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

Monday, 04 April 2022

BBC News

• Midlands Connect plan to improve transport linksA strategic plan includes rail improvements between Birmingham, Derby and Nottingham.
• Manchester Airport: Travellers miss flights amid chaosPassengers describe the situation as
• Ex-minister Derek Mackay willing to be quizzed over ferry dealThe Sunday Times reports that Mr Mackay is
• Tesla delivers record number of cars despite challengesThe electric carmaker delivered more than 310,000 vehicles in the first three months of this year.
• EasyJet cancels 100 flights due to Covid absencesThe airline cancels scores of flights as UK airports also struggle with high levels of staff sickness.

Financial Times

• Harbour operator waives fees from Abramovich-linked yacht amid sanctions concerns London-listed Global Ports Holding says it is not breaching UK law by providing Turkish berth for vessel
• Electric bikes: battery technology changes proposition for two-wheelersSales and venture capital investment will accelerate as quality and reliability improve

The Guardian

• UK travellers face disruption as Easter holiday getaway beginsAirports report long waits because of Covid checks and staff shortages, as tourist traffic eases near DoverPassengers faced long queues at Heathrow and Manchester airports as the Easter holidays got under way.Travellers vented frustration on social media as Covid checks, high passenger volumes and reported staff shortages and e-gate problems meant long waits for check-in at Heathrow. Continue reading...
• Quarter of bus routes axed in England in last decadeCampaigners say Rishi Sunak gave tax break to car users but has not helped public transport users More than one in four bus services in England have been cut in the last decade, with the pandemic accelerating the decline, a transport charity has found.Almost 5,000 routes have been axed since 2012, with the north-west and east of England the two regions worst affected. Continue reading...

The Herald

• Derek Mackay vows to 'set record straight' at Holyrood ferry fiasco inquiryFORMER Finance Secretary Derek Mackay has told MSPs he’s prepared to share details of his role in the Ferguson Marine ferry fiasco.

The Independent

• Air travellers face more disruption after easyJet cancels 222 flightsDisruption to international travel has been blamed on staff shortages caused by Covid.

The Telegraph

• Plane owned by London executive crashes into Channel with two people onboard
• EasyJet cancels 200 flights due to Covid

Times Online

• Shipyard scandal suggests ScotRail plan won’t end well [Subscription]As an entrepreneur in my fifth decade of a career spent attracting millions of pounds in inward investment and creating thousands of jobs in Scotland, I look at the nationalisation of ScotRail with deep concern.
• SNP ministers racked up 286 limo rides in a month [Subscription]SNP ministers have been accused of undermining their green credentials by taking nearly 300 chauffeur-driven limousine journeys in a single month, while advising the Scottish public to leave their cars at home.
• Ferries’ new engines still not tested five years after delivery [Subscription]The £4 million engines bought for two delayed and over-budget ferries have not been tested since being delivered more than five years ago.
• British Airways prices fly sky-high for Easter short-haul flights after cancellations [Subscription]British Airways is charging extortionate prices for many Easter short-haul flights in an apparent attempt to discourage bookings.
• Nine-hour queues at Dover as disruption hits Easter travel [Subscription]Travellers seeking an Easter getaway this weekend faced severe disruption caused by congestion, bad weather and staffing shortages.

City AM

• Your flight too? Outrage and chaos at UK airports as tens of thousands are stranded after easyJet cancels record 222 flightsTravel chaos and disruption is expected to continue today after easyJet cancelled more than 200 flights over the weekend, leaving tens of thousands of Brits stranded at airports across the UK. The airline blamed the problems on high levels of sickness among employees caused by Covid, with at least 222 trips axed since Friday. It [...] The post Your flight too? Outrage and chaos at UK airports as tens of thousands are stranded after easyJet cancels record 222 flights appeared first on CityAM.
• Exclusive: HMRC to crack down on cabbies and taxi drivers with new tax checks before licence renewalHMRC is launching a crackdown on taxi drivers, mini cab drivers and scrap metal merchants from April, with the introduction of new tax evasion checks, City A.M. has been told. The introduction of a number of new tax evasion checks will allow HMRC to further scrutinise workers in what it sees as ‘high risk’ sectors [...] The post Exclusive: HMRC to crack down on cabbies and taxi drivers with new tax checks before licence renewal appeared first on CityAM.
• Going Dutch: ALL train services in The Netherlands come to a halt due to technical ’error’All train services across the Netherlands are currently not running due to ’technical problems’, national rail operator NS late last night. Apart from zero trains running, travel information can not be displayed at stations and all loud speakers at all large stations are down as well. Travellers are urged to find alternative modes of transport, [...] The post Going Dutch: ALL train services in The Netherlands come to a halt due to technical ’error’ appeared first on CityAM.

Mail Online

• E-scooter safety campaigner calls for capital's pilot scheme to END after 'shocking' tyre faultsCampaigner Sarah Gayton from the UK's National Federation of the Blind is calling for an end to London e-scooter trails after finding several vehicles with tyres that were deflated or split.
• Huge queues at Manchester Airport, Heathrow already at 'near capacity' and chaos at DoverPassenger journeys have been blighted this morning by huge queues at UK airports and ferry terminals, as the first weekend of April gets off to an awkward start.

The Mirror

• Government urged to 'come clean' over its plans for workers' rights amid P&O scandalTrades Union Congress general secretary France O'Grady has written to Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng demanding action.
• Easter holiday travel chaos as easyJet cancels 22 flights with passengers left STRANDEDEasyJey blamed the problems on high levels of sickness among employees caused by Covid, with at least 222 trips axed since Friday

This is Money

• Cruise giant Carnival in storm over £11m pay dealCarnival's boss Arnold Donald was given a package that could pay out as much as $15million (£11.4million) including a $6million bonus

Sky News

• EasyJet cancels hundreds of flights due to high levels of COVID-related staff sicknessMore than 200 flights were cancelled by easyJet over the weekend, leaving some passengers stranded amid travel chaos at some airports in the UK.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Video shows more Manchester Airport chaos as passengers warn 'people will get hurt'The airport has witnessed chaotic scenes over the past few days
• Motorists to face delays in and around North Wales due to roadworks on A55, A470 and A483Advanced warning of works and closures being put in place across the coming week

Northern Echo

• Peter Gibson's bill to reform taxi licensing becomes lawPeter Gibson's private members bill has been given royal assent, making it law.

The York Press

• RMT strike leads to reduced Transpennine Express service between York and ScarboroughRail passengers have to cope with a severely reduced service between York and Scarborough today and for several weekends to come because of strike action by the RMT union.
• "Yet-to-open hyperhub proves incompetence of coalition"IT is shocking that the Monks Cross electric car charging station, or hyperhub, is still not open eight months after work was completed on the site (The Press, March 30).

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Train travel time between Birmingham and Shrewsbury to be cut in £15m transport planTrain times between Birmingham and Shrewsbury will be slashed by 11 minutes as part of a major transport plan that could see new road and rail schemes boost the region's economy by nearly £2 billion.

Other Regional Press

• Funding won for 27 electric buses to operate in Stevenage areaA council has won funding for 27 electric buses - but none of them will be in our area of Hertfordshire.
• Unadopted Southampton road set to be improved with £10k workA TOTAL of £10k is being invested in improving a road which Southampton City Council does not own.
• Huddersfield bus drivers vote to go on strike next monthFirst Bus management says it is still trying to avert strike action which is being taken over proposed pay rise

New Civil Engineer

• Network Rail seeks contractors for £2bn construction frameworkNetwork Rail has started its hunt for contractors to join its £2bn construction framework covering the Wales and Western regions.
• Local authorities call for more road maintenance funding as government stands by its approachLocal government representatives have called for more roads maintenance support after the government stood by its current funding offer.