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

Friday, 18 October 2019

The Guardian

• CBI boss on wrong track if she can't say sorry about Labour’s rail plansIt is nonsensical for Carolyn Fairbairn to ‘stand by’ the CBI’s analysis, but Labour should publish its costings
• CBI calls on Labour to publish nationalisation plansGroup releases breakdown of its own £196bn-cost estimate and asks party to ‘fill in gaps’ if it disagrees

Times Online

• Green credentials keep Eurostar on track [subsciption]Eurostar had its busiest August, with more than a million passengers boosting sales in the third quarter as the company tries to capitalise on environmental concerns about air travel.

City AM

• TfL boss Mike Brown to resign in MayTransport for London (TfL) boss Mike Brown is set to resign after four years in the post. TfL announced today the transport commissioner will be leaving the job after next year’s mayoral election in May.
• Tube delays: Jubilee Line disrupted for second day after Extinction Rebellion protestJubilee Line commuters faced a second day of Tube misery in a row as transport bosses warned the service was part suspended with severe delays.

The Mirror

• How you could once get haircuts on trains - plus 9 more first class bits of railway triviaThere's always been something truly magical about seeing a steam train. That unmistakeable smell of hot oil and steam mixed with the chug of the engine and the shriek of the whistle always capture the imagination.

Bolton News

• Northern rail could be nationalised: ministerTHE government is considering the temporary renationalisation of the Northern rail franchise.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Rail revamp could bring two years of disruption to busy roadA key road near the notorious Cooper Bridge bottleneck could be disrupted for up to TWO YEARS as part of rail improvements.

London Evening Standard

• How ticket officers face barrage of abuse as they tackle London's £116m fare-dodging epidemicThe risks faced by ticket inspectors attempting to tackle London's fare-dodging epidemic are revealed in a shocking documentary.
• Jubilee line delays: Commuters hit with morning rush hour chaos due to 'unavailability of trains'Commuters have been hit with morning rush hour delays on the Tube as a large part of the Jubilee line was suspended completely.

Other Regional Press

• East West Rail appoints Arup for project’s first major support contractThe East West Railway Company (EWR Co) has appointed an Arup-led consortium to support early works so the project can continue its rapid progress once a decision is made on the preferred route for the Bedford to Cambridge section later this year.
• Campaigners vow to fight Gobowen train cutbacks planCampaigners have condemned a proposal to lose two train services that pass through Gobowen and Chirk.
• Readers react to plea for high speed transportTHE Mail readers have reacted to the CBI deputy regional director for Cumbria and the North East, Alistair Westwood, who made the argument for the county as part of a nationwide plea by the business organisation for the Government to back the controversial high-speed railway project.
• New trains on Bittern line within weeksNew longer trains with more seats will be operating on the Bittern Line that links Norwich to Sheringham within the next few weeks, rail bosses said.

Rail Technology Magazine

• RAIB releases new safety recommendations following recent fatal accident The RAIB has delivered a new set of safety recommendations after a passenger suffered fatal injuries after leaning out of a window of a moving train last year. The rail safety branch has made four recommendations and identified two learning points, including changes for the operator and...
• ScotRail's surge in train punctuality 'no fluke'  New research shows a huge ‘surge’ in ScotRail trains arriving on time, the biggest year-on-year increase in punctuality since 2015. Scotland’s Railways delivered 36,200 more trains on time since April 1 2019, compared with the same period last year. Throughout Scotland...
• Two Network Rail leaders internationally recognised among most influential women in engineeringThe Financial Times has selected two Network Rail leaders to appear on the most influential females in engineering list. Just 16.4% of the rail industry in made up of women, but today (17 Oct) has seen the international recognition of two of those women for their contribution to...
• North and Midlands must take control to deliver true benefits of HS2 and NPR, says review The North and Midlands must take control of their high-speed rail network, argues a report from the Northern Powerhouse Independent Review warning against cancelling the major infrastructure projects without viable alternatives. The review, established to inform the Government-commissioned...

Railnews

• Merseyrail strikes called off after new agreement A series of strikes on Merseyrail has been suspended by the RMT, after what the union described as a ˜breakthrough™ offer from management. The union said ˜the company tabled an offer that guarantees both a guard on the train and the safety-critical role of that guard in the despatch process™. The dispute has been one of several involving the RMT over the future of on-train staffing, and the Merseyrail negotiations have come close to being resolved before. Merseyrail managing director Andy Heath said: ˜We will now progress with the next phase of discussions to finalise an agreement.™

Other News Sources

• TfL commissioner Mike Brown quits to oversee Palace of Westminster restorationTransport for London (TfL) transport commissioner Mike Brown has quit his post to oversee the restoration of the Palace of Westminster.
• Work to cure rail bottleneck moves step closerLong awaited work to clear a major bottleneck on the region's railways has moved a step closer.
• Mayor James Palmer: I’ve urged No 10 to build Cambridge South railway station nowWe don’t just need a railway station at Cambridge South now, we needed it years ago. And people rightly get angry and worried when infrastructure doesn’t keep pace with growth. Cambridge Biomedical Campus is a clear case in point.