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

Tuesday, 28 January 2025

BBC News

• Rail line to close for 16 days for engineering workA major railway line between Surrey and West Sussex is to close for more than two weeks while engineering work is carried out.
• 'No easy routes' to growth, Reeves tells Labour MPsThe chancellor has told Labour MPs there are "no easy routes" to economic growth, after hinting the government will back a third runway at Heathrow Airport.
• Cockermouth bus service to be axedDeveloper Story Homes subsidised the C1,C2 and C3 service in Cockermouth, Cumbria, for five years as part of an agreement made when they built the Strawberry Grange estate, but the commitment comes to an end on 1 February.
• Fourth crash into railway bridge in one monthThe railway bridge on Summer Road in Erdington was hit three times in the first week of January.
• Spanish firm completes Harland and Wolff takeover Spain's state-owned shipbuilder, Navantia, has completed the takeover of Harland and Wolff.
• Landslide closes railway linesTrains running between Blackburn and Bolton are being cancelled following the landslip near Darwen.
• Pedicab licences and insurance among TfL proposalsTfL has launched a consultation seeking the public's views on regulating pedicabs in London.
• Will a third runway at Heathrow help UK growth? Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to announce expansion plans but some question the short-term benefits.

Financial Times

• China''onetime 'solar king' struggles in US electric bus marketDenton Peng had hoped to replicate his past successes
• Can self-driving cars save us from ourselves?Manufacturers promising greater safety have a problem: human drivers set the bar higher than you might think
• Ryanair blames Boeing delay as it cuts passenger forecastLow-cost carrier says it no longer expects US manufacturer to deliver enough aircraft to meet its growth plans
• Heathrow expansion plan faces sky high challengesScale and cost of construction could pose bigger barrier than political opposition

The Guardian

• Amazon asks permission to launch drones in north-east of EnglandDeliveries from warehouse in Darlington, County Durham, depend on approval from CAA and local council. Amazon is seeking permission to launch drones from its warehouse in Darlington, County Durham, in the latest step towards using the devices to deliver packages to homes.The technology company is to hold a public meeting with local people next week as it seeks permission from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to use the airspace around its warehouse on the edge of the town, in the north-east of England.
• Rachel Reeves tells MPs of plans to go ‘further and faster’ in pursuit of growthChancellor reassures Labour colleagues that climate concerns go ‘hand in hand’ with economic ambitionsRachel Reeves has told MPs the government needs to go “further and faster” to increase economic growth, as Downing Street sought to reassure people concerned about the environment that net zero and increasing output go “hand in hand”.The chancellor has unnerved some Labour MPs and green campaigners with her increasingly punchy rhetoric about growth being a priority over preventing climate change, as she strives to improve the UK’s anaemic forecasts and...

The Herald

• Network Rail pays out £220m in service disruption compensationThe publicly-funded owner of Scotland's railways has had to pay out £220m in compensation over five years to train operators including ScotRail because of disruption to services, The Herald can reveal.
• Scots rail crash 'lessons learnt' fails spark train safety alarmConcerns have surfaced over the safety of Scotland's railways as it emerged more than half of the 'lessons learnt' recommendations of action demanded in the wake of the Stonehaven rail tragedy nearly five years ago have still to be implemented.

The Independent

• Ed Miliband suggests Heathrow expansion may not go ahead if it breaches net zero targetsEd Miliband looked visibly uncomfortable as he was grilled over how the expansion of Heathrow airport with a third runway was compatible with his carbon emission net zero targets

The Telegraph

• Third Heathrow runway will not go ahead if it breaks net zero targets, says Miliband. [subscription]Energy Secretary insists the expansion must be justified within carbon budgets, as Rachel Reeves prepares to endorse the proposal

City AM

• Five airport expansions at once? London's economy is finally ready for takeoff London’s airports are an economic success story for the whole UK. Increasing capacity is a no-brainer, writes BusinessLDN chief John Dickie.

Mail Online

• Ed Miliband warns Heathrow expansion 'WON'T go ahead' if it doesn't fit with Britain's climate commitments amid Cabinet rift over a third runwayThe Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary told MPs that building a third runway at Europe's busiest airport 'must be justified within carbon budgets'.

The Mirror

• London Underground horror as schoolboy 'sees a ghost' at 'haunted' King's Cross St Pancras stationTransport for London have disclosed the only recent ghost sighting reported on the London Underground, with the incident said to have left a 15-year-old boy 'distressed'

Birmingham Mail

• Key Birmingham rail operator 'incompetent' - but keeps flagship routeAvanti has been lambasted for its operation of the West Coast Main Line with peers told of 'astonishing' levels of performance

Birmingham Post

• Wizz Air CEO may miss £100m bonus as share price falters despite passenger surgeWizz Air's share price has struggled over the past year, meaning the budget carrier's CEO is unlikely to hit the huge bonus target set by the company's shareholders
• Wales and the west of England needs billions in new rail projects says reportA programme of much need rail enhancement projects for Wales and the west of England has been outlined by the Western Gateway Partnership

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Northern takes delivery of cab replicas with miles of track footageNorthern has taken delivery of prototypes of a static cab simulator, to be used for driver training.

London Evening Standard

• Heathrow third runway plan faces 'major obstacles', Kemi Badenoch's transport chief warnsShadow transport secretary Gareth Bacon previously said the proposal to expand the west London airport would be 'eye-wateringly expensive and environmentally calamitous'
• Heathrow third runway won't go ahead if it busts UK carbon budget, says Net Zero Secretary Ed MilibandA third runway at Heathrow will not go ahead if it busts the UK's carbon budget, says Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Amazon to launch drone deliveries in North East after picking region for UK trialThe US tech giant said it was lodging planning applications with the local authority and was seeking clearance from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for the drone-based delivery service, which is known as Prime Air

Cambridge News

• What's next for East West Rail as planning timeline announcedThousands of people have had their say on proposals for East West Rail

Other Regional Press

• Discount fare win for cross-border bus passengersIt's good news for students attending school in a different county, but it's still more expensive than going by car, says one local grandparent.
• No comment on Herefordshire bus service from DVSAThe government agency which checks buses roadworthiness has declined to say whether it gave a negative inspection on a Herefordshire bus operator whose services stopped abruptly this week.

New Civil Engineer

• Shadow GBR boss admits meetings with DfT not being recorded, reveals 5 'areas of focus'Records of meetings for the government to hold Shadow Great British Railways (GBR) to account as it develops the delivery plan for the new official public body are not currently being kept, its chair has admitted.

Rail Business Daily

• Railway 200: a year-long campaign marking two centuries of the railwayAndrew Haines, Chief Executive Officer of Network Rail, looks back at a successful programme of work delivered over Christmas and the New Year and looks forward to Railway 200, a milestone year that gives everyone working in rail an opportunity to reflect on their careers and personal experiences

Railnews

• Storm damage included 500 incidents in Scotland alone Network Rail engineers and contractors have been continuing to work around the clock to repair the railway after the destructive winds and rain of Storm Eowyn wreaked havoc on Friday. ScotRail said there had been about 500 incidents involving obstructions or damage north of the border alone, including 120 fallen trees.

Railtech

• UK's third-largest train lessor could be sold for £4bnHong Kong-listed CK Infrastructure (CKI) is exploring the potential sale of Eversholt Rail, one of the UK's leading rolling stock leasing companies, with a valuation that could reach £4 billion (£4.8bn). So might Britain's rail renationalisation programme have anything to do with the move?

Railway Gazette

• Hull Trains eyes Worksop and Sheffield launchUK: Hull Trains proposed London King's Cross Worksop Sheffield open access service would give people more choice, offer more flexibility in train fares and make the area better known, according to Labour Member of Parliament for Bassetlaw Jo White.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• New-look buses and payment options for Portsmouth park and ridePortsmouth City Council has introduced a redesign of its park and ride service, featuring a blue-and-pink livery for its buses and enhanced ticketing options to improve convenience.
• £1 bus fare introduced in Andover using BSIP fundsStagecoach South has introduced a 31 single fare on main Andover town bus routes thanks to funding from Hampshire County Council's Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP).
• Cambridgeshire and Peterborough bus franchising moves closerIntroduction of bus franchising in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough now looks inevitable after the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) Transport and Infrastructure Committee voted unanimously on 24 January to recommend it to Mayor Dr Nik Johnson as the avenue for reform.

Trafnidiaeth Cymru [Transport for Wales]

• Porth Bus Interchange ? Opening dateTransport for Wales and Rhondda Cynon Taf Council are excited to announce that the Porth Bus Interchange will open on Thursday 30 January, allowing customers to explore the brand-new facility before Stagecoach begins operating bus services from the site from Sunday 02 February.

Other News Sources

• Wales needs real money for rail freightMoving goods by rail in Wales has dramatically declined. Now, the Secretary of State in the UK government is calling for rail to be made a top spending priority. It's been argued that core traffic, particularly coal, has not been replaced. Heavy industry in South Wales, agricultural produce traffic in the mid-Wales counties, and port traffic along the north coast have all been marginalised or transferred to road haulage.
• Rail Plan Could Create 30 New Stations and Deliver £17bn Economic BoostA plan which aims to deliver new train stations, halve journey times across South Wales and Western England and which could bring £17 billion of economic benefit is set to be launched in Cardiff.
• Western Gateway Proposes New Rail Investment for Wales and West England to Boost ConnectivityThe Western Gateway Partnership has outlined an ambitious plan to revitalize rail infrastructure in Wales and the west of England.
• Full list: Labour MPs who opposed Heathrow expansionThere are just two days to go until Rachel Reeves' big growth speech. The Chancellor is expected to turn her fire on Nimbys ' Not In My Back Yard residents' and give Heathrow's third runway the long-awaited green light.
• First Alexander Dennis Enviro100AEV autonomous electric bus for Cambridge Connector unveiledAlexander Dennis, a subsidiary of NFI Group Inc., one of the world's leading independent global bus manufacturers, today announced that it has completed the first Enviro100AEV autonomous electric bus for the Connector project in Cambridge ahead of track testing.
• Greater Cambridge Partnership takes delivery of autonomous busThe Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP) is celebrating the arrival of the first autonomous vehicle for its Connector project.
• New multimillion-pound bus interchange to open this week in Rhondda town - part of wider regeneration strategyA new multimillion-pound bus interchange will open this week in a Rhondda town as part of a wider regeneration strategy.
• MP raises shuttle bus cancellation in Parliament with possible solution 'weeks away'Oliver Ryan MP has raised the cancellation of the East Lancashire hospitals’ shuttle bus service in Parliament and hopes a solution is only weeks away.

News from Europe

• Passenger rail between Finland and Sweden could start in late 2025The rail connection between Finland to Sweden has been electrified.