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

Monday, 16 November 2020

BBC News

• Alcohol ban comes into force on Scotland's rail networkPeople are no longer allowed to drink alcohol on trains or at stations as part of measures to stem Covid.
• Extra £40m for green spaces in England, Boris Johnson pledgesFunding will support thousands of jobs, as part of a green recovery from Covid, the government says.

ITV News

• November date for EU funding replacement for WalesThe UK Government says it’ll give details of its proposed replacement for European Union funding after November 25th, more than three years after it was first announced and with little or no time for the consultation which was promised.

Financial Times

• Felixstowe is worst performer among key portsData appear to vindicate complaints from users of Britain’s biggest container terminal
• Gatwick boss demands return of 80/20 landing rights rulesStewart Wingate says reinstatement after Covid suspension would boost competition
• Is it the end of the line for mass transit systems? Revenues have fallen victim to the pandemic. Now there are concerns about what happens if passengers don’t return
• Can Boeing’s 737 Max regain passengers’ trust?The findings of an investigation into the plane’s development have shattered faith in the manufacturer and its regulators 

The Telegraph

• Fresh air system guards bus drivers against coronavirus [subscription]More than 1,000 London buses fitted with device by Grayson Thermal so drivers breathe fresh air to reduce the risk of catching virus

Times Online

• Pre-flight test plan to replace quarantine [subscription]Quarantine-free flights between the UK and US could be launched before Christmas under plans for a new testing regime. John Holland-Kaye , chief executive of Heathrow, said it was hoped that a trial would be launched before the end of the year in which passengers took a test before they took off.
• The Times view on changing the way road use is taxed: Drivers’ Duty [subscription]Charging motorists according to their road use would ease congestion, benefit the environment and help to plug a long-term gap in the public finances
• Speeding driver hit 152mph on a 30mph road [subscription]Drivers are travelling at five times the speed limit on some roads, with one motorist clocked at 152mph in a 30mph zone, a study has found.
• Support drivers to switch to cleaner forms of transport [subscription]It is widely acknowledged that harmful and illegal levels of air pollution in the UK have led to a public health crisis that is damaging the health of millions of people, particularly older people, children and those with health problems.
• Charges for using roads to fill £40bn black hole [subscription]Rishi Sunak is considering plans to charge motorists for using Britain’s roads amid concerns over a £40 billion tax shortfall created by the switch to electric cars.

The Mirror

• Drivers could be charged for using roads as Sunak looks to plug £40bn shortfallThe Chancellor is facing a huge budget hole due to the rise in the use of electric cars, and a national road pricing scheme is one option to deal with it

Birmingham Mail

• What Broad Street looks like as metro hits another milestoneThere's one more year to go before we can start to use tram services up and down Broad Street but the West Midlands Metro is one more step closer to reaching its goal

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• First Bradford bus drivers to vote on strike action over extra hours due to coronavirus BUS drivers in Bradford are being urged to vote for strike action in a dispute over overtime as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

London Evening Standard

• New fresh air system protects bus drivers against Covid-19More than 1,200 London buses have been fitted with a device to allow drivers to breathe fresh air and reduce the risk of catching Covid-19 after 45 TfL deaths from the virus were recorded.

The York Press

• Council transport chief speaks out on ring road dualling plan after his party said it 'should be scrapped' THE city council's executive member for transport has welcomed the York outer ring road dualling plans as

Yorkshire Post

• Transport among key pledges as Labour candidates vying to stand for West Yorkshire Mayor set out prioritiesLabour candidates in the upcoming electoral race to become West Yorkshire’s first metro mayor have set out pledges as pressure mounts in defining who could potentially become leader.

Bucks Free Press

• LETTERS: 'Dangerous roads? Maybe it's the drivers at fault instead'This is what you have been writing to us about this week.

Other Regional Press

• Rural train services are cut by ScotRailSome train services on the West Highland Line will be suspended next month, ScotRail has confirmed.
• Public transport users advised of changes to Coventry bus servicesBUS users are being urged to be aware of changes to services which came into force today.

C.N.N.

• Australian airline Qantas celebrates its 100th anniversaryAustralian airline Qantas is celebrating its 100th anniversary on November 16, a rare piece of upbeat news for an aviation industry hobbled by the coronavirus pandemic.

New Civil Engineer

• Carbon management standard accreditation first for HS2HS2 has said that it has become the first UK transport sector client – and only the second in the world – to achieve the global carbon management standard PAS 2080.
• Video released of proposed £228M trans-Pennine bypass [subscription]A new video has revealed the plans behind a proposed £228M bypass to take traffic away from the village of Mottram in Longdendale.
• Environmentalists oppose ‘picnic spot’ on Gloucestershire road schemeTransport Action Network has called out Highway’s England’s plans to incorporate a “picnic spot” on a proposed crossing over the A417 road in Gloucestershire.
• Stonehenge Tunnel | Planning Inspectorate advised against scheme due to heritage concernsThe planning inspectorate recommended that transport secretary Grant Shapps should withhold consent for the A303 Stonehenge Tunnel scheme due to the impact it would have on the World Heritage Site (WHS).
• Revealed: The 253 companies and public bodies to sign HS2 ‘gagging orders’The names of companies and public bodies who have signed non disclosure agreements (NDAs) with High Speed 2 Ltd (HS2 Ltd) can finally be revealed after an 18 month Freedom of Information (FoI) battle.

Railnews

• Monday essay: A political problem (conclusion)THE Department for Transport has agreed to provide financial help for Transport for London until next year, but the agreement has not been reached without a price. In the second of two essays, Sim Harris looks at the effect politicians can have on the business of running transport services.

Railway Gazette

• Skytrain monorail on testCHINA: A driverless suspended monorail vehicle with a design speed of 80 km/h is being tested on an 800 m elevated track in Wuhan.

Other News Sources

• Private financing pays for £550m Heads of the Valleys sectionThe Welsh Government has awarded a major road widening contract, which will use private finance and is estimated to be worth more than half a billion pounds.
• Building a green futureAirport World shines the spotlight on a handful of pioneering sustainability initiatives in the UK, US and Germany.
• UK set to move petrol and diesel ban forward to 2030 Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to move the ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars forward to 2030, as part of a raft of new policy announcements to drive the UK towards its net-zero target.