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

Wednesday, 21 December 2022

BBC News

• Ryanair announces new Belfast International Airport routesThe airline will operate four new routes to Budapest, Cardiff, Mallorca and Valencia next summer.
• London bus strikes: Abellio drivers announce more walkoutsUnite members employed by Abellio have already walked out on 10 different days in recent months.
• Train drivers announce new January strike dateThe first week of the new year will be marked by rail strikes as drivers take action over pay.

Department for Transport

• UK space regulator issues Virgin Orbit licences ahead of UK launchThe UK Civil Aviation Authority issues the final licences to Virgin Orbit to undertake launch activities from the UK.

Financial Times

• Tesla's dropping share price takes valuation below ExxonMobil'sInvestors have flocked to Big Oil this year while fleeing Elon Musk's electric-car maker
• Asian airlines rush to restore routes as air travel recovers from CovidFrom Singapore to Japan, carriers agree deals and expand flights despite economic uncertainties

The Guardian

• National Highways may have to reverse burial of Victorian railway bridgeThe government’s roads agency has been told it must reverse its burial of another Victorian railway bridge, or seek permission for it, as the extent of the agency’s “cultural vandalism” has emerged.

Times Online

• British Airways long-haul flights grounded in IT meltdown. [subscription]Thousands of British Airways passengers have been left stranded after its flight planning system collapsed, grounding long-haul flights.
• Get home by lunchtime on Christmas Eve, train passengers warned. [subscription]Rail passengers are being warned to only travel on Christmas Eve if absolutely necessary and to complete all rail journeys by 3pm because of industrial action.

Birmingham Post

• NASA launches mission to survey Earth's water with help from Cornish companyThe spacecraft will provide insights into how oceans influence climate change and how a warming world affects lakes and rivers
• Aslef announces another strike day affecting rail services across West MidlandsUnion is in dispute with 15 rail operators including quartet which run services out of Birmingham to destinations across the region and wider UK

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Sunderland rail station Christmas closure plan did 'major damage' despite U-turn, council leaders sayNorthern has backtracked on its plan to shut Sunderland station for most of the run-up to Christmas
• Residents lost sleep due to 'ridiculous' levels of noise coming from nightshift work on Northumberland lineThe work is part of a major project to bring passenger railway back to the area for the first time in decades

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• New plan to keep passengers safe on Black Country buses and trainsBus Users UK has joined forces with Women in Transport have come up with an action plan called Making Public Transport Safer.

Wrexham.com

• Wales’ transport minister slammed over ’simply embarrassing’ tweet apologising for train problemsThe Welsh minister with responsibility for transport has been slammed over an “embarrassing” tweet in which he apologised for problems on rail services.

Blackpool Gazette

• Blackpool Transport confirm they will offer capped £2 single bus fares from JanuaryBlackpool Transport have confirmed that they will be taking part in the government’s £2 bus fare cap scheme.

Bucks Free Press

• Carousel Buses tickets set for price cap in 2023A Buckinghamshire bus company announced a new price cap taking effect in the new year.
• Bus 41 Missenden to Wycombe set to continue after closure fearsA bus service in Buckinghamshire will continue to run despite plans to axe it after another bus company stepped in.

Other Regional Press

• First exports leave Teesside Airport's £2.5m brand new cargo handling facility The new facility has already began sorting and exporting cargo around the world

New Civil Engineer

• Future of 150-year-old River Tyne swing bridge in doubtDoubts have been raised over the future of the River Tyne Swing Bridge, which closed in November 2019 and is yet to reopen.

Rail Advent

• Revolution in onboard catering with hot food on TransPennine ExpressIn a major revolution to onboard catering on its services, train operator TransPennine Express (TPE) has introduced hot food to its menu in First Class.

Transportxtra

• Public transport schemes are behaviour change projects, says WatersSchemes to enhance public transport should be treated as behaviour change projects, Welsh deputy climate change minister Lee Waters has said. Transport for Wales is currently developing a behaviour change strategy.

Other News Sources

• How is combustion engine phase-out going in the UK?Boris Johnson’s government was out before the EU, with its plan to ban fossil fuel car and van sales by 2030. T&E's UK director assesses where things stan
• MP helps county transport chief form Worcestershire bus planThe MP for Malvern has met with Worcestershire’s transport chief to develop a plan to improve bus usage.
• Full green ahead: Sea transport is ditching diesel engines for electricShips are among the world’s biggest polluters. To replace them means finding alternatives to traditional diesel engines. With climate change at the fore of the industry's mind, companies are testing the waters with game-changing solutions.
• Hydrogen ’not a silver bullet’ for net-zero heating and transport, MPs warnAs low-carbon hydrogen production in the UK scales, the Government will need to ensure that this hydrogen is used in the most efficient ways possible – which are likely to be in industrial settings rather than for home heating and cars.
• Three new electric buses for swimming pool to station routeHEREFORD City Council is forging ahead with its £2.4 million plan for a new bus service from the leisure pool to train station“ a journey of 1.3 miles.
• National Express and Stagecoach among bus companies capping faresStagecoach and National Express are among the bus operators introducing a single fare cap of £2 from the beginning of 2023.
• The Surrey bus routes introducing £2 faresIt comes after the Department for Transport announced a cap on fares for three months next year