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

Monday, 22 August 2022

BBC News

• Tyne Tunnel: Row over watchdog's review of driver complaintsA transport watchdog's review of complaints about the Tyne Tunnel will not finish until nearly a year after controversial changes were introduced.

Department for Transport

• Walking, wheeling and cycling to be offered on prescription in nationwide trialEleven local authority areas in England to benefit from £12.7 million in multi-year funding.
• £130 million to protect bus services across the countryFunding will ensure that vital bus services can continue to run.

The Guardian

• GPs to prescribe walking and cycling in bid to ease burden on NHSGPs around England are to prescribe patients activities such as walking or cycling in a bid to ease the burden on the NHS by improving mental and physical health.
• Avanti paid shareholders £11.5m despite ’abysmal’ service for rail users Train operator under fire for dividend payment amid severe cuts on its west coast main line Passengers at a crowded Euston station Passengers at a packed Euston statiThe worst-performing rail operator in Britain, which has severely cut back its services, is revealed to have paid out more than £11m in shareholder dividends last year.
• DfT provides extra £130m for endangered bus routes in EnglandServices in the north-east and South Yorkshire were facing cuts as end of pandemic funding nears

The Independent

• Mick Lynch claims rail workers would reject 8% pay offer amid strike chaosIn a letter to RMT general secretary on Saturday afternoon (20 August), the Transport Secretary said the railway operator’s proposal of an 8% pay rise over two years is “fair” and members should have the opportunity to resolve the dispute.

Times Online

• Artificial leaf turns sunlight, water and CO2 into clean fuel [subscription]Inventors at Cambridge University have developed artificial leaves that produce clean fuel as they float on water. The ultra-thin, lightweight and flexible devices use solar technology that mimics photosynthesis, the process by which plants convert sunlight into food, to create a carbon-neutral fuel.
• Chief executive quits Britishvolt amid gigafactory funding fears [subscription]The future of Britishvolt, the ambitious plan to build a £3.8 billion electric battery “gigafactory” on the coast of Northumberland, is at a crossroads after a botched management succession plan left it without a permanent chief executive.
• 2,000 workers walk out for a week at Britain’s biggest port [subscription]Nearly 2,000 workers have started an eight-day strike at the country’s biggest container port. Members of Unite at Felixstowe in Suffolk have walked out for the first time since 1989 in a dispute over pay.
• Macron to clip wings of private jets [subscription]Private jets face restrictions and possible bans under President Macron’s plans for “sobriety” in energy use.

City AM

• Avanti West Coast woes give train privatisation a bad nameIt is tempting to place the blame for the rail chaos gripping the country firmly at the feet of Mick Lynch and his twitter-friendly pals at the top of the unions, and it is true that much of it does indeed lie there. But on one particular line the operator should take their fair share of the blame, too.

Daily Record

• First vertical rocket to leave British soil scheduled to blast off from ShetlandThe island will host the new SaxaVord spaceport, which is hoping to launch 16 rockets a year by 2030. The mobile launch system can be packed into ­shipping containers and sent anywhere globally.

i News

• Northern mayors hail ’big win’ after Government offers £130m to save bus servicesNorthern mayors have hailed a “big win” after the Government agreed to provide more funding to prevent hundreds of bus services being cut.

Bristol Live

• First Bus acknowledges services are 'not where we want it to be'The transport company has come under fire again.

Yorkshire Post

• Northern mayors claim victory after £130m lifeline thrown to bus operatorsNorthern Mayors have claimed victory after the Government threw a lifeline of up to £130 million to beleaguered bus operators, avoiding severe cuts to services.

Cambridge News

• Children could get to school in a self-driving car by 2025 in new government proposalsThe government is giving out £100 million to fund research on making self-driving cars safe

Leeds Live

• The relaxing way to travel in Leeds city centre - and it is only £1You can get a water taxi from Leeds Dock to Leeds Liverpool Canal within 10 minutes

Wrexham.com

• Wrexham to Chester train Storm Arwen derailment report published by investigation branchThe Rail Accident Investigation Branch has published a report into a train derailment north of Wrexham during Storm Arwen.

Other Regional Press

• The £5 billion east west rail project connecting Oxford and Cambridge seems impossibleThe East West Rail project will link Oxford to Cambridge, with services being introduced incrementally.
• Borders rail electrification bid revealed for greener futureELECTRIFYING plans which would lead to a greener future for part of the rail network in the Borders have been disclosed.
• Plans to transform former railway bridge over the Glasgow Clyde revealedPlans to transform a former railway bridge into a cycle path and walkway over the Clyde linking Carmyle with Westburn are moving forward.

New Civil Engineer

• Shapps drops another hint that East West Rail may not be deliveredTransport secretary Grant Shapps has again indicated that the East West Rail scheme may not be delivered in full.
• Network Rail seeks renewable energy provider in contract worth £1.25bnNetwork Rail is searching for a provider of renewable energy to provide between 0.5TWh and 1TWh annually for the next 25 years in a contract worth up to £1.25bn.

Rail Advent

• Video: HS2 unveils historical finds in HillingdonHS2 has released video showcasing some of the finds that have found on West Ruislip Golf Course in Hillingdon.
• Greater Anglia reduces train delays with new software toolDelays due to faults on Greater Anglia trains are being greatly reduced thanks to a new software tool, which helps technicians to identify faults and get trains repaired quickly.

Railway Gazette

• Strong reaction to rejection of Skelmersdale rail link planUK: There has been a strong local reaction to the Department for Transport’s rejection of the proposed extension of the Merseyrail network from the future Headbolt Lane station to Skelmersdale.

Other News Sources

• Felixstowe: Fears over supply chain disruption as port workers start eight-day strikeDock workers at the UK's biggest container port in Felixstowe have begun an eight-day strike in their first industrial action for more than 30 years.
• Bus Recovery Grant in England extended into 2023Bus Recovery Grant (BRG) support in England has been extended to the end of March 2023 after the Department for Transport (DfT) allocated a further £130m to the mechanism.
• Into the West meet minister and discuss Fermanagh rail returnA campaign group has presented their vision for the future of rail in the north west to Infrastructure Minister John O'Dowd.
• More rail disruption "likely" after latest strike, Cornwall's main operator warnsGreat Western Railway says Sunday's services are expected to be busy