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

Friday, 14 October 2022

BBC News

• Doncaster Sheffield Airport staff hand in 100k petition to governmentDoncaster Sheffield Airport staff have handed a petition to government, with 100,000 people urging it be saved.
• GWR train driven too fast after 123mph Oxfordshire trolley crashA train that smashed into an abandoned work trolley at 123mph should not have travelled so fast to a station afterwards, investigators have said.
• Bristol bus operator First aims to tackle shortage of '200 bus drivers'A bus operator facing a shortage of drivers has joined forces with West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris to try to help attract more recruits.
• Threat to 12 West Midlands school bus routesNational Express is considering removing 12 West Midlands school bus services at the end of December.
• Southampton city centre transport plan to go aheadAn £18.5m transport scheme to transform central Southampton has been approved.
• Inverness to Aberdeen line disrupted as airport station work beginsScotRail has urged commuters to plan their journeys ahead of work at Inverness Airport station.
• ScotRail staff start overtime ban in pay rowPassengers are warned to check journeys and expect last-minute cancellations during the latest action.
• Government to consider fuel price comparison schemeTransport Secretary says success of a price checker in NI could lead to an online tool for England.

Financial Times

• IAG and easyJet offer hope as travel demand remains solidAirline shares rise despite uncertainty over effect of cost of living crisis

Times Online

• Overtime ban to hit ScotRail passengers [subscription]It comes as members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) are set to follow instructions to not work any overtime amid a pay dispute with the operator. Passengers have been urged to check the timetable before travelling amid an unspecified number of cancellations daily.

Daily Record

• Travel chaos set to continue as ScotRail and RMT bosses fail to agree new pay deal after latest talksThe RMT say the five per cent offier is not enough and they want a rise that "acknowledges the rising cost of living."

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Leeds-Bradford Airport has high arrest rate new data showsLEEDS-BRADFORD Airport (LBA) has the third highest rate of arrests in the UK and had almost 100 in one year, a new study shows.

Manchester Evening News

• Transport bosses in talks over 'rail academy for the North' to help solve staff shortage crisisIt's been a summer of misery on the North's railways as strikes brought services to a standstill and planned trains were cancelled at short notice.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Nottingham public transport to be "protected" when new East Midlands authority set upNottingham City Council's leader has promised that the city's public transport system will not be "diluted" by a £1.14 billion deal with the Government. An agreement was signed in August to create a new East Midlands combined authority which will cover people in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

The York Press

• Minister Kevin Foster asked if rail body facing axeA GOVERNMENT Minister has been quizzed on whether plans to create Great British Railways are set to be scrapped.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• 'Save our buses' – Plea from passengers over plans to cut-back services in DudleyPassengers and a bus driver in Dudley have called for routes to be safeguarded and more buses to be introduced amid plans to cut them back.

Yorkshire Post

• Sheffield Chamber’s Transport Forum holds first meetingSheffield Chamber recently held the first meeting of its transport forum, with members from the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce, public authorities, transport operators and sponsors Mott Macdonald all in attendance.

Other Regional Press

• Andover residents upset with London train cutsCOMMUTERS from Andover Railway Station have been left frustrated by a lack of train services direct to London.
• MP Helen Morgan urges Government to back Bus Services Bill and boost local economyNorth Shropshire MP Helen Morgan has urged the Government to back her proposed law which would improve access to vital services for rural communities.
• Stagecoach's 'bloody disgusting' move to cut rural Gloucestershire buses blasted by civic chiefsCivic chiefs have hit out at Stagecoach’s “bloody disgusting” decision to cut bus routes used by some of Gloucestershire’s most vulnerable communities. The bus company has registered its intent to cancel and change some of the bus services they provided to the Traffic Commissioner.
• Tearful Doncaster Sheffield Airport worker pleads with 'arguing' flyers to 'be kind' as staff pray for jobsOne worker said she has been left reduced to tears by the 'heartbreak' of the airport 'winding down'
• All Parliamentary group call for ban on sale of new petrol cars by 2030 to be scrappedThe All-Party Parliamentary Group Fair Fuel for UK Motorists and Haulers is calling on the Government to scrap its ban of petrol cars in 2030

Train Operators

• Javelin high speed trains get multi-million pound upgrade for Southeastern passengers£27 million upgrade for very high speed passenger trains to begin in March 2023 Eversholt Rail, Southeastern and Hitachi Rail are delighted to announce they have signed an agreement to upgrade the Class 395 Javelin trains that provide high speed services between London St Pancras and Kent.

Bus and Coach Buyer

• UK’s longest electric circular bus route launchingCentrebus is to operate what is thought to be the UK’s longest electric circular bus route.

Coach and Bus Week

• First Bus partners with Equipmake to upgrade York electricsFirst Bus has awarded a contract to convert 12 existing electric Optare Versa buses from first generation electric vehicle technology to Equipmake’s new Zero Emission Drivetrain
• Northern Ireland Secretary hails green innovation at WrightbusThe Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris MP, visited Wrightbus to hear about the company’s plans for the future. The Secretary of State met with Wrightbus CEO Joerg Hofmann along with Development and Manufacturing Director Damian McGarry and Managing Director (Parts and Service) Ian Gillott. As well as seeing the factory which produces Wrightbus’ vehicles, which include the world’s first hydrogen double-deck bus, he spoke to the Wrightbus team about business opportunities in the UK and overseas, recruitment and the development of hydrogen as a clean energy source.
• Taking the opportunityJonathan Welch takes a closer look at how Luxembourg operator Emile Weber is electrifying its fleet, and at one of its latest Furrer+Frey OppCharge installations.
• Warrington moves a step closer to all-electric fleetThe town of Warrington has moved a step closer to achieving its target of being the first town in the UK with an all-electric bus fleet. Warrington Borough Council recently gave the go-ahead for a new electricity substation adjoining Warrington’s Own Buses’ new depot, which is being built on a new site on the Warrington Trading Estate, and which will be essential to the creation of an all-electric depot.

Intelligent Transport

• E-bikes now available for hire as part of Transport for London’s Santander Cycles schemeAs part of the service expansion, 500 e-bikes are now available for hire across the scheme’s 800 docking stations, helping to break down the barriers that often stop some people from cycling.

New Civil Engineer

• Procurement begins for £430M Welsh civils frameworkCamarthenshire County Council has fired the starting gun to refresh its £430M regional civil engineering contractors framework.
• DfT: ’No plans to cancel HS2’ despite inflationary cost hike claimsThe Department for Transport (DfT) has said that "no plans" are in place to cancel High Speed 2 (HS2) despite claims that costs are rising due to inflation.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Chris Heaton-Harris affirms hydrogen support during Wrightbus visitThe Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris MP, has visited Wrightbus at its Ballymena factory to pay tribute to the company’s zero-emission products and affirm government support for hydrogen.
• Young driver 50km restriction ’hurting coach recruitment’The 50km, regular service restriction for holders of a PCV licence and Driver CPC initial qualification that are under the age of 20 is stifling recruitment of young people into coach driving and should be removed if that pool of talent is to be leveraged. 
• Scotland LEZ repute question will not extend to EnglandPotential questions of an operator’s repute in Scotland for failing to observe Low Emission Zone (LEZ) restrictions in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow will not be mirrored by Traffic Commissioners (TCs) for non-compliance with Clean Air Zones (CAZs) in England.
• Go-Ahead sale to Kinetic and Globalvia completesSale of the Go-Ahead Group to a consortium made up of Australasian bus operator Kinetic Group (51%) and transport concession manager Globalvia Inversiones (49%) completed on 10 October, as expected. 
• Guild of British Coach Operators adds two membersBirmingham International Coaches and Lakeside Coaches have become members of the Guild of British Coach Operators.

Other News Sources

• Statement from Mayor Ros Jones on Doncaster Sheffield AirportToday I, along with Oliver Coppard, the South Yorkshire Mayor, have written to the owners of Doncaster Sheffield Airport to urge them to seriously consider offers for the purchase of the site which could safeguard its future.
• Concerted effort under way to create clean transportA wealth of work is under way in North Yorkshire to transform travel across the county and reach an ambitious target to slash harmful carbon dioxide emissions to help tackle climate change within the next eight years.