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

Monday, 25 September 2023

BBC News

• Where does London stand on e-scooters?In a warehouse in Wood Green, in north London, are hundreds of blue Dott e-scooters.
• HS2's 10-mile Chiltern tunnel 75% complete, firm saysThe company behind the HS2 high speed rail link has revealed that its longest tunnel is now 75% complete.
• Locally controlled buses return to Greater Manchester after 37 yearsGreater Manchester's mayor Andy Burnham hails the
• HS2: 'Crazy' not to review project over soaring costs - ShappsGrant Shapps cites Ukraine war costs and a spike in inflation as reasons to weigh up the rail project.
• Electric car rules could cost carmakers billionsNew Brexit trade rules could push up the price of electric cars, manufacturers warn.

ITV News

• 'Coming of age' for devolution as Bee Network launches in Greater ManchesterParts of Greater Manchester now has publicly-controlled bus services for the first time since the 1980s when services were deregulated everywhere outside London.

Financial Times

• English devolution ‘comes of age’ as Manchester takes on the busesAndy Burnham hails shift from Thatcher’s deregulated model back to local public control
• Sunak faces backlash over potential axing of HS2 northern legTory and Labour politicians, and business groups, criticise reports that flagship rail project will be cut back

The Guardian

• Tory donor threatens to pull funding if Sunak scraps northern HS2 rail lineA prominent Conservative donor has threatened to stop supporting the party if Rishi Sunak scraps the Birmingham to Manchester leg of HS2, as ministers consider pulling the plug on the multibillion-pound project.

The Herald

• HS2 decision signals rail project going ’off-track’Two of Scotland’s leading entrepreneurs have lambasted the UK Government for what they see as its mishandling of HS2

The Independent

• Rishi Sunak poised to delay northern phase of troubled HS2 rail link by up to 7 yearsRishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt are poised to delay the northern phase of HS2 by up to seven years as part of a bid to scrap the project in the long term, The Independent understands.
• Tory big beasts turn on Rishi Sunak’s ’insane’ plan to scrap HS2David Cameron, Boris Johnson and the government’s own infrastructure tsar join outcry against ’tragedy’ of cancelling Birmingham to Manchester rail line
• How The Independent revealed Sunak’s plan to cut HS2 - and how the government reactedOn Wednesday 13 September, The Independent revealed top-level talks were taking place between Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt about whether to scrap parts of the high-speed rail project HS2.

The Telegraph

• Letters: There are better ways to level-up Britain than wasting billions on HS2Those who think that HS2 was about levelling-up are sadly deluded (“Axe looms over HS2 as costs set to soar by £8bn”, report, September 24
• Sunak urged to be ’bold’ and scrap HS2 north of Birmingham [subscription]Lord Berkeley, the deputy chairman of an independent review into HS2 set up by Boris Johnson, said existing services between Birmingham and Manchester were adequate but that services between the northern cities were not as good.

Times Online

• HS2 pain risks leaving millions with trains that can’t take the strain. [subscription]Andy Street, Andy Burnham and Sadiq Khan rail against plans to curtail route
• Publicly run buses in Greater Manchester for first time since 1980sThe first publicly run buses to operate outside London since the Eighties began running in Greater Manchester as the city hopes to reverse the long-term decline of bus travel.
• Times letters: High-speed rail and ’a betrayal of the north’ [subscription]Sir, As a former chairman of HS2, I believe that any decision to scale down the project would be a betrayal of the north and our growth ambition as a country.
• George Osborne and Michael Heseltine: Scrapping HS2 is economic self-harm. [subscription]e both sighed a huge sigh of relief when Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt moved into Downing Street and restored sanity and seriousness to our government.
• George Osborne rails against scrapping HS2 line. [subscription]Keep high-speed link or passengers will pay more, train bosses tell ministers

City AM

• Now is the time to change the mechanism that brought us HS2’s repeated failingsWhat a sorry mess the country has got itself into HS2 – a poorly planned project, executed badly, at tremendous cost in both time and money.

i News

• Sunak to face challenges from all sides if decision to scrap northern HS2 leg goes aheadMinisters could face a judicial review if they attempt to cancel or delay the extension of HS2 to Manchester, senior political sources in the city have told i

Network Rail

• New Ebbw Vale services to begin in DecemberBrand new rail services are set to be launched on one of South Wales’ key lines, almost doubling the number of travel options.
• Dumfries station accessibility project gets the green lightDumfries and Galloway Council’s Planning Applications Committee has approved Listed Building Consent for access improvements to Dumfries station.
• Railways go back to the future with landmark partnershipA first-of-its-kind partnership between the Severn Valley Railway and Network Rail has been set up, signalling the start of an innovative relationship between the past and present railway.
• Construction work begins on major improvements at Luton stationNetwork Rail has started work at Luton station as part of an extensive programme of improvements and upgrades designed to improve passenger experience.

Sky News

• Scrapping HS2 line to Manchester would be 'gross act of vandalism', Tory grandees warnFormer chancellor George Osborne and ex-deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine said if the line was scrapped the government would "only be known for what it cancelled and curtailed".
• HS2: 'No way would London leg be scrapped' says Andy BurnhamSky News understands that the prime minister is set to scrap the northern leg of the High Speed 2 rail line, the section that was due to go between Birmingham and Manchester, because of concerns about the cost.

Birmingham Mail

• Call for third Midland HS2 station amid reports Manchester link to be axedThere is growing speculation regarding the future of the Birmingham to Manchester section of HS2

Manchester Evening News

• 'HS2 was designed to unite the North and the South'Business leaders representing London and the North are calling for certainty over the future of HS2, fearing another broken promise
• It's a new dawn for Greater Manchester's buses - this is their story through timeFrom 'pirate' bus firms to bus 'wars' - it's a tale of twists and turns almost 200 years old
• Historic day for bus travel in Greater Manchester as 'game changing' Bee Network goes liveFor the first time in almost 40 years, buses here are under the control of local leaders

Wales Online

• 20mph road signs keep getting vandalised in Welsh villageThe new roads signs were smeared with paint for a second time in the space of a few days this week

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Public inquiry to start on compulsory purchase of land in Dudley town centre for new transport interchangeA public inquiry will start next month into the compulsory purchase of land in Dudley town centre by the council to make way for a new transport interchange.

Bucks Free Press

• HS2 Bucks: Major update as trees ’dying’ during constructionHS2 has revealed a major update after concerns that newly planted trees are dying during the construction of the Buckinghamshire section of the high-speed railway line.

Other Regional Press

• Phil Rodgers: What next for Cambridge transport?Well, what a mess. More than nine years after the Cambridge City Deal was signed, after countless hours of work from council officers and consultants, hundreds upon hundreds of pages of plans, projections, and analysis, millions of pounds of expenditure, and the biggest consultation exercise that the city has ever seen, where are we now?
• Work begins on 'major improvements' at Luton train stationWork has begun on a 'major improvements' scheme at Luton train station. The work will see the station canopies on platform 1 and 2 replaced, and a new, accessible bridge and three lifts installed.

Train Operators

• Northern to trial British Sign Language announcements on trainsNorthern is set to interpret its announcements into British Sign Language (BSL) on some of its services.

Lloyd's List

• Outline of first transpacific green shipping corridor unveiledCarriers participating in the program plan to deploy reduced or zero carbon-capable ships between the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and Shanghai by 2025

New Civil Engineer

• Installation of automated diversionary barriers at Queensferry Crossing beginsBear Scotland will begin a project to install automated diversionary barriers at the Queensferry Crossing tonight, Monday 25 September, on behalf of Transport Scotland.

Rail Advent

• Northern to trial on-train British Sign Language announcementsNorthern is to run a trial of communicating its announcements by British Sign Language (BSL) on some of its services.

Railway Gazette

• Infrastructure training to be offered at Very Light Rail centreUK: City of Wolverhampton College and its training partner National Infrastructure Solutions have taken over space at the Black Country Innovative Manufacturing Organisation’s Very Light Rail National Innovation Centre in Dudley, where they will train people in the construction and maintenance of railway and tramway infrastructure.

Shipping News

• Could Electronic Logbooks be the Answer to Shipping's ESG Challenge?Are your fleets ready for the ESG era? Perhaps a little more than you think. The wealth of data that is collected onboard most ships today can be turned into a goldmine of insights; not just for reporting, but also helping improve actual operations
• Panama drought and its impact on bulk shippinghe Panama Canal, a key player in global shipping, faces a dire crisis due to an unprecedented drought, casting shadows over trade dynamics and supply chains.
• 50% of the global orderbook held by just two shipping sectorsMore startling data on the extraordinarily skewed nature of the global ship orderbook has emerged.