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

Tuesday, 02 January 2024

Cogitamus

• Happy New Year from TransportInfoThe team at TransportInfo would like to send our very best wishes for a happy and healthy 2024 to all our readers

BBC News

• Historic railway signal box at Par to close after 144 yearsThe oldest working signal box in Cornwall - built 144 years ago at Par - is to close in spring 2024.
• Plans for more Somerset stations move closer to realityPlans for new rail stations and a wider range of services in Somerset are moving closer to becoming a reality.
• Bristol transport: Will the south remain the poor relation?It may not feel like it to some, but Bristol is in a golden age of rail development - if you compare it to the past 100 years. The city's first new station for nearly a century opened on the Portway in July, spades are in the ground at Ashley Down, and another station has been promised at the city's arena in Filton.
• New Year's Day: Call for trains to run in Wales' valleysParts of south Wales are left without rail services on 1 January while trains run elsewhere.
• NI's road death figures for 2023 'simply horrific'Northern Ireland records its highest annual number of motoring fatalities for eight years.
• China's BYD closer to taking Tesla's electric car top spotElon Musk's Tesla is due to release quarterly production and delivery figures on Tuesday.

Financial Times

• China's first homegrown cruise ship sails from ShanghaiAuthorities hail launch as landmark for country's shipbuilding sector
• US and UK step up pressure on Houthi rebels to deter Red Sea shipping attacksLondon willing to take direct action if necessary as Washington vows to protect its interests

The Guardian

• Facial recognition could replace passports at UK airport e-gatesBorder Force director reportedly hopes to create ’intelligent border’ after being impressed by schemes in Australia and Dubai

The Independent

• Travellers will not need to show passports to enter UK in new trialSmart gates require passengers to be registered on a central database
• The two conditions British passports must meet to travel in the European UnionThe democratic vote to leave the European Union has had many unexpected consequences for travellers. One of the most serious: UK passengers wrongly denied boarding by their airlines because their passports are deemed no longer valid after Brexit.

The Telegraph

• Small railway footbridge takes longer to build than Empire State Building. [subscription]Network Rail's construction of the bridge at Theale station is more than 10 years overdue and 'a case study in British inefficiency'
• Green transport shift will help rail overcome challenges, says Channel Tunnel boss [Subscription]New measures are being put in place to simplify tougher post-Brexit border checks

Times Online

• A9 dualling has cost twice as much to plan as it has to build. [subscription]The Scottish government has spent twice as much designing and planning the long-delayed dualling of the A9 than it has on construction.
• No passports needed under Border Force e-gate plan. [subscription]Facial recognition technology will allow arrivals into Britain in new proposal
• The Times view on travel crises: Water on the Line. [subscription]To have a downpour flood a railway tunnel with millions of gallons of water is not something that Eurostar or any train company could easily ­anticipate. But the devastation caused by the ­inundation of the high-speed line to the Channel tunnel brought misery and frustration to thousands of passengers at the very worst time of year for them.

Daily Express

• Electric car crisis as target for chargers missedA target set up by the Government to boost electric vehicle chargers near motorways has been missed.

Birmingham Mail

• Why you should get on your bike in Birmingham in 2024 despite the road risksThe risks of cycling on Birmingham's busiest roads have been well documented this year after a spate of deaths and serious injuries. But it's vital people are not deterred from enjoying a healthier way of getting around

Birmingham Post

• The only woman apprentice to head of site - Airbus' Filton boss on diversity in engineeringSue Partridge speaks to BusinessLive about the changes she has seen across the industry since joining the aerospace giant almost 35 years ago
• New electric bus investment for GwyneddThey will come into operation in February Transport for Wales and Gwynedd Council have confirmed
• The Celtic Freeport enters 2024 in good shape as it seeks business case sign offChair of the Celtic Freeport Roger Maggs says the freeport will play a key role in decarbonising the Welsh and UK economies

Bristol Live

• New £6 'visa' to enter Europe details as date for thumbprint entry confirmedThe European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) will be necessary for Brits travelling to 30 selected European countries

Daily Post (North Wales)

• The alternative route A55 could have gone that would have changed Eryri landscapeIf proposal had been followed then the road and a rural landscape would look very different today

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• North East mayor candidates all pledge to save Shields Ferry as 2025 deadline nearsThe new mayor's transport funding and decision-making power could offer a lifeline to the ferry, which is in urgent need of a new North Shields landing

Northern Echo

• New £20m railway station promised at Teesside AirportTees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen has promised to build a new £20m railway station at Teesside Airport.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Are plans to bring trains to Peterhead and Fraserburgh on track?We caught up with the Campaign for North East Rail to find out what they've been up to in 2023, and what we can expect from them this year. 

Wales Online

• The glaring problem with transport in Welsh cities and how it could be solvedIn a crowded field this might be the most urgent issue
• Yet another delay in buses using Cardiff's new bus stationThe opening date has been pushed back and back

Yorkshire Evening Post

• The 13 major Leeds transport projects due in 2024 that will change how we travel2023 has been a year of change in Leeds and the new year is set to bring about a host of changes that will revolutionise city travel for decades to come.

Yorkshire Post

• What will it take to end rail misery for Yorkshire’s passengers? - Andrew VineIt’s still just about panto season and today, on the first day back at work after the New Year break, the curtain will once again go up on one of the longest-running – and least funny – in Yorkshire.

Chester Standard

• Usage of town's railway stations soars by 245 per centNEW figures show that train usage in a Cheshire town is up an average of 245 per cent across the board.

Other Regional Press

• Colchester station's poor disability access remains an issueA TRAIN station in Colchester may not see all its platforms made accessible by lift until nearly the end of the decade... despite rail bosses having been allocated £1 million to pay for the works nine years ago.
• MerseyRail past, present and future: Beeching and beyond?Continuing the history and development of the MerseyRail network from the formation of British Railways in 1948 to the present day
• Highland MSP hits out at rail fare hike
• Rail replacement buses being revved up for four weekends of work along popular routeTrain passengers looking to travel to the Mid Wales coast will have to take a rail replacement bus over the next four weekends.
• Wortley Curve rail line up for auction for just £15kA disused stretch of West Leeds rail line that has been touted as a way to improve services into and out of Bradford will go to auction in the New Year.
• Bus operator Stagecoach tackling congestion in Winchester city centreWINCHESTER'S main bus operator has highlighted the vital need to tackle traffic pinch points that impact its services.
• Southampton: New city centre park and bus hub works to beginWork is set to begin this month on a new city centre park and bus hub.
• £2 bus price cap extended to end of 2024 for Lincolnshire passengersBus passengers have been given a boost with the news that the price cap has been extended until the end of next year.
• Southampton cruise brings £1bn to economy with 260 ship stopsMore than £1bn was pumped into the economy in a record-breaking year for the Port of Southampton - with a bid to bring even more passengers in this year
• Massive HS2 work to complete 3.5 mile tunnel linking Warwickshire and BirminghamThe HS2 project will see a 3.5 mile long tunnel opened up between North Warwickshire and Washwood Heath

Rail Advent

• Network Rail engineers complete upgrades at Doncaster over ChristmasOver 200 engineers gave up their Christmas breaks with their families so that improvements to the railway infrastructure at Doncaster station could be completed without any impact on passengers' journeys.

Railway Gazette

• Train toilet servicing vehicle deliveredUK: Vogelsang has taken delivery of a Bradshaw PFB1500-1100 electric vehicle which will be used for servicing train controlled emission toilets.

Other News Sources

• See the progress on Cambridge South as new track laid and old track removed – with timelapse videoContractors have been working hard over the Christmas and new year period at the site of the new Cambridge South railway station.
• HS2 Ltd Presents Construction Plan for 2024HS2 Ltd has provided insight into how the delivery of its high-speed rail network between London and Birmingham will advance throughout 2024.
• ONS figures reveal busiest station in Sussex is BrightonONS figures have revealed Sussex's busiest and quietest railway stations.

News from Europe

• Dart-style rail system for Cork ’achievable in the next five to 10 years’, Varadkar saysA Dart-type transport system for Cork is achievable in the next five to 10 years, the Taoiseach has said.
• New destinations and cheaper tickets: How Channel Tunnel rail travel might change in the futureThe Channel Tunnel operating company says the line has capacity for more services.