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

Saturday, 31 October 2020

BBC News

• Stonehaven derailment: Line to reopen next weekThe line in Aberdeenshire will reopen on Tuesday, nearly three months after the crash which killed three people.
• Bombardier: Spirit Aerosystems takes control of NI operationsThe deal with Spirit Aerosystems, based in Kansas, was originally reached more than a year ago.

ITV News

• Railway volunteers' night time vigil helps to foil metal thieves
Alert volunteers at a heritage railway helped foil metal thieves who repeatedly targeted Dereham station in Norfolk.

Financial Times

• European airlines braced for more pain as lockdowns returnAir France-KLM posts quarterly loss and warns of gloomier outlook
• BA boss hits out at Heathrow plan to increase charges Sean Doyle says regulator should block airport’s proposal to recoup pandemic losses
• Cyclists are not the bad guysA revolution requires a few barricades and our cities need more bikes and fewer cars

The Guardian

• Drive less or face post-lockdown gridlock, UK transport experts warnCampaigners urge more walking and cycling schemes despite opposition from ‘vocal minority’Many Britons will have to get used to driving less if the country is to avoid gridlock on the roads once coronavirus restrictions ease, and councils must provide better routes for cycling and walking, transport experts say.Government statistics show motor traffic is almost back at pre-lockdown levels, and only 59% of employees have returned to their workplaces. One study predicts that with health concerns reducing the use of public transport, up to 2.7 million more people could end up using cars for commu...

Times Online

• £20m for the Cairngorm funicular? Funding priorities seem to have gone off the rails [subscription]The mountain train has long been considered a white elephant, but to the government it’s a cash cow
• Testing route to open the airways again [subscription]More required reading for the “Global Travel Taskforce”: the tardy talking shop co-piloted by Matt Hancock and Grant Shapps. It’s the nine-month results statement from IAG, the owner of British Airways, Iberia and Aer Lingus.
• Three new voices at IAG but still just the one message [subscription]Only time will tell whether the autocratic, omnipotent style that Willie Walsh brought to International Consolidated Airlines Group has passed. At the first outing of the company’s leadership since Mr Walsh departed last month, what emerged was, if not a holy trinity, at least a tripartite presentation of the not-always-loved company’s prospects.

City AM

• Waterloo and City line closure set to continue indefinitelyNo date has yet been set for the Waterloo and City tube line to be reopened, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Allerdene Railway Bridge on A1 to undergo 'vital maintenance work'The bridge, near the Angel of the North, will be closed overnight through November to repair 'decades of wear and tear'

Wales Online

• Cardiff Bus bailout 'blame game' has even involved Margaret ThatcherOne councillor has warned borrowing the cash will cost £1.15m in interest each year

East Anglian Daily Times

• Stansted Airport hikes price of ‘kiss and fly’ drop-off pointStansted Airport is upping its drop-off charge for the second time this year as it seeks to take stock after the coronavirus pandemic.

Other Regional Press

• On Yer Bike: Why cyclists don't always use the cycle laneHazel Dawe looks at one of drivers' top pet peeves.

Christian Wolmar

• Rail 914: A crisis like we have never seen before’Crisis, what crisis?’ There are many people repeating the words that Jim Callaghan actually never used. These are the arguing that we have been here before – 9/11 and the fear of skyscrapers, the breakdown in the railway post Hatfield, the 2008 financial crisis, etc –and afterwards both the railways and the economy recovered.

Trafnidiaeth Cymru [Transport for Wales]

• Essential Travel reinforced for seasonal events in WalesTransport for Wales is reminding the public in Wales that they should only make essential journeys during the ’firebreak’ lockdown period, ahead of sporting events this weekend, followed by Halloween and Bonfire night.

Aviation Industry

• AEF October Newsletter: Is it time to stop expanding airports?AEF publishes short guide to current UK airport planning applications and proposed expansions Despite record drops in air travel and uncertainty around the pace and scale of recovery from the …

Other News Sources

• Train line to reopen three months after deadly crashLine between Aberdeen and Dundee has been closed since three men were killed in August's derailment.
• Councillor welcomes Balham Station’s £2.6m revampThe council’s transport spokesman John Locker has welcomed an announcement by rail chiefs that Balham Station is to undergo a £2.6m revamp.
• Uneven and steep Fetcham road a 'danger to cyclists' says councillor as he demands repairs Paul Kennedy said the patchwork of 'botched' repairs is putting people at risk
• Sniffer dogs used at London Paddington station to detect Covid-19 Sniffer dogs are being trained to sniff out Covid-19 on humans and could become mainstream by Easter.