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

Friday, 13 January 2023

BBC News

• Wizz Air: Passengers in limbo after airline axes CardiffCustomers complain of a lack of contact and refund difficulty as the airline withdraws from Cardiff.
• ULEZ expansion: London borough says it will block camerasTransport for London plans to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone to cover all of the capital.
• Drivers and garages facing 'pandemic of potholes'Garages in Scotland have reported a significant increase in wheel damage from potholes.
• Decision looms on future of Britishvolt gigafactoryThe site, intended to produce electric car batteries, has had a troubled start up so far.

Financial Times

• Shipbuilders enjoy record orders for LNG tankersProfits boost looms for Korean groups that dominate market for the specialist vessels

The Guardian

• Public transport is the best route to levelling up BritainChristian Wolmar on the need for Labour to focus on improving bus and tram services, and Mark Anderson on bus fare capping
• UK rail strikes: unions agree to work with operators towards revised pay offerRMT and TSSA meet Rail Delivery Group in effort to break deadlock over jobs and conditionsRail and ambulance strikes: when is industrial action planned?Union leaders have agreed to work jointly with train operating companies on a revised pay offer after a meeting to resolve the long-running dispute over remuneration, jobs and conditions.

The Telegraph

• Dolphins forced to˜shout to be heard over shipping noise... Ships and drilling are key noise sources in the wild and the University of Bristol has found when background noise is present, dolphins up their own volume but still struggle to be heard.

Times Online

• US flights resume after computer glitch grounds all planes. [subscription]Thousands of flights were grounded in the United States yesterday after a computer failure knocked out a vital air traffic system.

Birmingham Post

• 'Space is hard': What comes next for Cornwall's space race and the operators involvedThe fact that the first UK space launch ended in failure is not the end of the story - it is just the beginning.
• Profits slashed at train operator Transpennine Express despite £260m government supportTranspennine Express, along with Northern Trains and Avanti West Coast, has come under fire in recent months over delayed and cancelled services
• Avanti West Coast handed shareholders £13.5m ahead of complaints jumping to almost 10 times the national averageAvanti took over the running of the west coast mainline from Virgin Trains in December 2019 and is 70% owned by FirstGroup and 30% owned by Trenitalia

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Bradford's A6177 deemed to be 'one of the most congested' in the UKA ROAD in Bradford is deemed to be one of the most congested outside London, according to a new study.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• New planetarium attraction planned as Spaceport Snowdonia prepares for blast off this yearTransport and financial constraints have prompted the Llanbedr site to take a different approach to other UK spaceports

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Over £500,000 to be spent on two electric buses for Moray bus revolution projectTwo electric buses costing over £560,000 will be purchased as part of the Moray Growth Deal.

The York Press

• York Hospital parking crisis sparks 'gridlock' on city roadsYORK Hospital is battling to tackle severe parking problems which are causing knock-on 'gridlock' in nearby roads.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Plea to relax bus lane rulesImpassioned calls have been made to allow private hire drivers to utilise “underused” bus lanes in Walsall.

Other Regional Press

• Talking Politics: Critical time for bus services in Calderdale and West YorksThe next few months are critical for the future of our bus services in Calderdale and West Yorkshire.
• 'Failed experiment': Call for local bus services to be brought back under council controlA Telford councillor is calling on the Government to end the "failed experiment" of the privatisation of bus transport.

Train Operators

• Heathrow on slow route to recovery. [subscription]Heathrow shrugged off strikes and wintry weather to get 5.9 million passengers through its terminals last month.

Coach and Bus Week

• East Yorkshire partners with CitySwift to power improvementsIn response to shifting travel patterns and congestion from the pandemic, Go-Ahead’s East Yorkshire Buses is partnering with CitySwift in 2023 to leverage big data and mobility intelligence across its network. Ben Gilligan, Managing Director of East Yorkshire, explained: “2023 will be a new phase for the team at East Yorkshire Buses as we put a greater emphasis on big data and runtime optimisation to power our network, helping our teams to meet and exceed our goals.”
• East Yorkshire partners with CitySwift to power improvementsIn response to shifting travel patterns and congestion from the pandemic, Go-Ahead’s East Yorkshire Buses is partnering with CitySwift in 2023 to leverage big data and mobility intelligence across its network. Ben Gilligan, Managing Director of East Yorkshire, explained: “2023 will be a new phase for the team at East Yorkshire Buses as we put a greater emphasis on big data and runtime optimisation to power our network, helping our teams to meet and exceed our goals.”
• TravelMaster partners with UrbanThings in South YorkshireUrbanThings has partnered with South Yorkshire’s TravelMaster, a company owned by the regions operators, to launch a new initiative which is designed to help passengers buy and collect their tickets more quickly via the comfort and convenience of their smartphone. In response to feedback

New Civil Engineer

• Legal challenge lodged against Balfour Beatty’s £228M trans-Pennine link roadEnvironmental campaigners have launched a legal challenge against transport secretary Mark Harper’s decision to approve National Highways’ A57 Link Roads scheme.
• Support for new Bristol station as part of railway restoration Plans for a new railway station in Bristol have received council support as part of proposals to reopen an old line closed in the 1960s.
• HS2 lacks support as project was not ’well planned’, UK infrastructure tsar saysHigh Speed 2 (HS2) lacks mass public and political support because the project was not "well developed" or "well planned" before it was advanced, according to Infrastructure and Projects Authority chief executive Nick Smallwood.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Zero-emission tech mix likely in future of coach: FlixBusFlixBus expects that moves toward decarbonisation and zero-emission in the coach market will see a mix of technologies, including battery-electric and hydrogen fuel cell-electric, deployed in vehicles across its network.
• NatEx: ’Excellent feedback’ on Mercedes-Benz eCitaroNational Express Coventry has completed a month-long trial of the battery-electric Mercedes-Benz eCitaro demonstrator. It formed part of work around a move to zero-emission across both its fleet and the wider National Express West Midlands operation.
• Kleanbus debuts battery-electric repower on Optare SoloKleanbus has completed the first battery-electric retrofit of a diesel bus. It is a 2007 Optare Solo that is now under test. The supplier says that pilot trials are also being entered into with key operators as it sees momentum “building rapidly” around its repower proposition.
• National Express targets coach tourism with TouromoNational Express has launched the Touromo brand into the coach holiday and day trip market. It represents the beginning of what the group says are plans to become “a major player” in that sector.
• Rock Road debuts in ZEB finance market with AbellioFinance provider Rock Road has entered the zero-emission bus market with what it says is a “disruptive approach” and a “light touch” product. That has seen it fund the 30 Wrightbus StreetDeck Electroliner battery-electric double-deckers delivered to Abellio London for Transport for London route 111 between Heathrow Central and Kingston.

Other News Sources

• Time it takes to get to Gatwick Airport and the fastest via bus, train, or carThere are advantages and disadvantages to any mode of transport you decide to take ahead of your flight