to close several bases across the UK and end all flights from those airports.
• Gatwick and Heathrow flights: The countries with no quarantine on return after latest updates France, Malta and the Netherlands were taken off the exempt list while Brunei and Malaysia were added to it