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

Friday, 03 November 2023

BBC News

• Free bus travel pledge for asylum seekers in ScotlandThe first minister has confirmed that free bus travel will be provided in Scotland to people seeking asylum.
• Retired trains set for new life abroadShipments of retired UK trains are poised to set sail from Great Yarmouth for Africa and Central America where they will return to passenger service.
• Heathrow Airport urged to drop Richmond Park flight path plansThe vote comes as Heathrow Airport submits proposals for
• London air quality improved by Ulez and Lez - reportResearchers find the Lez and Ulez schemes have had health and economic benefits in London.
• Edinburgh Waverley power cut adds to Storm Ciarán rail disruptionA yellow warning for rain is in place for parts of Scotland, including Moray, until 06:00 on Friday.
• Spirit Aerosystems aims to renegotiate Airbus A220 dealThe firm makes wings for the Airbus A220 in its Belfast factory but the programme is making a loss.

Financial Times

• Qantas admits ˜loss of trust" after investor backlash over payRejection of bonus scheme comes as Australia's flag carrier is being sued by regulator over ghost flights scandal

City AM

• Maersk: Shipping giant cutting at least 10,000 jobs as demand plummets – but won’t say UK impact The firm the world's second biggest shipping container business declined to give details on the impact of the jobs losses on its UK operations.

Birmingham Post

• Jaguar Land Rover hails record half-year revenuesJaguar Land Rover has announced record first-half revenues as sales of its flagship vehicles continued to grow.
• Alstom signs £830m, 8-year extension to its CrossCountry cleaning and maintenance contractDeal covers 200km-an-hour inter-city Voyagers, which have served passengers across the UK for more than 20 years

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Phenomenon of Yorkshire's 'ghost buses' explainedPATCHY technology and GPS blackspots are largely to blame for mistakes on digital bus timetables across West Yorkshire, operators have said.

Yorkshire Post

• Minister unveils first Network North project in YorkshireThe Roads Minister has unveiled the first big capital project funded by money saved for cancelling the Northern legs of HS2, hailing the East Yorkshire junction upgrade as having a “real impact” on people’s lives decades before benefits from the high speed link would be seen.

Other Regional Press

• Successful first test for Coventry very light rail vehicle on revolutionary trackCoventry's very light rail has had a successful first test of its vehicle on a test track. The pioneering Coventry Very Light Rail (CVLR) project was tested at the Very Light Rail National Innovation Centre (VLRNIC) in Dudley.
• GWR responds to ticket office closure U-TurnGreat Western Railway has responded to yesterday's U-Turn by government to allow the closure of over 1000 ticket offices across England, including Teignmouth, Newton Abbot and Dawlish.

Bus and Coach Buyer

• Alexander Dennis launches next generationIn a glitzy launch event at Farnborough International Exhibition Centre, Alexander Dennis is launching its new electric Enviro400EV double-decker and Enviro100EV single-decker.

Calling All Stations - The Transport Podcast

• You turn if you want to - England spins booking office uey as USA throws robocar 180Breaking news brings an extra episode from Christian and Mark who scrutinise the complete abandonment of proposed rail station booking office closures in England after a huge public backlash [1:30] and the withdrawal of Cruise self-driving cars in the USA following safety concerns [16:30]. In his Final Thought from the Departure Lounge, Christian asks whether the two stories show the limitations of technology in transport [26:10].

Coach and Bus Week

• Volvo BZL Electric put through its paces in SheffieldVolvo’s BZL demonstrators have been on test with First South Yorkshire as part of a programme to evaluate electric options for its operations
• Reading Buses introduces ’TOTO’Reading Buses is to introduce a new tap on, tap off (TOTO) payment from the start of November, which it says will benefit many existing customers and will also attract more people onto the bus.
• First Leicester completes e-infrastructureThe second phase of electrification of First’s Leicester depot is now fully operational following the installation of overhead gantry charging infrastructure, which using Heliox Flex 180 chargers at ground level, feeding electric cable reels suspended above each bus at high level. The reels provide remote lowering of power leads adjacent to the charging port of each bus, reducing trailing cables and intermediate islands which reduce parking space.

New Civil Engineer

• Historic England objects ’in the strongest terms’ to proposed £1.5bn Liverpool Street regenerationHistoric England has denounced plans for a £1.5bn regeneration of London Liverpool Street station, calling the proposals for tall buildings “grossly disproportionate” in scale and saying the rail upgrades would “sacrifice much of the character” of the building.
• Adopting AI will make engineering firms more knowledgeable, efficient and profitableWith an impressive surge in advancement over the past 18 months, the artificial intelligence (AI) market is on track to reach a staggering £9.87bn by the end of this year, with an expected growth rate of 15.17% between 2023 and 2030.
• DfT approves reinstatement of Cheshire train station closed during Beeching cutsThe Department for Transport (DfT) has approved the Outline Business Case (OBC) for reopening Beeston and Tarporley after efforts from a local campaign group.
• City region authorities push for commitment to new transport laws in King’s SpeechTransport authorities from England’s city regions have told the prime minister that new transport laws must be highlighted as a parliamentary priority in next week’s King’s Speech.
• Coventry Very Light Rail vehicle successfully tested on innovative track systemPlans to build the first Very Light Rail system in the UK has reached a major milestone as the vehicle has been successfully tested on innovative track that was laid in weeks.

Rail Advent

• TransPennine Express takes measures to reduce impact of leaves on lineAs the leaf fall season approaches, TransPennine Express (TPE) has been explaining the impact on rail services and its efforts to minimise them.
• Hull Trains named best performing UK rail operatorThe Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has named Hull Trains the most reliable UK rail operator, based on data for the four-week period to 16 September.

Rail Business Daily

• Network Rail Chief Executive concludes RIA Annual ConferenceThe Chief Executive of Network Rail has taken part in a Q&A as part of the final day of the Railway Industry Association’s (RIA) Annual Conference.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Manchester mayor suggests new northern rail link could get £20 billion to build itAn extra £8bn-plus could be pumped into the Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) project, bringing the fund to £20bn, the Manchester mayor has said.

Railway Gazette

• Freight operator trials brake monitoring technologyUK: GB Railfreight has completed a four-week test of technology developed in collaboration with Icomera, DG8 and SENSEi which uses battery-powered remote sensors to share status and out-of-tolerance alerts with drivers and control centres during rolling stock pre-checks.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Arriva StreetDeck Electroliner fleet to pass 100 with London dealArriva now has more than 100 Wrightbus StreetDeck Electroliner battery-electric double-deckers in service or on order after completion of a deal for 34 further examples to be supplied to Arriva London in 2024.
• TfGM awards franchising second tranche home-to-school contractsFirst Manchester and Go North West have been awarded the home-to-school service contracts that form part of the second tranche of bus franchising in Greater Manchester. They involve routes in Bury, Manchester, Oldham, and Rochdale.
• CT4N expands Omnibus collaboration with CrewPLANNottingham-based charitable trust CT4N will extend its relationship with Omnibus through the addition of automatic crew scheduling system CrewPLAN to its existing suite of solutions from the supplier.

Green Miscellany

• A carrot and stick approach to 20mph limit enforcementHow best to enforce 20mph limits given how few motorists appear to have the driving skill or inclination to keep to them? Most drivers might be respecting the new 20mph speed limit on many Welsh roads, according to independent transport consultants Agilysis, but the firm’s CEO Richard Owen struck a note of caution when speaking to the BBC: “Although the… The post A carrot and stick approach to 20mph limit enforcement appeared first on ETA.