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

Friday, 16 October 2020

BBC News

• Creating fuel from thin air with artificial leavesPlants derive energy from carbon dioxide in the air and scientists are trying to mimic that process.
• 'Person in jetpack' spotted flying again near LA airportThe new sighting on Wednesday was at 6,000ft (1,829m), seven miles from the airport, officials say.
• Croydon tram crash: Inquest postponed due to rising Covid levelsAn inquest into the November 2016 crash that killed seven will not start on Monday as planned.
• Ryanair cuts back winter flight scheduleThe airline says it is responding to increased flight restrictions imposed because of the pandemic.

Financial Times

• Ryanair scales back winter schedule as bookings fallO'Leary attacks government mismanagement of Covid-19 crisis as aviation outlook darkens

The Guardian

• British pilot charged over Emiliano Sala plane crash deathMan faces prosecution on two counts over Channel accident in which footballer diedA British pilot is to be prosecuted in connection with the plane crash in which the Argentinian professional footballer Emiliano Sala died.The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) revealed on Thursday it had charged David Henderson, 66, with two offences relating to the accident over the Channel last year. Continue reading...
• Travellers from Italy must quarantine on arrival in UKCountry was one of the last destinations that holidaymakers could visit without need to isolate on return

The Herald

• Scotland transport: CrossCountry handed new three-year deal to run train services (subscription)Long-distance train operator CrossCountry has been awarded a new contract to continue running services for three more years

The Independent

• TfL told to hike fares and strip elderly of free travel to access new £1bn bailoutTransport for London (TfL) has been offered an additional billion pounds in bailout money from the government - along with further demands for fare hikes and cuts to free travel entitlements for children and pensioners, it has been reported

Times Online

• US offers to lift tariffs if Airbus repays aid billions (subscription)The United States has offered to lift steep tariffs on Scotch whisky, wine and other European exports if Airbus repays billions of dollars in state aid
• Jetpack daredevil spooks China Airlines pilot at 6,000ft (subscription)The China Airlines passenger plane was at 6,000ft and about seven miles from Los Angeles when the crew noticed something surprising outside the window: a person flying nearby wearing a jetpack
• French fume over tax on heavyweight 4x4s (subscription)A purchase tax is to be levied on heavyweight cars in France to try to curb the country’s love affair with 4x4s
• Unmarked police lorries spy reckless road users (subscription)First came the radar gun, then the speed camera. Now misbehaving motorists have a new nemesis: the undercover police lorry

City AM

• Railway bailout could cost taxpayer nearly £10bn this yearIt could cost the taxpayer almost £10bn to keep the railways running this year, Department for Transport (DfT) officials revealed

Daily Record

• Scotrail offering free tickets to the unemployed travelling to job interviewsThe rail company are trying to improve what has been a tough year for everyone by offering the free tickets.

This is Money

• Investors rush to the rescue as Rolls-Royce lands £2bn lifeline The iconic company has been hammered by coronavirus, which has triggered a collapse in global air travel and starved Rolls of income it usually makes from servicing plane engines.
• Retired electric car batteries to be used in mobile charging stationsThe aim is to provide a sustainable second-use model for the batteries, which lose capacity over time and after years of use are deemed no longer efficient for electric cars

Sky News

• Revealed: The risk of exposure to coronavirus on a passenger planeThe risk of exposure to the coronavirus on flights is very low, according to a US Department of Defence study.

Birmingham Post

• Businessman honoured by having GWR train named after himSteve Whiteway recognised for decades helping businesses and charities as he fights serious illness
• HS2 at heart of West Midlands' fightback, says mayorAndy Street tells online summit of pivotal role new high-speed line will play as 400,000 contracts for SMEs are showcased

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Major £30m scheme announced to protect A55 from floodingThe Abergwyngregyn to Tai’r Meibion scheme will improve safety along a 2.2km stretch of the carriageway
• Snowdon Mountain Railway announces early closure due to travel restrictionsThe Snowdonia service will remain closed until March 2021

Cambridge News

• We tried out Cambridge's new e-scooters - and this is what we thought50 e-scooters were rolled out in Cambridge today as part of a year-long trial
• Italy, San Marino and Vatican City State removed from UK travel corridor listThe Greek island of Crete will be added to the exemption list for people arriving in England

Leeds Live

• Leeds bus services could disappear unless Government coughs up cashThe journeys need to be subsidised when the coronavirus pandemic is over

Peterborough Telegraph

• No railway services between Peterborough and King’s Cross this weekendNetwork Rail and train operators on the East Coast Main Line are reminding passengers not to travel to or from London King’s Cross, or on Thameslink services via Finsbury Park this weekend (Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 October), as essential work continues on the East Coast Upgrade to bring more reliable journeys

Other Regional Press

• Coronavirus pandemic has made us question the need to travelThe huge tailbacks that occurred after roads closed in Bushey underlines once more how our over-reliance on the car is getting us absolutely nowhere.
• New cycle scheme could see part of Devizes Road closed to carsThe new £508,000 Hilperton to Melksham cycle lane could see major changes to parts of Devizes Road for motorists.
• Improved bus services provided at Milton ParkMilton Park, one of the leading science and technology communities in Oxfordshire, has linked up with Thames Travel to provide its new shuttle bus service between Didcot Parkway and the business park.
• New 'high-speed' roundabout for Bicester is put on holdAFTER several fatalities at a roundabout in Bicester, plans to build a new one in the town have been put on hold as councillors want to make sure the junction is as safe as possible.
• Government to increase Southampton's rail freight capacity with £17mil cash boostThe government have announced an investment of £17 million into Southampton's freight train infrastructure
• Daytime works to cause delays on M27 this weekend - Details WORK is set to be carried out on part of the M27 this weekend, with roads bosses warning drivers to plan for delays.
• Changes for drivers as next stage of A19 road widening works goes aheadDiversions will be in place as the £70m scheme continues
• Concerns about roads and services as plans go in for 383 homes in BlackburnA NEW housing estate with more than 380 homes could be coming to Blackburn.
• 'Game changer' trains from Dover to London in under an hourFaster rail travel will open up a host of opportunities for Dover if trains can reach the capital in less than an hour, councillors have said
• MP slams 'ridiculous' train service to Hereford AN MP has welcomed efforts to improve public transport arrangements for sixth-formers in Monmouthshire and Torfaen, but said further improvements could be made.
• Hampshire drivers face 60-mile diversion due to roadworksAll the latest roadworks and diversions that you need to know about.
• Access and Movement study to look into improving Bridport town centreWays to improve access to Bridport town centre for both pedestrians and drivers are being explored.
• Six Coventry city centre car parks to closeUsage in the car parks has only hit 25 per cent during Covid
• Maria Caulfield MP welcomes contract to secure Newhaven ferryAN MP has welcomed news that a popular ferry route has been saved from decommissioning.
• New A27 Arundel bypass will avoid South Downs National ParkTHE NEW route of a controversial bypass in West Sussex has been announced by Highways England - and it will avoid the national park.
• Community fury at new A27 Arundel bypass plansA COMMUNITY group says plans for the new Arundel bypass route will

C.N.N.

• I thought 'flights to nowhere' were silly. Then I went on one.Hong Kong Express is offering 75-minute flights that circle Hong Kong air space and return to the airport

British Trams Online

• New transport projects being developed in West Midlands to transform transport in the region£2.4 million is to be invested in the West Midlands by West Midlands 5G Limited (WMG5) to seven UK based consortiums to support the development of new products and services with the aim of improving transport

Coach and Bus Week

• Stagecoach invests in 34 new coaches to upgrade Oxford TubeStagecoach says that a £13m investment will deliver major improvements for one of Europe’s most frequent express coach services, with the first new coaches going into service before Christmas on the Oxford Tube
• Optare vows to maintain production despite industrial actionOptare has announced it has put in place contingency plans to maintain production and to deliver orders despite the decision of the Unite union to take industrial action
• Ember: Edinburgh’s electric expressOn 1 October, new entrant to the inter-city market Ember launched its inaugural service between Dundee and Edinburgh. Jonathan Welch spoke to founders Pierce Glennie and Keith Bradbury about the new fully-electric service
• Working together to offer operators choiceFleet Resourcing and the Bus and Coach Centre formed an alliance this year that saw operations expand and operators benefit from a larger selection of vehicles. Richard Sharman visited the Oxford site to find out more
• World’s first hydrogen-powered double-decker arrives in AberdeenThe world’s first hydrogen-powered double-decker set to enter service has been revealed in Aberdeen, where it will undergo a period of final testing and driver training, with the buses expected to be in service next month

New Civil Engineer

• DfT agrees to ‘some funding’ for Hammersmith Bridge permanent repairsDfT permanent secretary Bernadette Kelly confirmed that the government had agreed to provide "some funding" for permanent repairs, during a Public Accounts Committee meeting held yesterday

Railnews

• Scottish town regains its station after 56 years Trains are calling at Kintore in Aberdeenshire today for the first time since December 1964. The new two-platform station was built at a cost of £15 million. It is fully accessible, with lifts to the footbridge, and also has a car park which offers 168 spaces – 24 of them equipped with electric charging points. The new station will be served by up to 28 ScotRail trains a day.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Bus patronage recovery rate variation exposed by surveyThe extent of variation in the rate of bus patronage recovery outside London has been exposed by data collated by the Ten Per Cent Club, a group of industry professionals
• Stagecoach calls for air quality focus on 40th anniversaryA coach returned to original Stagecoach ‘stripes’ colours is among celebrations of the group’s 40th anniversary as it urges the government to address air quality issues and to work with the industry to foster a positive future for public transport
• Enhanced Job Support Scheme ‘must capture coach operators’The Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) says it will be lobbying the government to recognise coach operators that are forced to close because of enhanced restrictions over the winter as being eligible for the expanded Job Support Scheme (JSS)
• First Bus speeds up boarding with launch of Express Mode on Apple PayFirst Bus has become the first UK bus operator outside of London to launch Express mode on Apple Pay across its entire network
• Brighton and Hove Buses staff shine a leading light for women in transportBrighton and Hove Buses Operations Manager, Kirstie Bull, and Head of Marketing and Communications, Vicky Doyle, have been recognised for their contribution to the transport and logistics industry
• Leeds Clean Air Zone set for formal abandonmentA Clean Air Zone (CAZ) in Leeds is no longer required, a joint review by Leeds City Council (LCC) and central government has concluded
• Extra £52.6m allocated for bus services in ScotlandThe Scottish Government has approved a further £52.6m to support and maintain bus services in Scotland during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic
• Details of solar panels for five Oxford Tube Panoramas releasedFurther information has been released about the solar panels that are to be fitted to five of the 34 Plaxton Panorama-bodied Volvo B11RLE double-decker coaches that are on order for Stagecoach’s Oxford Tube service
• Pandemic’s impact on coach further exposed by mileage dataFigures collated by a coach operator comparing the mileage covered by its vehicles in 2020 to like-for-like data for 2019 for its core business have further illustrated the impact of coronavirus COVID-19 on the coach tourism sector.
• Home-to-school transport return in England ‘has gone well’The return of home-to-school transport in England has gone more smoothly than might have been expected. That is the experience of two operators that are heavily involved in the sector
• Bristol ‘contingency’ Traffic Clean Air Zone consultation opensBristol City Council (BCC) has opened a consultation into revised charging options that may be needed to improve air quality in the city through what it now calls a Traffic Clean Air Zone (TCAZ)