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

Tuesday, 03 September 2024

BBC News

• Ministers accused of failing to fulfil key transport promises Campaign group Transform Scotland said had failed to meet seven out of 10 key commitments.
• TfL faces 'ongoing cyber security incident'Insiders have told BBC London they have been told to work at home if possible.
• Bus service to help Jewish Londoners feel safeThe 310 between Stamford Hill and Golders Green is in response to requests from the Jewish community.
• Cathay Pacific grounds planes after engine problemAirline has found faulty engine parts during an inspection of its fleet of 48 A350 aircraft.

Financial Times

• London workers limit days in office due to cost of commuteEmployers in UK capital should subsidise transport to entice staff back, report on global cities finds
• Cathay Pacific to inspect Airbus A350 fleet after ‘engine component failure’ Engine maker Rolls-Royce’s shares fall 6.5% after problems on one of Hong Kong-based carrier’s long-haul jets
• Chinese shipyards face quality control concerns over LNG vessels Growing demand forces shipowners to turn to China despite its limited experience building complex containers

The Guardian

• Extra cash for mental health would help UK more than new roads, study saysLSE report suggests chancellor should downgrade projects such as Lower Thames Crossing in favour of services
• Christian Wolmar - I have the ideal road plan for Britain. Take the 16 major highway schemes worth £15bn and bin themNew ministers now face a historic choice: more roads of dubious value or fresh thinking to secure growth and fight climate breakdown
• Nasa astronaut reports ‘strange noise’ from Boeing Starliner spacecraftButch Wilmore reports pulsing sounds from capsule dogged with issues and set to return without astronauts Nasa astronaut Butch Wilmore has reported a “strange noise” coming from the stricken Boeing Starliner space capsule whose problems have left him and colleague Suni Williams stuck in orbit for six months longer than they anticipated when they blasted off from earth in June.Wilmore radioed mission control in Houston on Saturday to report a pulsing sound from a speaker inside the capsule. “I’ve got a question about Starliner,” Wilmore said.
• UK electric car drivers should be charged per mile, say campaignersRachel Reeves should reform vehicle taxes to fill £5bn ‘black hole’, says Campaign for Better TransportCampaigners have called on the chancellor to introduce a controversial pay-per-mile road charging scheme on electric cars, warning of a £5bn “black hole” in tax revenues from motoring.In a letter to Rachel Reeves, the Campaign for Better Transport (CBT) urged her to reform vehicle taxes, with fuel duty poised to dwindle in the coming decade as petrol and diesel cars are phased out.

The Independent

• Government launches ?shadow? body to overhaul Britain?s railwaysA ?shadow? version of a new public sector body to oversee Britain?s railways has been launched by Transport Secretary Louise Haigh.
• Calls to introduce a pay-per-mile scheme for UK driversSuccessive governments have found the prospect of introducing road pricing to be too politically toxic

Times Online

• Alstom sells American rail signalling business for $690m. [subscription]Sale to Knorr-Bremse, a German group, completes the train manufacturer?s plan to raise $2 billion

Scottish Government

• Correspondence between Transport Scotland and Department for Transport regarding extension to the Borders Rail: EIR releaseInformation request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.

City AM

• Labour gives TfL go-ahead to build 350 new homes near Cockfosters tube station Some 350 new homes, 40 per cent affordable, will be built at Cockfosters tube station on the Northern end of the Piccadilly Line.

Daily Express

• Drivers could face three points for kids not wearing a seat belt in harsh new rulesBy law, all drivers and passengers must wear a seat belt while travelling in a car, van or other vehicles

i News

• Starmer warned over private finance plan by Blair?s ex-cabinet chiefINTERVIEW Lord O?Donnell says the Government must not ?play accounting games" with private finance investment in government spending

Mail Online

• TfL hit by cyber attack as National Crime Agency and online security experts launch probe into 'ongoing' incidentTransport for London has urgently contacted online security experts to deal with the 'ongoing cyber incident' this evening.

The Mirror

• You could face three points for children not wearing a seat belt as demands made for harsher penaltiesAdrian Leisk, the head of road safety for Devon and Cornwall Police, stated that police officers would be visiting the legal guardians of the 109 children caught not wearing seat belts for a ‘safeguarding check’

Network Rail

• Network Rail Scotland invests over £7 million to keep trains on time this autumnDrone technology will be deployed alongside seven specialist ?leaf busting? trains this autumn, to help keep passenger and freight services running on time.

Sky News

• Chancellor Rachel Reeves urged to impose 'pay-per-mile' scheme on electric carsPublic transport charity Campaign for Better Transport is proposing that drivers of zero-emission vehicles should be charged based on how far they travel to make up for lost fuel duty revenue.

Birmingham Mail

• New pay-per-mile car tax will save drivers ?190 if they do under certain mileageDrivers face ?190 savings under new pay-per-mile car tax bands - but only if they do under a certain mileage. Andrew Jervis, CEO of ClickMechanic, says motorists who don?t often get behind the wheel will likely notice reductions in their annual bills.
• 'Hidden' road sensors police and councils use to monitor speeding - and could lead to finesAuthorities are constantly gathering traffic data on the roads - but most drivers have no idea

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Photographer captures remarkable image of Ribblehead ViaductA photographer has captured a remarkable night-time image of a Yorkshire viaduct.

Bristol Live

• The Bristol roads with the most potholes revealed as council spends nearly £500k on repairsMore than 3,000 potholes were reported to Bristol City Council over the last 12 months, a freedom of information request has found
• Drivers may have to pay for every mile to close Government black holeThe Chancellor could launch a pay-per-mile scheme to end the Budget shortfall

London Evening Standard

• Government launches ?shadow? body to overhaul Britain?s railwaysTransport Secretary Louise Haigh has established Shadow Great British Railways.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• A96 and Buchan rail plea as SNP prepare to wield axe in spending cutsAs the Scottish Government prepare to set out tough decisions, it's claimed the north-east is facing an "existential threat from poor policymaking".

Other Regional Press

• Drivers to face £50 fine for going down Coventry 'school streets'Five roads will be affected under the new city council rules

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• New battery-powered trains to debut on routes in the North of EnglandTesting has begun for new intercity battery trains on the national rail network as the trial aims to support the UK battery sector and green growth. Battery trains will be trialled on routes between York to Manchester Airport and Leeds to Liverpool Lime Street over the next eight weeks. This initiative is an industry collaboration between TransPennine Express, Angel Trains and Hitachi Rail to help reduce emissions and fuel costs by as much as 30%. Paul Staples, Engineering, Safety and Sustainability Director at TransPennine Express, said: "This trial is a huge step towards the rail...

Railtech

• Soothing sounds surround South Western RailwayPassengers can find the mindful carriage? in every carriage. ?Let the train take the strain?. It used to be an advertising strapline, back in the days of British Railways. Now with the nationalised railway officially on the way back, there?s a whole new twenty-first-century meaning for the saying, at least for passengers of South Western Railway.
• RS ZERO: Stadler?s H2-driven answer to non-electrified linesSwiss train manufacturer Stadler has unveiled the new prototype of its successor to the widely popular Regio-Shuttle RS1 rail bus, the RS ZERO. Capable of running on hydrogen or battery power, the new rolling stock is being pitched as the answer to replacing environmentally unfriendly diesel trains on non-electrified and low-traffic lines in Europe.

Railway Technology

• GB Railfreight opens new maintenance facility to boost efficiencyThe company is boosting the capacity of its maintenance programme to improve reliability and reduce emissions.

Other News Sources

• National Highways ?always looking for new and innovative ways? to improve safetyNational Highways has announced funding for six innovations ? including a new stopped vehicle detection verification system ? which will be trialled as part of efforts to help protect road users.
• New BBC doc examines the horrors of the London-Manchester train serviceA new documentary released this week on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds recreates the drama of the ?Euston dash? for the first off-peak train from London to Manchester (at 6.53pm weekdays for timetable fans) as part of its investigation into the current state of the UK?s struggling inter-city rail services.
• Tories call for independent pay body for public sector rail workersGovernment moves to help nationalise train operation should include establishing an independent pay review process for public sector rail workers, according to the Tories.