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

Friday, 07 December 2018

BBC News

• Train timetables: My train has been late 100 times in a rowA commuter who has been late 100 times on his last 100 journeys has shared his woes with the BBC.
• Air travel for disabled passengers 'on the up'A new charter could mean higher compensation for lost or damaged wheelchairs.
• Bus driver toilet is a 'hideous surprise' for residentsThe toilet is part of Transport for London's attempts to improve conditions for bus drivers.
• Is the HS2 rail project in trouble?With the resignation of the chairman of HS2, how is the high-speed rail project shaping up?
• Williams railways review to look at 'all options'John Lewis deputy chair Keith Williams does not rule out future rail nationalisation in the UK.

ITV News

• Government pledges extra £15m for railways across the north after summer chaosMore than a million pounds has been paid in compensation after thousands of trains were cancelled or delayed when a new timetable was introduced.

The Guardian

• Train performance this summer the worst for 20 years, figures showProblems went beyond GTR and Northern, with delays and cancellations on many services
• Lyft sets itself up to be one of first large tech flotations of 2019US ride-hailing firm files plans with regulator as it races rival Uber for funding
• Kent 'facing gridlocked and rubbish-strewn streets under no-deal Brexit'A no-deal Brexit could cause major disruption across Kent, with gridlock on the roads around Dover, rubbish not being collected, children unable to take exams and rubbish piling up on streets, a local council report has warned.

The Herald

• SNP ministers must freeze ScotRail's train fares, Labour insistSCOTRAIL’S train fares should be frozen as part of next week’s Scottish Budget, Labour has insisted.

The Independent

• Why there's no excuse for getting the basics wrong when it comes to UK trainsIn Railwayland, the second Sunday in December is a time to rejoice: the day the winter train timetables change across Europe and beyond, and often the date chosen to launch faster trains and new routes.

The Scotsman

• ScotRail scores another spectacular own goal – Alastair Dalton Scotland’s Railways: The Story That Keeps On Giving was the title of a presentation I gave to a rail group this summer.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• 5,000 sign petition against Wednesbury railway sleeper factory plansMore than 5,000 people have now signed a petition protesting against plans to build a railway sleeper factory in the middle of a neighbourhood.

Yorkshire Post

• Carmel Harrison: Scrap HS2 vanity project and invest the money in rebuilding the North’s rail services S2 hit the buffers again this week as it was announced that Sir Terry Morgan, the scheme’s chairman, had resigned following days of reports that he was about to be sacked.
• EXCLUSIVE: Anger as plans to electrify north’s freight network are scrappedCrucial plans to massively upgrade rail links for freight traffic across the North of England are set to be abandoned, The Yorkshire Post can reveal.

Other Regional Press

• Rail users in Halifax face longer journey times after introduction of new timetablesHundreds of rail users in Halifax are facing up to the prospect of longer journey times following the introduction of new train schedules this weekend.
• Rail chaos leaves village stranded as EVERY train in a week is cancelledIt is just one small part of our rail network, but the train shambles in one Lancashire village highlights the bigger problem in a nutshell.
• Homes blighted' by Windsor Link Railway proposalsResidents near Alexandra Gardens say their homes have been ‘blighted’ by proposals for a new privately-funded railway. The Windsor Link Railway, led by former Royal Borough councillor George Bathurst, is aiming to build a new rail tunnel in Windsor which would connect the South Western and Great Western lines.

Coach and Bus Week

• Lothian Country launches contactlessLothian Country’s West Lothian services will offer contactless payment from Saturday 1 December.
• The bus championOxford has long been a challenging place to run buses, never more so than today, but as Oxford Bus Company Managing Director Phil Southall explained to Andy Izatt, while the political debate can sometimes be distracting, there are real opportunities to explore
• Dundee Goes Emerald (and Greener)On 2 December 2018, National Express Xplore Dundee put 14 new hi-spec SmartHybrid Alexander Dennis Enviro400s into service in a revised two-tone green livery. Richard Walter attended the official launch of the vehicles and spoke to Managing Director Christine McGlasson to learn more about the new vehicles and imminent service changes
• Ouibus bought by BlaBlaCarCarpooling firm BlaBlaCar has bought Ouibus from the French national railway company, SNCF.
• First Glasgow confirms plans to invest in 75 new ADL buses in 2019First Glasgow has announced that it plans to invest in 75 new Euro VI and electric buses from ADL in 2019, after additional funding was granted from the Scottish Green Bus Fund.
• ADL to offer hydrogen fuel cell buses for the first timeAlexander Dennis Ltd (ADL) has announced it’s to add hydrogen fuel cell buses to its current line-up of low and zero-emissions vehicles.

New Civil Engineer

• ‘Root and branch’ rail review launches call for evidenceThe “root and branch” review into the UK’s rail industry, announced by transport Secretary Chris Grayling in September, has launched its call for evidence.
• Exclusive | Windsor to Heathrow rail scheme 'rejected outright'The proposed Windsor Link Railway (WLR) which would have provided southern access into Heathrow has been “rejected outright” by the government as part of its call for market led proposals (MLP).

Rail Magazine

• Merseyrail sets the benchmarkWe are creatures of habit. None of us like to have our rail journeys affected by engineering works, but sometimes it’s simply not possible to avoid such disruptions.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Welsh to spend £2m on another bus reviewThe Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) has allocated £2m for a bus review in its draft 2019/20 budget.
• TruTac's software analysis benefits Greys of ElyA switch to TruTac’s tachograph analysis and compliance-control software has helped Greys of Ely raise the ‘compliance bar’.
• Attracting younger people to the bus industryYoung people are a vital part of the bus industry’s future. If it is to attract them both as passengers and as employees, the right image must be projected, says a cross-section of the sector’s senior leadership

Aviation Industry

• Virgin Atlantic: No need to join SkyTeam yet UK long-haul carrier Virgin Atlantic has no immediate plans to join the SkyTeam alliance, despite being part-owned by US SkyTeam member Delta Air Lines and alliance partner Air France-KLM being in the process of buying a stake in the carrier. read more
• Former Boeing exec to head RTCAFormer airline pilot and Boeing executive Terry McVenes has joined standards organization RTCA as its new president and CEO. read more
• Air China to launch direct Beijing-Phnom Penh serviceAir China will begin direct flights from Beijing to Cambodia’s Phnom Penh, with 3X-weekly Airbus A320 service, from Jan. 7, 2019, marking the first time both capital cities are connected. read more

Other News Sources

• Trains hit 13-year low for punctuality, and one in seven are late More than one in seven trains were late in the year to the end of September, representing the worst punctuality since December 2005.