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

Wednesday, 04 December 2024

BBC News

• Free wi-fi to be installed at city's bus stopsA 15-year contract has been awarded by the city council to JCDecaux from January to refurbish Nottingham?s 800 bus shelters and its free-standing digital totems.
• Rail operator seeks to reassure London commutersA rail operator has sought to reassure commuters to London as its rival operator is due to axe its services.
• Birmingham blanket 20mph speed limit discussedBirmingham City Council's transport boss wants a city-wide 20mph limit.
• Drivers complain of 'awful' festive traffic chaosManchester drivers urged to get public transport as city centre plagued by Christmas gridlock.
• TfL unveils children's posters for priority seats The campaign aims to bring attention to the benefit of giving up seats for those in greater need.
• Whole of Elizabeth line gets 4G coverageMobile coverage has been extended to the whole of the Elizabeth line, Transport for London says.
• Three rail firms to be renationalised next yearThe rail operators will be renationalised in May, as part of the government's manifesto promise.
• Stunning or rubbish? Jaguar's new concept car divides opinionThe carmaker's new look is praised as "exciting" but others say it should "go back to the drawing board".

Department for Transport

• Transport Minister visits Brighton to see UK?s most accessible buses for international day of people with disabilitiesDfT wants to build a transport system that works for everyone: Brighton and Hove are leading the way to make this a reality for bus passengers.
• First train services to return to public ownership revealedServices across England will return to public control, transforming our railways into a more reliable, affordable and accessible system.

Financial Times

• Renationalising England’s rail may not overcome hard realitiesBringing franchises into public ownership is risky given some routes are just harder to run well and face legacy issues
• South Western Railway set to be first train operator nationalised by Labour Next companies to return to public control will be c2c and Greater Anglia under UK government plans

The Guardian

• South Western Railway to become first train operator nationalised under LabourAs part of a comprehensive programme of renationalisation, the service will come under public ownership in May
• Chargers are key to the electric vehicle transition | LettersStephen Smith says people won’t buy EVs until they can easily access the energy needed to drive them. Raj Parkash thinks every car should be charged using the same mechanismGaby Hinsliff’s article (Starmer has discovered a tricky truth about the electric vehicles transition: there’s no gain without pain, 29 November) doesn’t address the key point in the analysis of car companies’ difficulties in selling enough electric vehicles (EVs). There is a lack of demand that is only partly due to the higher prices. More importantly, it is due to a failure to install the nec...

The Independent

• South Western Railway to become first rail operator to return to public ownershipTransport secretary Heidi Alexander says the new government is on a path to rebuilding British railways
• Trains can only get better, says the government. Let's seeTrain Talk: One train in 23 was cancelled on South Western Railway's main line in the latest stats

The Telegraph

• South Western to be first rail company nationalised under Labour [subscription]Train companies warn that rushing through public ownership will not benefit customers

Times Online

• South Western Rail is first operator to be renationalised in Labour shake-up [subscription]The government says the move to a publicly owned railway will improve reliability

Network Rail

• Preparing the railway for west London?s newest stationThis Christmas we?ll prepare the railway for west London?s newest station ? Old Oak Common. The station will help give you quick and reliable journeys to London, the Midlands, north England and Scotland.

Birmingham Mail

• British Airways brings in big change for passengers who have in-flight mealsBritish Airways, which is rivalled by Ryanair, Easyjet, Jet2, TUI and more and operates flights from Birmingham, has launched its Christmas menu ahead of December 25.

Birmingham Post

• Avanti West Coast achieves £1bn turnover despite ranking low on UK reliability chartsAvanti West Coast has a turnover of £1.01bn in the 12 months to 31 March, 2024, newly-filed accounts with Companies House show
• Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens on the economy, rail investment and Cardiff ParkwayThe Cardiff Parkway mainline train station project needs to be approved says Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens. She also stressed her new economic advisory group is anything but a ‘talking shop’ and will help shape the Welsh narrative at the heart of a new UK industrial strategy.
• 15 stunning pictures of Jaguar's new electric vehicle as Type 00 is launched in MiamiCarmaker says new design concept 'embodies the essence of Exuberant Modernism'
• Ford unveils new electric Puma as Mersey plant starts work on power units that will drive car giant's EV transformationNirth West plant will supply 70% of Ford's electric vehicles sold in Europe
• M6 to get 'once-in-a lifetime facelift' as timetable set out for major changesNational Highways is planning to replace eight bridge deck structures along a six-mile section of the M6 through Lune Gorge in Cumbria, between junction 37 and junction 38 of the motorway at Tebay

London Evening Standard

• Three key London commuter rail companies to be renationalised next yearSouth Western Railways, C2C and Greater Anglia will be the first operators to be transferred into public ownership next year

Wales Online

• Welsh Government urged to make decision on Cardiff Parkway by early 2025Councillors in Cardiff came together to call on the Welsh Government to speed up its decision making on plans for a new station and business park

Other Regional Press

• Herts bus usage outperforms England in recovery to pre-pandemic levelsHertfordshire passengers took millions more bus journeys last year, blowing past pre-pandemic levels and bucking national trends.
• Major road upgrades completed as Watford revamp gathers paceA major Watford road has undergone an extensive revamp.
• Oxford Bus Company issues warning after Facebook scamOxford Bus Company has issued a warning to its passengers following a Facebook scam.
• Weymouth-Waterloo operator's services to be nationalisedThe Government has announced that South Western Railway's services will be the first to transfer into public ownership next year.
• Nuneaton snubbed in new rail service at Coventry stationWest Midlands Railway announced a timetable addition - but it will not include Nuneaton
• As Jaguar release the Type 00 - what is the point of a concept car?Here's why the new Jaguar might look a bit different to the new Type 00

Rail Technology Magazine

• Stuart Broad Joins SWR to Launch Arterio Fleet and Name 'Nighthawk' Train at London WaterlooEngland cricket legend Stuart Broad CBE has joined South Western Railway (SWR) to celebrate the rollout of the Arterio fleet, officially naming one of their trains the Nighthawk in London Waterloo.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Pelican Bus and Coach marks 50% women on senior teamPelican Bus and Coach has marked having reached the position where 50% of its senior management team members are women.
• Congestion and bus speeds remedy urgent: Stagecoach East MDHow to tackle congestion and falling bus speeds will be among awkward decisions that local authorities need to make regardless of whether enhanced partnership or franchising is the service delivery model, Stagecoach East Managing Director Darren Roe has said.

Other News Sources

• Taxi access to Reading A33 bus lanes REJECTED amid possible future tram plansA request to grant Reading?s taxi drivers access to the A33 bus lanes has been turned down amid concerns it could disrupt future transport projects. The A33 corridor, designed to potentially accommodate a light tram system, is a key component of Reading Borough Council?s transport strategy.