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

Saturday, 27 June 2020

BBC News

• Manchester Metrolink free wi-fi could be axed to save moneyThe tram network has been under financial pressure since the start of the coronavirus lockdown.
• London Mayor warns of police, fire and transport cutsThe Mayor of London sets out proposals detailing where cuts need to be made due to Covid-19.
• Railway line and road damaged during thunderstormsNetwork Rail says the West Highland Line will be closed for more than two weeks after a landslip under the track.
• BA cabin crew: I won't earn enough to pay my mortgageSenior crew members fear losing their homes if a new pay deal proposed by the airline is approved.
• Coronavirus: Delta to extend caps on passenger numbersThe airline has been capping the numbers on board its flights to no more than 60% of capacity.

The Guardian

• Britons to be allowed to holiday abroad from July via 'air bridges'Ministers also expected to end policy of quarantining arrivals to the UK for 14 daysCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageOverseas holidays will be given the green light from early next month, with the government expected to suspend the 14-day quarantine period for a series of countries and also to set up so-called air bridge arrangements for overseas destinations.While the full list of countries involved is still being confirmed, the initial phase of travel opening up is expected to involve European nations including France, Greece, Spain and possibly Portugal, with othe...

The Herald

• Subway operator warns of 'significant service cuts' without government helpGLASGOW’S Subway operator has warned it may be forced to drastically reduce services permanently without urgent Government aid as it battles a deficit of up to £20million in passenger losses.

The Independent

• Quarantine: Government accused of 'reverse engineering' controversial policy with air bridges'Other countries are wondering why the UK is making things so complicated,' said Paul Charles of Quash Quarantine campaign group

The Telegraph

• Travel latest: Thousands told European trips are cancelled despite air bridges deal

Times Online

• Selling and leasing back aircraft delivers another £200m to Easyjet [Subscription]Easyjet has raised about £200 million by striking a deal over some of its aircraft, only a day after boosting its balance sheet with a share sale that netted more than £400 million.
• Amazon becomes back-seat driver [Subscription]Amazon has made its most significant foray into self-driving vehicles with the purchase of Zoox, an autonomous taxi start-up, for more than $1 billion.
• Ryanair jet was seconds from hitting the ground [Subscription]A British airline captain and trainee co-pilot let a Ryanair jet carrying 166 people come close to hitting the ground near an airport, investigators said.
• Don’t eat or drink on train journeys [Subscription]Rail passengers are being told to avoid eating and drinking on trains as part of measures introduced to control coronavirus amid concerns that services will be overwhelmed as the economy reopens.
• Holiday season back on with travel ‘traffic light’ plan [Subscription]More than 15 countries to be opened for tourists

City AM

• Amazon buys self-driving startup Zoox for $1bnAmazon has acquired US self-driving startup Zoox, marking its first major step into the driverless cars market. The deal is The post Amazon buys self-driving startup Zoox for $1bn appeared first on CityAM.

Mail Online

• Air pollution in London rising to pre-pandemic levels Air pollution levels in London, Paris, Rome and other European cities have all bounced back as a result of coronavirus lockdowns being eased, a new report says.
• Police say they HAVE fined Tube passengers without face masksPolice insist they have fined passengers ignoring coronavirus regulations by travelling without a mask, despite Transport for London admitting allowing something of a grace period for rule-breakers.
• Is the Union Flag on Boris' plane upside down?Enthusiasts said they thought the Union Flag on its tailfin had been done upside down as Boris Johnson's official aircraft took off from Cambridgeshire yesterday (pictured).

This is Money

• Will holiday-goers ever get the chance to fly on electric planes?Electric planes are touted as the future of air travel, allowing us to continue jetting off while protecting the planet. But how viable do they really look for mass commercial flight?

Birmingham Post

• Marine manufacturer continues growth with factory expansionAdvanced Insulation Systems buys Gloucester plant and expands Manuplas factory in Plymouth
• Moves to re-privatise East Coast main line rail services are scrappedPublicly-owned LNER will run services for next three years, with option for two year extension

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Railway receives £50,000 Covid-19 boost - meaning steam trains could run again from mid-AugustSTEAM trains could run again between Keighley and Oxenhope from the middle of August thanks to a lottery grant boost.
• Queensbury Tunnel campaigners write to Grant Shapps after 'derisory' funding offer CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save the historic Queensbury Tunnel from closure have written to the Transport Secretary over “deep dismay and bewildermentâ€� at a funding offer from the Government.

London Evening Standard

• Sadiq Khan warns Met Police and TfL face cuts as City Hall income divesPotential cuts of almost £110m in policing and £290 million in transport were outlined today by Sadiq Khan.

Manchester Evening News

• Long-awaited £20m road linking town centre with the M6 has openedWork on the A49 link road began in late 2018
• Brits WILL have summer holidays abroad as major travel boost announcedPeople will soon be able to travel to countries such as France, Spain and Greece this summer

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Jet2 cancels holidays and flights for thousands of customersThe airline has now vowed to only fly to quarantine-free countries due to the coronavirus pandemic

Northern Echo

• Red Arrows’ fly-past in Leeming Bar, Catterick Garrison and Scarborough TODAYARMED FORCES DAY will be celebrated today with Red Arrows flypasts of two North Yorkshire military bases.

Other Regional Press

• Swindon council to spend £500,000 on improving safety at roads near schoolsHighways officers at Swindon Borough Council have come up with a ranking system to decide on which roads near schools need action most urgently.
• Hythe Ferry back in action after sailings suspended because of lockdownA VITAL transport service is due to resume today - more than three months after it was suspended following the start of the national lockdown.
• Hundreds call for rethink on Southampton bike lanes revampCONCERNS have been raised over temporary changes on a major Southampton road.
• Emergency cycling improvements for Oxfordshire: the places, costs, and when it will be done £130,000 will be spent on bike racks across Oxfordshire, as part of the changes to travel expected as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
• Bus passengers' confusion over face masks continueANGER over the new government policy that face masks are compulsory on buses continues in Oxfordshire.
• Town-wide 20mph limit given go-aheadA blanket 20mph speed limit will be enforced on roads across a Kent town for six months, council bosses have revealed.
• This is what it's like getting a bus in York right nowOur reporter took a three-hour trip through York on Friday morning on one of the city's main lines for a taste of what it's like as the country eases out of lockdown
• £40m transport plan for West and North Yorkshire gets green lightThere are 15 schemes connecting the region

C.N.N.

• Airline executives and Pence agree to move forward with contact tracing of passengersVice President Mike Pence has told major airlines to move forward with an industry-led solution for the contact tracing of passengers during the coronavirus pandemic.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Avanti West Coast adopts Sunflower scheme Avanti West Coast has this month partnered with the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Scheme. The scheme gives customers with hidden disabilities a lanyard, wristband or wallet card with a recognisable sunflower logo. They can then show this item to a staff member to let them know they may need some...
• £250m HS2 work package puts firms on alert High Speed Two (HS2) Ltd has placed ground investigation firms on alert for a £250m package of work for phase two of the project, north of Birmingham. HS2 is planning to brief firms about the package in a webinar on July 9th ahead of inviting tenders for a chief ground investigation...

Railnews

• Glasgow Subway operator SPT meets today over cash crisis Glasgow Subway operator Strathclyde Partnership for Transport has sounded a warning about the Subway™s finances as a result of the pandemic, and members of SPT are meeting today to discuss the growing cash crisis.

Other News Sources

• Shapps reveals hydrogen bus town planFollowing sustained lobbying from JCB heir Jo Bamford, the transport secretary is backing a hydrogen bus town experiment   Shapps: I think we can also steal a march on other places in the world by having British bus manufacturers lead the market   Transport secretary Grant Shapps is “very, very keen that we push hydrogen” and will announce plans for a ‘hydrogen bus town’. Local authorities have already been invited to apply to become the UK’s first all-electric bus town. The winning area will receive up to £50m to help pay for a brand-new fleet of electric bus...
• Confidence in public transport slips further39% say they will use public transport less once all restrictions are lifted, with 65% of those predicting a switch to car     The current advice to avoid public transport could have far-reaching implications on the way we travel, long after the Covid-19 lockdown ends, according to a representative survey of 1,500 adult UK residents undertaken by transport and research consultancy SYSTRA between June 4 and 12. Key findings include: 39% predict they will make fewer public transport trips once all Covid-19 travel restrictions are lifted than before lockdown, this increases to 59% of th...
• Megabus returns: Here's when and where they'll travel to Intercity coach operator Megabus has announced that it will be restarting part of its network from July 3 to help reunite friends and family.
• The wait continues for learner drivers and their instructorsALTHOUGH driving lessons remain suspended – with the exception of key workers – the industry is aiming for July 4 as the provisional date on which learner drivers can get back on the road.
• Emirates restarts flights from UK to Dubai with 'strict safety measures' Emirates have restarted direct flights from London Heathrow and Manchester in the UK to Dubai.
• London Underground weekend closures: The Tube, Overground and DLR alterations to know about on June 27 and 28Make sure you plan ahead if you're travelling into London via public transport on Saturday and Sunday
• Europe’s car emissions spiked again in 2019, warn new statsEurope's average CO2 emissions from passenger cars increased again in 2019, according to the EU's environment agency, marking the third consecutive year that the statistics have trended upwards.
• Green light for 21km of temporary cyclewaysFUNDING for all seven temporary cycleway schemes in West Sussex has been approved by the Department for Transport.

EIN News Subscription

• Ireland to be included in ultra-fast rail network linking major European cities … International Economic Studies, an EU think-tank, has come … plan would see all EU capital cities connected (sorry … from the existing Trans-European Transport Network. Trains would run … viable alternative to air travel to European destinations. Dublin would …
• Families CAN book summer getaways as air bridges open and travel operators slash prices by 70% … travel' this summer. The air corridor scheme raises questions about … face masks are mandatory on transport and in busy shops.  Golf … Cyprus – 22 countries in the EU were ahead of us. But … masks is mandatory on public transport. Bag a bargain: A return …
• Pakistan grounds 262 airline pilots suspected of dodging their exams … question, state-run Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), said on Thursday it … included 109 commercial and 153 airline transport pilots, the minister said. PIA … ." The International Air Transport Association and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency …
• What are air bridges and which destinations might be included? … Britain’s first air bridges with “low-riskâ€� European destinations, including France … destinations likely to include other European countries such as Denmark, Norway … -riskâ€� Caribbean islands. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said air bridges would only …