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

Tuesday, 09 December 2025

BBC News

• Village bus shelter gets artistic makeoverA town's bus shelter has been given an artistic makeover marking the coronation of King Charles III.
• Airbus and Boeing complete acquisition of Spirit AeroSystemsBoeing and Airbus confirm completion of deal that sees Spirit operations in Belfast being split between the two companies.
• Tram strikes set for December and New Year's EveTram drivers are striking on key dates across the upcoming festive period, including New Years Eve.
• Diesel trains to run on new £144m electric lineA quarter of the trains on the newly-electrified line between East Kilbride and Glasgow Central will still be diesel initially.
• Branding and logo for Great British Railways unveiledThe new red, white and blue branding mirrors the colours of the Union Flag, and will start to appear from next year.

Department for Transport

• GBR: improvements train operators in public ownership are making for customersTrain operators in public ownership are demonstrating they are putting passengers first, by delivering customer improvements.
• All change: The future of British trains arrives as government reforms broken railwaysWith fares frozen, a bold new look and fundamental reforms becoming law, government is building a railway Britain can rely on and be proud of.

Financial Times

• Flight chaos brings India’s biggest airline back to earthLow-cost carrier IndiGo’s cancellation of thousands of flights prompts passenger fury and regulator scrutiny
• What IndiGo’s airport chaos says about Indian aviationAlso in this newsletter: Parliament to debate the revision of electoral rolls, and Farooq Adam’s mantra

The Guardian

• The battle for Sheringham bus shelter: protesters defiant as bailiffs sent inNorfolk county council wants to demolish a 'beloved' 1950s bus shelter in Sheringham, but campaigners are staging a 24/7 sit-in
• Rename ‘home-to-school transport’ to tackle spiralling costs, MPs toldCosts in England have now risen to £2.3bn a year, with local authorities arguing eligible pupils don’t always need a ‘door-to-door taxi service’“Home-to-school transport” should be renamed “assisted travel to school” to help manage parental expectations, MPs on the public accounts committee have been told.While councils are committed to helping children entitled to support to get to school, it does not have to be “a door-to-door taxi service”, leading local authority figures have said.
• Great British Railways flies the flag as logo goes back to the futureLivery for renationalised railway features red, white and blue alongside familiar double arrow symbolNo matter how much train fares cost under Great British Railways, no one can accuse the government of wasting money on an expensive redesign.The logo, branding and livery for the impending renationalised and reformed railway will be unveiled by ministers at London Bridge on Tuesday. It is red, white and, yes, blue.

Daily Express

• Photos show inside of UK's new £400m trains as first enters serviceOfficials say there is more leg room and better Wi-Fi for customers riding the state-of-the-art fleet.

Daily Record

• Storm Bram: Scotrail releases list of delays and speed limits to services amid weather warningsStorm Bram could bring winds of up to 90mph in parts of northwest Scotland and travellers have been urged to plan ahead in case of disruptions

Sky News

• 'Ghost' plates putting drivers at risk, warns 'explosive' reportIllegal number plates and lax rules about who can sell them are threatening national security and putting road users at risk, according to a report.
• Look familiar? New design for nationalised trains revealedA 'striking' new design for UK trains has been revealed by the transport secretary - but you may well think it looks familiar.

Birmingham Post

• Ryanair adds sixth aircraft to Liverpool John Lennon Airport for summer 2026The airline says the move is part of a $600m investment in the North West
• Metrolink Christmas strike back on as union warns over driver fatigueSome 320 tram drivers will walk out in a dispute over working patterns and rest breaks

Bolton News

• 'Trams in every borough' amongst raft of ambitious plans unveiled in railway visionTrams coming to every borough in Greater Manchester are amongst a range of ambitions set out over the next 25 years for the region

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Planning application 'last thing in toolbox' for Bradford Council to retain tunnelA SIX-year-old planning application is the only thing in Bradford Council’s “toolbox” that it can use to stop the filling of Queensbury Tunnel – Councillors have been told.

London Evening Standard

• Exclusive: Londoners face 5.8% rise in Tube fares despite national rail tickets price freezeMayor says it is 'fair' that TfL fares increase above inflation in return for £2.2bn of Government investment

Yorkshire Post

• Oliver Coppard reveals 'virtuous circle' hope for Doncaster Sheffield Airport investmentMoney generated from the reopening of Doncaster Sheffield Airport and the creation of an associated sustainable aviation and advanced manufacturing hub next to it can be part of a ?virtuous circle? helping to fund further public investment in the site, Oliver Coppard has suggested.

Carlisle News & Star

• MP meets group campaigning to reopen Borders railway lineMP Julie Minns has met with a group campaigning to reopen a closed rail route.

Other Regional Press

• South West bus service improvements funding announcedMillions of passengers across the South West are set to benefit from improvements to their daily journeys.
• Mayor backs electric bus upgrade for three North East routes29 electric buses are set to be rolled out on three of the region's busiest routes.
• Lower Thames Crossing campaigners slam £11billion costCAMPAIGNERS have branded the proposed Lower Thames Crossing a 'drain on the economy' after its estimated cost surged to £11 billion, sparking fears of higher tolls and wasted investment.
• Kenneth Gibson calls for improvements after Ayrshire rail disruptionCUNNINGHAME North MSP Kenneth Gibson has called for major rail service improvements after disruption on the lines between North Ayrshire and Glasgow.
• 'Vanity project' town centre transformation 'will kill its life and soul' as some fear 'accident waiting to happen'Traders say 'vanity project' plans to transform the town centre will put them out of business - and put some visitors at risk

Modern Railways

• GBR brand unveiledThe Government launched Great British Railways' branding on 9 December - the day the Railways Bill is debated in the House of Commons.

Rail Business Daily

• How SMEs could deliver for the rail industryRyan Anderson is Global Growth & Commercial Strategy Director at Anturas. An experienced service delivery specialist, he spent over eight years at Network Rail, before enjoying a stint at a Tier 1 contractor.
• Government reveals GBR branding as rail reform legislation debated in ParliamentThe Department for Transport (DfT) says passengers will get their first look at the 'future of Britain's railways' today (9 December 2025), as branding for Great British Railways (GBR) is revealed and landmark legislation to reform the railway is debated in Parliament.

Rail Magazine

• The rolling stock strategy ball gets rollingNow that the dust has settled on publication of the Railways Bill, in this issue our columnists bring you their analysis and opinion on the good and the bad, the clear and the unclear, the obstacles and opportunities contained within its pages.

Rail UK

• Upgrade work complete at Harwich International railway stationTrain operator Greater Anglia has completed a £1 million investment programme to improve facilities at Harwich International railway station.

Railnews

• Railway reforms in spotlight at Second Reading of BillThe Bill which will create Great British Railways is being debated in the House of Commons, as the Railways Bill receives its Second Reading. The Government has announced that the GBR identity will start to appear on trains and stations in the spring.
• Police cuts putting rail staff and passengers ‘at risk’ Rail unions are warning that staff and passengers are being put at risk by repeated budget reductions which have left fewer British Transport Police officers. The British Transport Police Authority meets in two days from now, when members will be told that the number of officers on patrol has fallen by almost a third since 2009, and that more than 500 posts are currently set to disappear by the end of the current financial year.
• Railway reforms in spotlight at Second Reading of Bill The Bill which will create Great British Railways is being debated in the House of Commons, as the Railways Bill receives its Second Reading. The Government has announced that the GBR identity will start to appear on trains and stations in the spring.

Other News Sources

• East Midlands Airport to carry out infrastructure works during winter runway closuresMajor improvements to critical parts of East Midlands Airport?s infrastructure will be carried out during a series of runway closures over the winter.
• Rail telecoms specialist secures funding to support growth - company plays 'an important role in delivering the skills the UK needs to develop the future rail network'A Doncaster-based business that designs telecoms systems for the UK's rail network has secured funding to invest in new technology and create jobs.
• Tony Lodge: How Conservatives can improve the Railways Bill in the national interestThis time next year, the government's Railways Bill will have cleared its parliamentary stages and become law. Today will see the Bill's Second Reading in the Commons. It will bring most passenger trains under Whitehall control (in a new state-run body to be called Great British Railways (GBR)) for the first time since British Rail was abolished in the early 1990s.