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

Saturday, 28 October 2023

BBC News

• Graham Stuart MP renews calls for Hull to York rail linkAn East Yorkshire MP has renewed calls for a railway line to connect Hull, Beverley and York.

ITV News

• East Hill lift in Hastings reopened to public and returned to 'former glory' after repairs to tracksThe steepest funicular railway in the country has reopened to the public and "restored to its former glory" after refurbishment works have been completed.

Financial Times

• IAG and Air France-KLM report record profits over summerAirlines benefit from booming demand for leisure travel as results underline sector's recovery from pandemic
• European airlines: awaiting the ski-boot to drop on revenuesInvestors are starting to fret over rising fuel costs and high ticket prices
• London mayor says Sunak plan for HS2 Euston leg verging on fantasySadiq Khan rejects prime minister's suggestion that private sector will pay for 4.5-mile stretch of high-speed rail project

The Guardian

• Driving test passes decline with age but Sturgeon shows it’s ’never too late’There is a lower pass rate at 40 and 50 than at 17, and instructors say for many older new drivers the challenge is psychological

Times Online

• The new Tory conspiracy theory? A 15-minute stroll is ’sinister’ [subscription]hen you’re younger, you know all the things that are controversial, divisive and outrageous. You hear about them the minute they break and have your own opinion on them 30 seconds later. That’s because “being young” is all about being “with it”, even if “it” is “a massively depressing culture war”.
• What the HS2 money was spent on — from consultants to photo booths. [subscription]On July 3, 2018, the projected bill for HS2 already sat £22 billion above original estimates. Yet that evening, at a Gordon Ramsay restaurant, executives enjoyed a meal at the taxpayers’ expense after a board meeting.

Daily Record

• ScotRail trains cancelled and suspended after rain weather warning extendedTrain services across Scotland have been cancelled, delayed or revised due to upcoming downpours.
• New update on proposal to give older people with bus pass free country-wide train travelA revised response has been given to an online petition calling for the change to the concessionary travel scheme.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Transport Secretary gives reassurances over Bradford's new stationTransport Secretary Mark Harper has given reassurances over Bradford's proposed new rail station and fast train connection to Manchester.
• M621 work to continue with installation of new gantriesTWO new overhead gantries will be set in place above the M621 in West Yorkshire during the next phase of work on major improvements to the motorway.

Manchester Evening News

• There is 'opportunity' in the wake of controversial HS2 scrapping, says Andy BurnhamThe scrapping of HS2 has left Greater Manchester with an ’opportunity’, Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has told council bosses.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Inverurie trains to be cut by the dozen to boost links between Aberdeen and GlasgowScotrail is proposing a new timetable, which will also affect customers in Stonehaven, Laurencekirk and Portlethen.

The York Press

• York to Grassington DalesBus route extended for winterA bus service which serves the Yorkshire Dales National Park from York will run in the winter months for the first time.

Wales Online

• Regional Transport Implementation Plan for southwest Wales submitted to Welsh GovernmentCouncillors across four regions of southwest Wales have come together to discuss the submission of a Regional Transport Implementation Plan which will decide how transport will look in the coming years. Members from councils in Neath Port Talbot, Swansea, Camarthenshire, and Pembrokeshire all met to discuss the submission of the document to the Welsh Government, highlighting a number of goals and priorities it will look to take forward with regards to transport.

Other Regional Press

• Transport Scotland ’exploring options’ amid A9 Dunkeld roadworks backlashThe Enchanted Forest executive director, Nela Popovic, is amongst those pleading for the works to be stopped.
• £154m Transport Capital Programme approved by CabinetDevon County Council’s (DCC) cabinet rubberstamped it’s £154m Transport Capital Programme on Wednesday, 11th October, which will see an ’ambitious’ programme of rail and bus improvements, new cycle trails and road schemes across the county.
• Scrapping HS2 should bring transport benefits to Staffordshire, county council chiefs sayScrapping the northern leg of HS2 should bring transport benefits to Staffordshire, council leaders have said.
• East West Rail case to be examined by National Audit OfficeQuestion marks are hanging over East West Rail after it emerged that the National Audit Office (NAO) is examining the case for the project.
• Oxfordshire County Council welcomes continued rail servicesOxfordshire County Council has welcomed a decision allowing two popular commuter train services to remain on the rail timetable from December.
• Southern Rail could fine people without phone battery £1000Southern Rail has come under fire for a 'condescending' advertisement aimed at customers whose phone has died.
• HS2 insists new West London station will still be 'vital' despite Rishi Sunak cutting northern legBosses say it will be as impactful in the west of London as Stratford station was in the east

Calling All Stations - The Transport Podcast

• The strange cases of disappearing flightpaths, bridge arches and bus sheltersIn an antidote to intense recent coverage of HS2 and alternative schemes, Christian Wolmar and Mark Walker take a look at 5 transport stories from around the UK listeners may have missed [2:20]. Christian reports on what the House of Commons Transport Committee was told about August's air traffic chaos [11:14], how National Highways in England has been persuaded to reverse the infilling of a much-loved railway bridge [16:50] and why so many bus shelters have vanished from the streets of Croydon [23:10]. Finally, Christian asks why we can't have a comprehensive transport strategy for the UK [32:19].

New Civil Engineer

• Lincolnshire announces £1.7M plan to electrify 19th century A17 swing bridgeA £1.7M plan to electrify a 19th century swing bridge that carries the A17 over the River Nene between Lincolnshire and Norfolk has been recommended for approval.
• High Court grants judicial review into government’s active travel funding cutsThe government will face a judicial review into its decision to cut funding for walking and cycling schemes.
• Government’s HS2 Phase 2b Bill select committee seeks clarity following project cutsThe chair of the parliamentary Select Committee scrutinising the now-scrapped Crewe to Manchester leg of HS2 has written to transport minister seeking clarity on the Bill's future.

Rail Business Daily

• Trough-Tec Systems (TTS) achieves prestigious Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) certificationTrough-Tec Systems, part of the HIRD Group of companies, has announced that it has achieved coveted Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) certification for the Green Trough range of cable management systems.
• Rail Forum and Southern African Railway Association sign letter of intent Rail Forum (RF) and the Southern African Railway Association (SARA) have signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) designed to encourage collaboration and to promote long-term co-operation in rail infrastructure development for mutual benefit in their respective markets.

Rail UK

• Treble passenger numbers and reduce car trips, says John Launder of Scotland’s RailwayJohn Lauder, former CEO of Sustrans, is now in post permanently with Scotland’s Railway following a 12-month secondment, and is leading the development of ’A Railway for Everyone’, an accessibility strategy to be published later this autumn.

Other News Sources

• Southeastern Rail Teams with Siemens Mobility and Eversholt RailSoutheastern Rail signed a contract with Siemens Mobility and Eversholt Rail for innovative Automated Vehicle Inspection (AVI) programme.
• Message to Government on rail projects: please tell us what you want to be delivered and whenThe decision to scrap the HS2 Phase 2 leg between Birmingham and Manchester has received much media coverage in recent weeks. However, there has been less focus on what comes after.