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

Sunday, 19 June 2022

BBC News

• Cuts to Q3 Walker and Wallsend bus service to be reversedCuts to a bus route on Tyneside are to be reversed after public opposition. Go North East axed stops in Walker and Wallsend from its Q3 service earlier this year, removing a link to Newcastle city centre for people further east than St Peter's Basin.
• Ferryhill railway station reopening plan moves forwardPlans to reopen a railway station in County Durham have been boosted after it was named one of nine projects to progress to the next stage of analysis.
• HS2 'superstructure' in Birmingham approvedCouncillors vote unanimously for the designs, although concerns are voiced about graffiti.
• Marston Green residents fear rail bank work will harm 'thriving' wildlifeBadgers, muntjac deer, squirrels and owls live in an area Network Rail plans to remove vegetation.
• Rail strikes will punish innocent people, transport secretary warnsBut union leaders blame politicians for failing to stop the strikes, which will begin on Tuesday.
• Heathrow Terminal 2 baggage piles up after malfunctionPassengers post pictures on social media as piles of luggage fill the airport's Terminal 2.

Department for Transport

• Moving ahead to reopen railway lines and stations including one not used since reign of King George VFunding to reopen disused railway lines, services and stations will restore community connections and improve access to jobs, homes and education.

Financial Times

• Rail union warns disruption could last all year after pay talks failLeader of RMT accuses government of blocking progress in negotiations

The Guardian

• Network Rail in last-ditch bid to stop train strike causing chaos across UKRMT union leaders say no viable deals are on the table and walkout is set to go ahead, hitting tourism, sport and festivalsNetwork Rail bosses say they plan to hold more talks with union leaders today in a last-ditch attempt to avert the biggest strike on the railways for more than three decades.More than 40,000 rail workers are due to walk out on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

The Independent

• Keir Starmer accuses government of ’pouring petrol on fire’ of rail strike dispute’They want the country to grind to a halt so they can feed off the division,’ Labour leader will say

The Telegraph

• Rail workers are going for broke – get ready for a tsunami of strikes [subscription]DDon’t blame Mick Lynch for the misery the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) is about to inflict on the nation. His raison d’etre is to preserve the quality of life and spending power of his members, and by the look of it, he does a good job.

Times Online

• Secret plan to close all railway ticket offices as strikes grip Britain [subscription]All ticket offices are to close on the railways, forcing passengers to book online under plans to save up to £500 million a year.
• Why eager investors are swooping on Britain’s bus and train operators [subscription]Michael Sewards and Javier Perez Fortea have been on a whirlwind visit to London. And while their jaunt may not include an open-top tour, it certainly involves a lot of talk about buses. The pair have been drumming up support for their £650 million takeover of transport company Go-Ahead Group.

Daily Record

• ScotRail says 'most' trains will not run on strike days as RMT confirms actionThe rail operator has warned it will only be able to operated a limited service on five routes during the strike action.

Mail Online

• End of the line for railway ticket offices as sales go online: Fears for 3million over-65s who don't have internet accessEnd of the line for railway ticket offices as sales go online: Fears for 3million over-65s who don't have internet access
• Airport PR departments battle to find best new euphemisms for anarchyBristol today became the latest British airport to use corporate buzzwords to explain the carnage experienced by passengers in recent weeks.

Sky News

• Rail strikes will 'punish millions of innocent people', govt warns - but Labour claims PM wants it to happenGrant Shapps says the UK is "now on the cusp of major disruption which will cause misery for people right across the country" - and next week's rail strikes are set to be the biggest in decades.

Other Regional Press

• Calls for Sadiq Khan to waive driving charges in wake of rail strikeThere has been calls for driving charges for motorists entering the Ultra Low Emissions Zone to be scrapped during the rail strike. Bracknell’s MP has called on the London Mayor to waive the capital’s fees in response to next week’s planned strike.
• £450,000 bill to unblock Eden railway bridgeMore than 1,600 tonnes of aggregate and concrete used to fill in an old railway bridge in Eden must be removed at a cost of £450,000
• Final steps before decision on rail route from Rossendale to ManchesterThere are just days left to contribute to a survey as part of a study into the best way of reconnecting Rossendale to Manchester via a rail link.
• "Door closed" on ferry proposal as Dorset Council accused of "holding back" discussionsA GROUP of senior councillors has accused Dorset Council of not supporting Weymouth's ambition to see a ferry service restored, 'holding back' on discussions and 'sweeping the idea 'under the carpet'.
• Former Jaguar Land Rover boss takes up key role at Coventry car battery facilityJohn Poli has been appointed to the post of manufacturing operations director at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre

C.N.N.

• The most popular air travel day this year was a mess. That won't change anytime soonAmericans gained a new federal holiday last year: Juneteenth. This year the holiday, which commemorates of the end of slavery in the United States, falls on Sunday but it will be observed in many places on Monday, June 20.