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

Sunday, 03 July 2022

BBC News

• Travel disruption warning for rail and road usersPeople are advised to plan journeys in advance because of limited train services and road closures.
• Flight cancellation plan aims to ease summer chaosBA and Heathrow say the move will help minimise disruption for passengers during the peak season.

Financial Times

• Tesla deliveries fall due to China Covid shutdowns and supply shortagesElectric carmaker has uphill climb to reach full-year target set by chief executive Elon Musk
• US travellers warned of flight chaos as holiday weekend demand soarsCarriers are stretched to capacity as Americans put aside inflation fears to get away

The Guardian

• More than 100 bus routes in England face cuts and cancellationsFalling passenger numbers, rising costs and the forthcoming end of emergency government funding blamed for services being reduced or terminatedAt least 135 bus routes across England have been lined up for cutbacks or closures this summer as councils and bus operators grapple with falling passenger numbers, staff shortages and funding constraints.Changes to services include reduced frequency, fewer stops and some routes being cancelled. Among the proposed cuts, some of which have already been implemented, are 16 routes in London, 25 in Liverpool and about 40 across the north-east. Continue read...
• Ryanair boss says travellers face years of flight chaosMichael O’Leary warned airfares would rise for the next five years because flying has become ’too cheap’Michael O’Leary, the Ryanair boss and pioneer of low-cost travel in Europe, has said airfares are likely to rise for the next five years because flying has become ’too cheap’ to make profits as industry costs spiral.His warning came as ticket prices rose across Europe and the US as passengers returned after coronavirus lockdowns and some airlines cut capacity because of staff shortages. Continue reading...
• Pump action? UK motorists await report on painful petrol pricesThe regulator will rule on whether a 5p cut in duty has been passed on - but there are still many factors driving costs upDarren Briggs was queueing to pay at his local Shell garage in Pembrokeshire when his blood began to boil. An irate holidaymaker was accusing the retailer of ripping him off on the price of petrol, which was apparently 15p cheaper at a Tesco near home in Birmingham.Briggs, who owns the petrol station operator Ascona, couldn’t help but step in. “I explained to him that there are varying time lags on the pricing of fuel depending on different retailers’ contracts. It was a li...
• Labour pledges to create 30,000 jobs at electric car battery gigafactoriesParty makes promise amid reports UK is falling behind European rivals in production capacity for EVsLabour has pledged to create at least 30,000 jobs by promising to build three gigafactories for electric car battery production in Britain by 2025, as it warned the country was falling behind its European competitors in the race to ditch petrol power.Amid recent reports that Britain faces a battle to hold on to the production of electric vehicles (EVs) made by manufacturers already in the UK, the party has committed itself to a major expansion of the part-financing of gigafactories. It follows r...
• Ryanair strike threat set to add to summer airport chaos in EuropePlanned action by the airline’s Spain-based cabin crew over working conditions will increase disruption for holidaymakersBritish holidaymakers are braced for fresh travel chaos across Europe this summer with staff at Ryanair on Saturday becoming the latest to threaten strike action.As striking airport workers in Paris forced the cancellation of dozens of flights on Saturday and promised more industrial action later in July, Spain-based cabin crew at Ryanair revealed they now plan to strike for 12 days in July. Continue reading...

The Independent

• Delays, cancelations and $10,000 oversold flight offers: Chaos as 4 July travel sets pandemic air travel recordsUS airports seeing highest number of travelers since pandemic began
• Airport staff security checks accelerated in bid to end’˜disaster movie’ scenesStaffing shortages have caused chaos in airports as holidaymakers face huge queues
• BA and Heathrow welcome’˜slot amnesty’ as summer schedule deadline approachesPassengers have been facing long queues, cancelled flights and lost baggage in recent days.

Times Online

• The electric car revolution will fizzle out without more power [subscription]The electric car revolution is revving up, driven by consumers. Last year a record number of battery-powered vehicles were registered — 395,000, according to the data provider Zap-Map, almost double 2020’s number. As of the end of May there were more than 480,000 on the road.
• Passengers suffer airline misery while easyJet executives fly off to Mallorca [subscription]While chaos at the airports is wrecking the dreams of holidaymakers taking their first trip abroad since the pandemic, EasyJet’s senior management are looking forward to a corporate jamboree in Mallorca this week.

City AM

• Brits to face further travel woes as airlines prepare to announce fresh wave of cancelled flightsAirlines using the country’s busiest airport are readying to announce a new torrent of cancellations next week. According to The Telegraph, airlines using the west London airport must tell officials which flights will be scrapped by Friday, before the school summer holidays begin. Tens of thousands of Brits are set to have their holiday plans [...] The post Brits to face further travel woes as airlines prepare to announce fresh wave of cancelled flights appeared first on CityAM.

Mail Online

• Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary warns fares will rise for the next five yearsThe cost of a plane ticket is 'too cheap' and prices must increase, according to the boss of Ryanair. Michael O'Leary said fares that cost less than a train ticket to the airport are 'absurd'.

The Mirror

• Grant Shapps cuts bag handler security checks to ease airport chaosTransport Secretary Grant Shapps says counter-terror clearance is now down from 20 days in March to 10 days now
• Security checks on new airport bag handlers fast tracked to save summer getawaysMore scrapped flights are set to be ­announced within days and Ryanair and easyJet crews are striking in Spain and Europe this weekend

This is Money

• How to trim your fuel bill as petrol heads for £2 a litreThe difference between paying the most expensive rates or the cheapest is 20p a litre - a saving of £12 on a standard 60-litre fuel tank.

Sky News

• Security tests for new airport workers being completed in record time, ministers claim, despite travel disruption continuingSecurity tests for new airport workers are being completed in record time, ministers claim, despite travel disruption continuing to dog holiday plans.

Belfast Telegraph

• Holiday getaway pushes US airport traffic to pandemic highThe Fourth of July holiday weekend is jamming US airports with their biggest crowds since the pandemic began in 2020.

Birmingham Post

• Inward investment and electrification boost North East automotive sectorA number of firms in different parts of the North East automotive sector at leading the drive towards electric vehicles

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Exact dates British Airways, Ryanair, and Easyjet workers plan to strikeThousands of travellers could be affected

Manchester Evening News

• Taxi driver's daily battle running the gauntlet in chaos-hit Manchester AirportJohn Scarlett has been forced to wait hours to pick up passengers from the car park

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Fuel price protests set for M54 and M6 tomorrow with hundreds expected to joinMotorway traffic in the West Midlands is set to be brought to a crawl on Monday morning when fuel protests are staged.

Bucks Free Press

• A413: Plans to lower speed limit move forward amid £28,000 cost to change signsNew signage needed to change the speed limit on a Gerrards Cross road where a young woman and an elderly cyclist died is set to cost tens of thousands of pounds.

Reading Evening Post

• The Elizabeth Line trains with fake destinations to help passengers dodge an accidental long commuteElizabeth Line trains are appearing as terminating at Ealing Broadway instead of London Paddington

Other Regional Press

• 'Murderous' smart motorways are 'weaponising lorries' say survivors and campaignersThe families of those killed in crashes on smart motorways have said that they are the "Grenfell of the roads".
• Praise for Doncaster Sheffield Airport with 'pleasant' staff and 'first class service'Doncaster Sheffield Airport is often overlooked in favour of Leeds Bradford, but if the reviews are anything to go by it sounds like its a pleasant place to travel from
• Dorset roads funding to be discussed as 'managed decline' appears in documentDORSET councillors are to question what ‘managed decline’ means for the county’s roads network.

Other News Sources

• Expect ’summer of stress’ holidaymakers warnedTravel consultant Paul Charles is a former director at Virgin Atlantic and Eurostar. We asked what this summer had in store for holidaymakers.

EIN News Subscription

• Will Turkish workers ease Germany's airport chaos? … to help screen passengers as they pass security. And that… that aren't EU members so they can be … TAV Airports Holding, a Turkish airport operator, and Turkish Airlines have neither … high demand at Turkish airports. Istanbul airport is a major aviation …