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

Friday, 17 March 2023

BBC News

• National Express strike back on as accusations flyThe firm and Unite accuse each other of trying to interfere with a pay ballot.
• Three million drivers' licence delays since 2020, report findsPeople with medical conditions waited months for driving licences during the pandemic, MPs say.

Financial Times

• Airlines struggle to repatriate dollars from crisis-hit PakistanCarriers scale back flights or exit as country struggles with scant foreign currency reserves

The Guardian

• UK passengers owed millions by airlines in unpaid refunds and expensesWizz Air accounts for almost half the total amount owed to customers, according to Which? Airlines including Wizz Air and Ryanair owe millions of pounds to passengers from unpaid refunds and expenses, according to an investigation by the consumer group Which?

The Herald

• Scotland travel: Trackwork on new rail link passes halfway pointA 'real milestone' has been achieved for the Levenmouth Rail Link after trackwork passed the halfway point.

Times Online

• Low-tax investment zones to create dynamic dozen. [subscription]The new development areas created in the spring budget will be given £960m of support in tax relief and grants

Birmingham Post

• Best-ever year for luxury car maker Bentley as profits surge to £624mBentley's figures form part of the huge £6.7bn profit that the Volkswagen Group's premium brands recorded in 2022, which also included Audi, Lamborghini and Ducati
• National Express bus driver strike back onAfter suspending promised industrial action following revised pay offer, trade union Unite says more than 3,000 drivers will walk out from Monday
• Rolls-Royce developing a mini-nuclear reactor to power a future base on the moonEngineering giant wants to have a reactor ready to send to the moon by 2029

London Evening Standard

• Passenger numbers on Elizabeth line soar by 41 per cent in three monthsThe soaring popularity of the Elizabeth line was revealed on Thursday as figures showed a 41 per cent increase in passengers in three months.

Wales Online

• Reducing speed limit on Welsh roads to 20mph will have minimal impact on journey times, says Welsh Government report The speed limit change from 30mph to 20mph on many roads in Wales will take place exactly six months from now

Other Regional Press

• Cambridgeshire: Mayor Dr Nik Johnson welcomes £2 bus fare extensionThe Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Dr Nik Johnson, has said he ’welcomes’ the £2 bus fare extension announced by the Department for Transport (DfT).
• Plans for more transport options on Isle of Wight given green lightTRANSPORT body, Transport for the South East (TfSE), has received approval to progress a strategic investment plan which could see a Ryde to Southampton summer ferry, trains from Newport and Ventnor, and improved mainland connections.
• Should TransPennine Express be stripped of its contract?Northern leaders say time has run out for the under-fire rail operator to improve
• HS2 has given a £1.7bn boost to West Midlands businesses new report saysThe economic benefits report is out today

Coach and Bus Week

• FirstGroup named ’one of the world’s cleanest 200 companies’FirstGroup is one of only six UK companies, and the only passenger transport operator based in Europe, to be included in the 2023 Clean200 report, making the list for the fourth year in succession
• Arriva pulls out of Stevenage bus network electrificationFollowing on from a similar move in Milton Keynes, Arriva has pulled out of a £6.1million partnership with Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) to provide electric buses in Stevenage. The project had been awarded Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) funding to introduce 27 electric buses to the town.

New Civil Engineer

• Decision expected on Bristol underground business case as mayor contests leaked price tagA decision is expected today as to whether the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) will invest £13.6M into a full business case analysis on a proposed underground railway network for Bristol.
• East West Rail route to be confirmed in May, chancellor’s budget revealsThe route for East West Rail’s (EWR) final section between Bedford and Cambridge will be announced in May, chancellor Jeremy Hunt revealed in this week’s Budget.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Northumberland Line rejuvenation to culminate next summerRail passengers situated in the North-East will soon benefit from new travel opportunities to provide greater access to leisure and business-related journeys via the reopening of the historic Northumberland Line next Summer.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Mayors ’envious’ of bus franchising powers: RotheramMany parts of England that currently do not have powers to reregulate bus services are “envious” of the scope for Mayoral Combined Authorities to deliver franchising, Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram has claimed.
• Just 12 operators rejected Bus Fare Cap Grant reimbursementOnly 12 operators in England that submitted baselining data to the Bus Fare Cap Grant (BFGC) scheme at its preparatory stage subsequently declined to take part after reimbursement sums were offered, the Department for Transport (DfT) has revealed.
• Jennie Martin becomes Bus Users UK ChairBus Users UK has named Jennie Martin MBE as its incoming Chair. She succeeds Ben Colson, who stepped down from that role recently. Her appointment follows a unanimous vote by board members of the charity.
• Simple changes needed now for coach in zero-emissions planGraham Vidler, Chief Executive of the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT), is confident the coach industry will be ready for the end of non-zero-emission vehicles sales but has called on the government to implement low-cost actions now to support the switch.
• Stagecoach hopes to attract more women into engineeringStagecoach Manchester has launched a campaign to encourage more women to choose engineering as a career.
• DfT addresses government call for evidence in PSVAR reviewThe UK government’s call for evidence on the review of the Public Service Vehicle Accessibility Regulations (PSVAR) was addressed by Yann Holzapfel and Jack Fantham, the Department for Transport’s dedicated resource tasked with handling the review, at the UKCOA Annual Conference on 13 March.
• Leicester Yutong E9 fleet to enter service in AprilThe UK’s first Yutong E9 battery-electric small buses will enter service with Centrebus in Leicester on 3 April. They will be used on a new Greenlines Hop free service connecting transport hubs, attractions and other traffic generators in and around the city centre.
• Buses Minister Richard Holden told of Transdev’s boomBuses Minister Richard Holden heard about Transdev’s recovery in passenger numbers on a visit to the company’s Harrogate headquarters this week.

Other News Sources

• Derby’s bus stops get a makeoverAs part of Derby City Council’s ongoing project to increase public transport options available to residents, 400 of Derby’s bus stops are getting a makeover, with works already completed at many locations.
• Network Rail looks to engage market on North West capital works frameworkNetwork Rail will be holding an event for parties interested in participating in an upcoming procurement exercise to create capital works frameworks for the North West and Central region.
• Is Germany’s transport policy taking a wrong turn?The German federal transport minister Volker Wissing sends mixed signals to the industry. On the one hand, he appears to have a new railway renovation concept that will be completed by 2030. On the other hand, the transport ministry shares forecasts showing that road traffic will increase substantially by 2051, indicating the need to invest more in road infrastructure. The transport sector, both freight and passenger, is confused and fears a further deterioration of the railways in the country.
• Bibby Marine Appoints Woodcock as Non-executive DirectorU.K. based vessel owner and operator Bibby Marine announced it has appointed Howard Woodcock as non-executive director.Howard has more than 35 years’ experience across the maritime and offshore energies sectors, having held senior executive…
• Nine London bus routes to disappear under TfL budget cutsTransport for London is set to cut nine popular bus routes in a bid to save money.
• Low traffic neighbourhood: Residents in Brighton react to plans changeResidents who want safety improvements to roads surrounding Hanover were shocked when a senior councillor said that the project had been “killed off”.
• London Gatwick Airport recovering strongly after pandemicLondon Gatwick is steadily recovering following the turbulence of the pandemic years.