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

Monday, 08 July 2019

BBC News

• British Airways faces record £183m fine for data breachBritish Airways says it is facing a record fine of £183m for last year's breach of its security systems. The airline, owned by IAG, says it was "surprised and disappointed" by the penalty from the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).
• Direct Manchester Saltburn train plan shelvedPlans for a direct train to run from Manchester to Saltburn will not go ahead because of timetable problems, transport chiefs have revealed.
• Boeing loses big order for 737 Max aircraftSaudi Arabian carrier flyadeal halts plan to buy Boeing planes and switches to Airbus fleet.
• British Airways in talks to avert pilots' strikeThe airline and pilots' union will hold talks to avoid a potentially disruptive summer walkout.

Department for Transport

• £20 million fund marks one year on from the Inclusive Transport StrategyDisabled rail passengers will benefit from a range of accessibility improvements across the rail network.

The Guardian

• British Gas and SSE to purge petrol and diesel from fleets by 2030Two of Britain’s biggest energy suppliers are accelerating the drive towards greener vehicles by pledging to replace their existing fleet of vans with all-electric models by 2030.
• Channel 5's nonsense will make me and other cyclists less safen Wednesday morning, I’ll be a little bit more wary when I cycle into work. I’m always hugely careful, anyway – the trip involves sharing space with tonne-plus lumps of speeding metal – but this time I’ll be particularly on my guard. Why? Because Channel 5 are putting me, and others, at risk.

The Independent

• Travel question: Is there a catch with split-ticketing on train journeys?I read your article about “split-ticketing” on the railways with the help of a new app. Call me a cynic, but whenever I see something that claims to be a guaranteed money-saver, I wonder what catches there are. Can you enlighten me?
• Air pollution cuts up to seven months off child life expectancy in Birmingham, research suggests'It's awful that children living in the UK are breathing air that may shorten their lives'

The Telegraph

• Chris Grayling accused of trying to 'silence' road hauliers over no-deal Brexit [subscription]Chris Grayling, the Transport Secretary, has been accused of trying to "silence" road hauliers from raising concerns about a no-deal Brexit.
• London commuters urged to turn off Wi-Fi on their phones to avoid having their every move tracked [subscription]London commuters have been urged to turn off the Wi-Fi on their phones while on they travel on the underground to prevent being tracked.

Times Online

• Britain’s sluggish trains trail global rivals [Subscription]Britain’s trains are being left behind by high-speed rivals in other countries because of congestion on the rail network, according to research. An international study ranked British trains 13th fastest in the world, down from 2nd in the late 1970s.
• Spanish on fast track to the west coast line [Subscription]Named after a bird, it flies through the Spanish countryside at about 190mph and is the pride of the state-owned Renfe company. Now the AVE train, or at least the knowhow behind it, could be coming to Britain.

Yorkshire Post

• HS2 is in the national interest and is not a vanity project – Yorkshire Post lettersYOUR COLUMNIST Tom Richmond (The Yorkshire Post, July 4) states that it is unacceptable that Pacer trains are still in use, and that the attitude towards addressing the aims of the Northern Powerhouse needs to change – this is absolutely correct. The assertion that such trains would be unacceptable in The South also should be heeded.

Other Regional Press

• Looking back at Glasgow's buses: Could Glasgow City Council take over First Group's bus services in the city?JUST months before Strathclyde Buses was launched, a union organiser fired a warning about the impact a privatised bus service could have on the people of Glasgow.
• New £20m fund to improve access for disabled rail passengers in WalesDISABLED rail passengers across Wales are set to benefit from a range of accessibility improvements paid for through a £20 million UK Government fund which opens today.
• Leeds bus companies ordered to improve as council leader brands privitisation 'disastrous'The companies which run buses in Leeds have been told to significantly improve the service they provide and been set 'very ambitious targets'.
• Gatwick Airport railway station set for £150m upgradeThe Government has announced a £150million investment to upgrade Gatwick Airport railway station. The upgrade will involve doubling the size of the station concourse, widening two platforms, adding five new lifts and eight new escalators, according to a spokesman from the Department for Transport.
• Major campaign launched to reopen this Stoke-on-Trent railway station - FIFTY-THREE years after it shut!Meir Station has been closed since 1966 but campaigners say reopening it would improve transport links in Stoke-on-Trent

New Civil Engineer

• DfT to focus on surface access in regional airport strategySurface access will prove “fundamental” to the government’s approach to regional airports in its aviation strategy, a Department for Transport aviation boss has claimed. Ian Elston, the head of the airport policy & competition branch and the DfT’s aviation policy division, made the remarks as regional airports such as Bristol and Manchester are seeking to expand.
• £1bn ‘Cardiff Crossrail’ plans revealedCardiff Council has revealed sweeping new transport plans, including a new light rail project for the…
• Gatwick Airport rail station set for £150M upgradeGatwick Airport’s train station will undergo a £150M upgrade, after the Department for Transport (DfT) promised…

Other News Sources

• Environmentalists should work with us to scale up solutions for net-zero aviation, not demonise our expansion - HeathrowHeathrow's Sustainability and Environment Director writes about progress being made to reduce emissions from aviation through technological improvements and carbon offsetting, including peat bog restoration.
• UK Chamber of Shipping develops Safety Culture CharterA ‘Safety Culture Charter’ has been developed by the UK Chamber of Shipping to support its shipowner and operating members in making a commitment to promote and adopt a positive safety culture within their organisations.
• Cosco Shipping Development names Wang as new chairmanWang Daxiong, 59, was previously the chief executive of the financing and leasing arm of China Cosco Shipping Group. He was also the chairman of Cosco Shipping Financial Holding, which is in the process of acquiring some major assets from Hong Kong-listed box maker Singamas

EIN News Subscription

• Airports in bid to achieve 'Net Zero' emissions by 2050  Dublin and Cork airports have signed a landmark commitment to become net zero for their carbon emissions by 2050 at the latest. Dublin and Cork Airports made the commitment as part of ACI EUROPE, the trade association for the European airport industry, announcing a new resolution formally committing the European airport industry to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.