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

Friday, 03 March 2023

Cogitamus

• The Chris Stokes Column - Harper promises to release rail reform from the sidingsMark Harper, the Secretary of State, set out his vision for the rail industry in the George Bradshaw address on 7February. At first glance, the speech showed dynamism and drive, and included a commitment to establish Great British Railways with the winner of the GBR HQ competition to be revealed before Easter.

BBC News

• National Express West Midlands drivers vote to strikeThe Unite union says more than 3,000 workers will walk out across the West Midlands from 16 March.
• HS2 delays being considered to cut rising costsHS2's boss admits delays are among options being considered to combat the impact of inflation.
• Bus fare rises: 'Early bird change will hit people hard'Early bird fares on Goldline services will disappear from Monday as Translink raises its prices.
• World Book Day: Manchester commuters offered free booksThousands of books will be placed on tram seats in Manchester to help promote reading.
• Caledonian Sleeper rail service to be nationalisedScotland's transport minister says an arm's length company will take over the franchise on 25 June.
• Stoke-on-Trent bus gate plans 'disastrous' for businessAn entrepreneur says a proposed bus gate would be "disastrous" for her new business.
• More zero-emission buses in £25m government planMore environmentally-friendly buses will be on the roads as part of a £25m government bid to clean up the air.
• HS2 delays being considered to cut rising costsHS2's boss admits delays are among options being considered to combat the impact of inflation.

The Guardian

• Caledonian Sleeper rail service to be nationalised by Scottish ministersHighlands-London service will be run by state-owned company after operator Serco loses contract seven years earlyThe Caledonian Sleeper rail service will be nationalised after Scottish ministers moved to terminate the operating company’s franchise agreement seven years early.It will be operated by an arm’s length company owned by the Scottish government from 25 June, transport minister Jenny Gilruth told MSPs in Holyrood on Thursday. Continue reading...
• National Express bus drivers in West Midlands vote to strike over payStrike begins 16 March, after company reports underlying pre-tax profit of nearly £146m for last year

The Mirror

• HS2 boss admits project could be delayed amid spiralling costs and soaring inflationMark Thurston said the impact of inflation on the HS2 high-speed rail project over the past year has been ‘significant’ as bosses and the Government consider delaying to curb costs

Belfast Telegraph

• Weavers Cross: Translink issue progress update on construction of new Belfast transport hubBelfast's new Grand Central Station is set to be completed in 2025, Translink have confirmed.

Bolton News

• Andy Burnham on DfT figures showing bus usage is down 40% in 10 yearsBus usage has almost halved in Greater Manchester over the past 10 years, new Department for Transport figures show.

Liverpool Echo

• New Merseyrail trains had to be withdrawn from serviceAll of the new Class 777s rolled out so far were taken off the tracks over an issue

Manchester Evening News

• Hundreds of young people in Greater Manchester to get free 'bee bike' hireThe first 1,000 Our Pass members to sign up for the offer will get 50 minutes free cycle hire in March, April and May

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• New name needed for planned railway station, says Wolverhampton MPA Wolverhampton MP has called for the name of proposed new railway station to be changed so it better reflects the area it serves.
• West Midlands rail passengers urged to double-check journeys as eight-month New Street project startsRailway passengers have been urged to double-check their journeys through Birmingham New Street when £7.5 million work above the station's platforms start.
• On the right track? HS2 moving forward with huge uncertaintyThe digging, the building and the laying of tracks is moving forward – so why is there so much uncertainty over HS2?

Bucks Free Press

• New electric car charging points to be fitted in WendoverBuckinghamshire Council has received just over £70,000 in funding from the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) to support the installation of new on-street electric vehicle (EV) charging points in Wendover.

Other Regional Press

• UK’s first driverless electric bus opens to public in OxfordshireMembers of the travelling public can now take a free ride on the UK’s first self-driving electric bus service at Milton Park science park.

Bus and Coach Buyer

• Driver CPC reform in the worksOption could be put in place to pass test rather than sit through hours of training

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Rail electrification possible for 95% of UK freight trains, CILT research revealsThe Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport – CILT(UK) ­­– has released its electrification strategy research which reveals the significant opportunity of electrification across the UK’s rail network.  CILT has released a detailed map and strategy which demonstrates and details the opportunity in the UK to electrify 95% of rail freight operations by the mid-2040s. The research reveals that only 800 miles of additional electrification is needed in the UK to enable 95% of rail freight to be electrically hauled. The initial 60 miles of Infill electrification...

Coach and Bus Week

• Hull City Council improves bus stop displays with OmnibusHull City Council has upgraded its Omnibus timetable publicity systems, which it says will allow it to produce high-quality journey information more efficiently. Already a long-standing OmniStop user, the council has implemented ’OmniStopDesign,’ a configurable template system which simplifies the creation of at-stop displays. The upgrade follows a public consultation which informed the city’s Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) and identified the need for easier to understand information, real-time bus information and user-friendly journey planning tools.
• Stagecoach expands electric fleet in AyrshireStagecoach West Scotland is to increase its electric fleet to 48 buses, and will be the first operator in the UK to place the new MCV-bodied Volvo BZL into service

New Civil Engineer

• Motts: Decarbonising transport is everyone’s responsibilityThe decarbonisation of transport is not just a challenge for leaders to tackle but for all of us to collaboratively approach, according to Mott MacDonald and the London Transport Museum (LTM).

road.cc

• Bicycles become most popular mode of transport on City of London roadsBicycles have become the most popular way of travelling on the City of London’s roads, overtaking cars/PHVs (private hire vehicles) for the first time in 2022 – and are the only way of getting around the Square Mile that has returned to pre-pandemic levels.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• First Bus orders 117 more Wrightbus battery-electricsFirst Bus has ordered 117 more battery-electric vehicles from Wrightbus for four fleets in England. It comes after the Department for Transport (DfT) allocated £25.3 million of extra funding to existing successful Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) bids in Hampshire and Portsmouth, Norfolk, West Yorkshire, and York.
• Driver CPC reform proposals include pass or fail optionLong-awaited proposed changes to reform the Driver CPC scheme have been published by the Department for Transport (DfT). They follow a review that was first floated in 2021 and are headlined by plans to create parallel national and international DCPC qualifications and scope to introduce a pass or fail approach to certain aspects of the mechanism.
• Transport UK Group MBO of Abellio UK completesA management buyout of Abellio UK from Dutch shareholder Nederlandse Spoorwegen to create Transport UK Group completed on 28 February. The deal captures all existing Abellio operations here, including over 60 bus routes delivered on behalf of Transport for London and rail replacement and Event Connect work.
• NHS Foundation Trust takes Enviro200 pair on rentalAshford and St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has received an Alexander Dennis Enviro200 pair supplied under a rental package by Dawsongroup Bus and Coach.
• First Bus orders 117 more Wrightbus battery-electricsFirst Bus has ordered 117 more battery-electric vehicles from Wrightbus for four fleets in England. It comes after the Department for Transport (DfT) allocated £25.3 million of extra funding to existing successful Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) bids in Hampshire and Portsmouth, Norfolk, West Yorkshire, and York.

Transport Scotland

• Caledonian Sleeper to be delivered by the Scottish GovernmentCaledonian Sleeper services will be provided by the Scottish Government from the expiry of the current Caledonian Sleeper franchise on 25 June 2023.

Aviation Industry

• AEF’s 2022 Annual Report is now availableWe look back over the past year and highlight AEF’s key events, strategies and achievements from 2022. Click here to read the full report. Click here to read a plain-text … The post AEF’s 2022 Annual Report is now available appeared first on Aviation Environment Federation.

Other News Sources

• £25 million to boost rollout of British-made green buses around the country117 zero emission buses will provide people in Yorkshire, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Hampshire with greener journeys.
• Portsmouth, Fareham and Gosport ready for boost of 28 electric busesA fleet of 28 more electric buses is set to serve Gosport, Fareham, and Portsmouth after a bid for government funding was approved, taking the total number of electric buses in the region by March 2024 to 62. Electric buses are now set to provide smoother, quieter bus journeys across Hampshire.
• Bath & North East Somerset Council set to call for bus franchise optionsA report to Bath & North East Somerset Council’s cabinet is recommending that the West of England Metro Mayor be asked for a review of options for ’franchising’ bus services across the West of England.