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

Thursday, 10 August 2023

BBC News

• Birmingham Airport investigates after website crashesBirmingham Airport says it is investigating after its website crashed for several hours on Monday.
• Why is there a row over Scotland's longest road?A stretch of the A9 has been the focus of an ambitious, now controversially delayed, project.
• 2,160 bus routes cut in England leaving communities isolated, campaigners sayMinisters are being urged to provide more long-term funding for buses to keep communities connected.
• Translink: First zero-emission buses hit streets of DerryTranslink hopes the city will become one of the first in UK to operate a zero-emissions fleet.
• Ulez scrappage scheme: More than half of fund unclaimedTransport for London (TfL) data shows £71m of funds remain unclaimed from an original pot of £110m.
• Miscommunication blamed for Penkridge rail workers' near missTwo track workers missed a train collision by a second due to a miscommunication, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch found.
• MP renews push for return of Oswestry's rail link with GobowenAn MP is renewing efforts to get a railway line which closed in 1966 reinstated in a Shropshire town.

Financial Times

• Cathay Pacific on track to end three-year streak of annual lossesHong Kong's flagship carrier posts $550mn profit for first half of year
• Online booking agents raise heat in long-running Ryanair battleUK regulators urged to probe low-cost carrier's ˜invasive and unfair treatment of customers

The Guardian

• HS2 is the white elephant in the room. If the Tories won't scrap it, Labour must | Larry ElliottThe vanity project is scandalously over budget. Finally cancelling it would show the party is serious about public finances. Down the years Britain has had its fair share of prestige projects that have turned out to be expensive flops, but as white elephants go, HS2 is in a class of its own.
• Lotus produces record 2,200 sports cars in first half of 2023British carmaker also gearing up for sales of new Eletre electric SUV under Chinese owner Geely's expansion plans. The British carmaker Lotus produced a record number of sports cars in the first half of 2023, as it gears up for a huge push behind sales of a new electric SUV under its Chinese owners expansion plans.
• Labour refuses to oppose airport expansion - LetterLabour’s position on aviation is no better than that of the Conservatives, says Christopher Foren

Times Online

• Gatwick airport strike: union warns of August bank holiday disruptionThousands of passengers will be affected by strikes at Gatwick airport in August as ground handlers and passenger assistance staff walk out in a dispute over pay.

City AM

• AI helps airlines reduce contrails by 50 per cent, new study reveals An exciting new study has shown that artificial intelligence can help airlines reduce contrails - the white vapour trails seen behind planes - by as much as 50 per cent.

Network Rail

• Network Rail announces new permanent senior appointmentsNetwork Rail is pleased to confirm the appointments of two regional managing directors to lead the Southern and North West & Central regions.
• Network Rail calls on more women to join the rail industry and inspire future generationsThe targeted campaign is aiming to fill roles across Network Rail’s Southern region – which includes south London, Kent, Sussex and parts of the South West – that have a disproportionately low percentage of female colleagues.
• Manchester Piccadilly's Assisted Travel Lounge fully opens to passengersPassengers who need help to get on and off trains at Manchester Piccadilly station now have a dedicated waiting lounge to make travelling by train a more pleasant experience.
• What’s it like to work in our stations?Q and A with Martina Beckford Ever wondered what it’s like to work at one of our busiest railway stations, helping some of the millions of passengers passing through?

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Mind the gap - Complaints over shortcomings of Anglesey station's 'DIY train steps'Passengers also say they have to drag the steps across the platform to use them at Ty Croes station near Rhosneigr

Wales Online

• Welsh Government rail lines used to transport coal from controversial Ffos-y-Fran mine months after it was ordered to closeCoal from a controversial opencast mine is still being transported along Welsh Government rail tracks, months after it was due to close it has been reported. Ffos-y-Fran opencast mining site in Merthyr Tydfil was ordered to close after 15 years in April 2023.

North Wales Live

• Merseyrail confirms date Kirkby line trains will returnMerseyrail has said services will not resume to a normal service to "allow further driver training"

Oxford Mail

• New railway station plan near Wantage would be 'win-win'The campaigner behind reopening a railway station near Wantage believes the “dream could finally become a reality” after a developer revealed speculative new plans.

Other Regional Press

• Teesside Airport sees record-breaking month with highest passenger figures for more than a decadeTeesside Airport is now on course to record its highest annual passenger numbers since 2011
• 'Summer holiday chaos' at Birmingham Airport as key workers set to strikeCustomers of TUI, easyJet, Wizz Air, Ryanair, Lufthansa and Emirates could be affected by threatened strike action
• Southampton to Gatwick Airport direct trains could be axedDIRECT trains to Gatwick Airport could be axed under new plans
• HS2 moving forward as plans for sites near Crewe approvedThe council could only refuse the plans on the grounds the development should and could 'be carried out elsewhere within the development’s permitted limits'

New Civil Engineer

• Why the rail sector needs to get ready for departure on the digital twin journeyRailways offer a “climate smart” way to keep our cities and countries moving. The question now is whether the rail and transit industry is ready to transform how networks will be planned, designed, built and operated in the future using digital twins.
• 37 consultants appointed to DfT’s £600M rail and transport systems advisory frameworkThe Department for Transport (DfT) has announced its roster of 37 contractors appointed to its £600M STARThree framework to advise on the delivery of rail, road and aviation projects.
• Plans for £18.3M Barrhead South station near Glasgow move forwardThe proposed £18.3M Barrhead South station on a line to Glasgow has had its outline business case approved and £2M funding granted for development of the scheme.

Rail Advent

• Two train operators place tenders for over 500 multiple unitsTwo of the UK's train operators have recently announced tenders for a combined total of over 500 new or refurbished multiple units.
• Manchester Piccadilly: Assisted Travel Lounge opens to disabled passengersManchester Piccadilly station now has a waiting lounge for passengers who need help to get on and off trains.
• Former Rail Minister Paul Maynard gets a rail innovation demo by KeTechThe Preston-based pioneering company revealed its intelligent real-time information systems and impressive rail signalling during the demonstration

Rail Business Daily

• RIA welcomes two new rolling stock tendersThe Railway Industry Association (RIA), the voice of the rail supply community, has today welcomed two recent tenders for rolling stock; up to 70 new or refurbished multiple units for Chiltern Railways and 450 new multiple units for Northern Trains.

Rail Technology Magazine

• UK Rolling stock tenders welcomed by transport bodyChiltern Railways, one of the UK's largest private train operators, has launched a procurement process to acquire a fleet of low-emission multiple units. The operator is seeking proposals from established rolling stock manufacturers, owners and modifiers for the supply of between 20 and 70 new or converted low-emission rolling stock multiple units, and associated maintenance, infrastructure and depot upgrade services.

Railway Gazette

• Transport authority opts for battery rather than hydrogen trainsGERMANY: Niedersachsen transport authority LNVG has chosen to call tenders for battery-electric rather than hydrogen trains to replace diesel traction on non-electrified lines from 2029, as part of a strategy to use only rolling stock with no local CO2 emissions from 2037.

Other News Sources

• Decision looms as hearing on Luton Airport bold expansion beginsA hearing to set the wheels in motion to decide whether the sky is the limit for London Luton Airport expansion is due to begin today (Thursday, August 10). The government’s planning inspectorate is holding a preliminary meeting to discuss the procedure for the London Luton Airport Limited (LLAL) application for an order granting development consent (DCO).
• Škoda Group and Titagarh Firema win contract for Italian night line coachesŠkoda Group and Titagarh Firema have been awarded a contract for the production of up to 370 new railway coaches for Italian night lines.
• Disability campaigners call for more ticket office consultationsDISABILITY campaigners opposed to cost-saving proposals on the railways are keeping up the pressure after rail bosses extended their consultation.
• Acorn carbon capture project ’boosts case’ for new Buchan rail links, say campaignersRail campaigners say a major energy scheme getting the go ahead near Peterhead boosts the case for new north-east rail links.