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

Monday, 11 January 2021

BBC News

• Motorhomes 'missing' after rental firm collapsedLenders face big losses after the company went bust owing £7m, while some vehicles are
• China's Baidu and Geely partner up for smart carsThe search engine giant and carmaker will go up against Tesla and other homegrown competitors.

Department for Transport

• Geospatial Commission announces transport innovation competition winnersThe Commission in partnership with Innovate UK are funding 28 winners of their £2 million transport location data competition to support the future of mobility for the UK.

The Scotsman

• ScotRail to cut more trains as passengers slump by 90 per centScotland’s main train operator is to further reduce services within weeks after the latest lockdown triggered another fall in passenger numbers, The Scotsman has learned.

The Telegraph

• Indonesia plane crash: black boxes located amongst wreckage

Times Online

• Stobart Group hopes Esken name change will take off [Subscription]With some brands what you see is not necessarily what you get. Eddie Stobart, for instance, is the most identifiable and best-loved trucking brand in the land with its own fan club of motorway spotters.
• Gridlock in Kent village as lorries without Covid test are sent wrong way [Subscription]This will be a “nail biting week” at Britain’s borders with the end of the Christmas lull and post-Brexit red tape expected to cause major delays, road haulage industry leaders have warned.
• Self-parking cars to make space for green areas [subscription]Residents of a new town in Essex will one day drive home in cars that then take themselves off for the night

Daily Express

• Kate Middleton and Prince William ALWAYS broke royal travel rule – lockdown stopped them!KATE MIDDLETON and Prince William have been breaking key royal protocol while flying with their children.

Mail Online

• Lost truck drivers clogging up village in Kent after given wrong postcode for Brexit lorry parkAround 30 trucks made their way through the small village of Mersham, Kent, after the government website listed the wrong postcode for the new Brexit lorry park near Ashford.
• Boeing plane was likely intact until it smashed into sea'We don't know for sure, but if we look at the debris, they're scattered in an area that is not too wide,' Nurcahyo Utomo said on Monday.

This is Money

• Virgin Atlantic in scramble for emergency fundsMajority owned by founder Sir Richard Branson, Virgin is finalising a deal to raise up to £70million by selling and leasing back two Boeing Dreamliners after completing a rescue plan in September.
• Airlines locked in battle over landing slots for this summerBefore the pandemic, airlines had to use their takeoff and landing slots for 80 per cent of each flying season or forfeit them under the so-called 'use it or lose it rule'.
• Tesla's value races past $800bn as car maker's shares shoot upThe company's shares rose by as much as 8.4 per cent at one stage. It came just a day after boss Elon Musk overtook Amazon's Jeff Bezos to become the world's richest person.

Belfast Telegraph

• Indonesia intensifies search for crashed plane’s black boxesThe search for the black boxes of a crashed Sriwijaya Air jet intensified on Monday to boost the investigation into what caused the plane carrying 62 people to nosedive at high velocity into the Java Sea.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• AESSEAL announces shift towards electric vehicle fleet for Bradford siteAESSEAL is to invest £250,000 to introduce electric vehicles and charging points at its Rotherham headquarters and its Bradford site, after achieving net zero carbon emissions across its UK operations in 2020.

Bristol Live

• Bristol bus services disrupted after workmen 'block off' stopsThere could be disruption to a number of services in the city centre
• Appeal to allow Bristol Airport expansion starts todayMembers of the public are being urged to submit their views ahead of public inquiry this summer
• 'Frustrating delay' to finished but unusable motorway junctionAmazon and others have moved into warehouses expecting to be able to use it. But it's just been stood there a year"

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Car park shut after 'significant amount of people' from outside area turn upFlintshire council and North Wales Police will continue to monitor Wepre Park in Connah's Quay
• Bentley's Snowdonia road trip to market its luxury hybrid SUVThe luxury car brand came to the region to use it as a stunning backdrop for their latest vehicle

Liverpool Echo

• 'Formal inquiry' demanded into Merseyrail train service cancellationsLiverpool City Region mayor Steve Rotheram declared the cancellations on Friday "unacceptable"

London Evening Standard

• Heathrow demands business rates relief as passenger numbers plunge through Covid-19 restrictionsHeathrow's chief executive today ramped up his calls for relief on business rates to be extended from pubs and retailers to airports as he reported on another Covid-decimated month for his industry.

Northern Echo

• Rail reform discussed at regional forumLEADERS from across the North meet “virtually” on Tuesday to discuss regional rail reform. As the Government’s Williams Review on rail reform is expected to be published in the Spring, members of Transport for the North’s (TfN) Rail North Committee will discuss how it can take an active role in shaping the way the rail sector develops and runs.

The York Press

• "Green Party let us down over new car park for York" So the planning committee of this current council went ahead and approved the building of multi storey car park in the 21st century in an iconic city of the UK - against its own Climate Emergency Plan which says to reduce cars into the city.
• York could be 'global pioneer' of smart transportYORK could become a global pioneer of 'smart city' transport, according to a Yorkshire hi-tech start-up firm.

Wales Online

• More than 100 cars turned away from Welsh beauty spot by policeA police boss says a new get tough approach is now needed to crack down on Covid rule-breakers

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Birmingham Airport calls for more clarity on testing rulesPlans to require international travellers to test negative for coronavirus before arriving to England and Scotland have been welcomed – but do not go far enough, Birmingham Airport said today.

Get Surrey

• Surrey County Council less likely to give Blue Badge to people with non-visible disabilities The authority has approved 91 per cent of applications since 2019, but only 26 per cent of those for non-visible conditions

North Wales Live

• Expert warns you should never warm your car up before getting inThe common cold weather habit could cause problems with your car

Reading Evening Post

• Rules for using Reading Buses during lockdown 3There will be minor changes to the Purple 17 and Green Line services during lockdown

Other Regional Press

• Destination uncertain for post-pandemic railwayWe visit Kent's five least-used stations in one day and ask what the future holds for the rail network in 2021 and beyond.
• Controversial plans to build multi story car park in York approvedConcerns have been raised over what effect the car park will have on the city's skyline
• A357 to close for 'urgent repairs' following sewer collapse A KEY Dorset road will be shut for a week from today due to urgent repairs after a sewer collapse.
• Campaign launched to keep historic 'Stamford' train in areaA Rutland museum is appealing to the public to help it keep a historic steam engine with links to the area.
• New Greater Anglia trains will stop toilet waste emptied on tracksNew ‘environmentally friendly’ are replacing older models that emptied toilet waste directly onto tracks.
• Petition protest to HS2 speeds to 100,000 signatures in daysA NEW petition launched by Chris Packham and campaign leaders opposed to High Speed Two (HS2) has reached more than 70,000 signatures in just five days.
• 'Don't forget the Isle of Wight' message to transport reviewDon't forget the Isle of Wight — that is the message from our political leaders to a major, independent review of UK transport connectivity.

C.N.N.

• Black boxes located at Indonesian airliner crash site as human remains recoveredRescuers searching for the wreckage of an Indonesian passenger jet that crashed into the ocean with 62 people on board on Saturday say they have located the plane's black box flight recorder and obtained communications data.

New Civil Engineer

• Network Rail begins daily Covid tests at construction sites to prevent staff shortagesNetwork Rail is running a Covid-19 testing pilot at five construction sites in its southern region, where high numbers of staff have been asked to self-isolate by the NHS Covid-19 app.
• Gatwick second runway would require capacity restrictions at other airportsPlans to bring Gatwick Airport’s second runway into regular use would only be possible with a government intervention to prevent other airport expansions, according to the Aviation Environment Federation (AEF).

The Business Desk

• Work on final section of city bypass moves to next phaseWork on the final section of Lichfield’s southern bypass will move to its next phase this month.

Other News Sources

• Transport for London to allocate additional funds for cycling and walkingTransport for London has announced that it will allocate additional funds in a bid to improve walking and cycling infrastructure in London as a result of the Covid induced bike boom.
• London Underground hit much harder by Covid than transport in New York, Paris, Hong Kong and Madrid - here's whyThe funding for the London Underground and the city's bus networks was hit much harder that similar services in other world cities.

EIN News Subscription

• Indonesia's Sriwijaya Air flight disappears minutes after take-off from Jakarta | What we knowA Sriwijaya Air plane carrying 62 people lost contact with air traffic controllers after taking off from Indonesia's capital Jakarta on Saturday. The plane was en route to Pontianak in West Kalimantan province when it lost contact.
• Indonesia Air Boeing 737 crash site foundIndonesian divers on Sunday located parts of the wreckage of a Boeing 737-500 at a depth of 23 meters (75 feet) in the Java Sea, a day after the aircraft with 62 people onboard crashed shortly after takeoff from Jakarta.