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

Wednesday, 27 July 2016

BBC News

• Free bike scheme proves popular for BirminghamA project to offer 3,500 bikes to residents has proved popular in its first year.
• Pokemon Go: Network Rail has 'safety concerns' for gamersNetwork Rail contacts Nintendo and app developers over
• Warning as rail trespass incidents in Wales on the riseA warning is issued after figures showed rail trespass incidents in Wales have risen by 19% in a year.
• Porsche hiring for electric car projectThe German luxury carmaker Porsche is creating 1,400 new jobs for its electric car project but says finding the right staff is tough.

Department for Transport

• £344 million London City Airport expansion hailed by ChancellorLondon City Airport expansion will create 1,600 airport jobs and potentially add £1.5 billion to the UK economy by 2025.

Financial Times

• Solar circumnavigation a leap for renewablesPioneer predicts electric-powered flights for public within a decade
• Port operators hope to avoid EU rulesBrexit negotiators face balancing act to maintain close trading links with Europe

The Guardian

• Book now: German readers get extra baggage allowance for holiday readingThe Buch an Bord scheme gives readers an additional kilogram of luggage for free to make room for books. What will you be packing?Having just returned from holiday in France, where thanks to overloading we were 7kg over easyJet’s 20kg weight limit and forced to undertake a rapid repack, here is an initiative I would love to see the UK’s airlines adopt. Publishing Perspectives has reported on the German book trade’s Buch an Bord (Book on Board) campaign with Condor airlines: all passengers displaying a Buch an Bord sticker collected from their local bookseller will be allowed an extra kilo of w...
• Air France strike: travellers face week-long disruption as third of flights scrappedFlights to Europe, north Africa and Israel will be affected, as well as some routes in Asia and Africa, after talks fail A week-long strike by Air France flight crews that starts on Wednesday will see the carrier scrap 30% of domestic and medium-haul flights at the height of the busy holiday period, the carrier has said.About 35% of flight attendants, who account for 13,600 of Air France’s workforce of 50,000, are expected to join a stoppage which the airline said would affect 10% of long-haul flights. Continue reading...
• Without a radical overhaul of transport, UK suburbs face povertyToo many cars and poor public transport services linking outlying areas to city centres have increased poverty and social isolation in the suburbs

The Herald

• Rail lovers in for book bonanza at Pitlochry saleTRAINSPOTTERS will be out in their droves in Pitlochry this weekend as a massive collection of second-hand railway books go on sale for charity.

The Telegraph

• Gatwick airport rail fire: Delays on Gatwick Express, Southern and Thameslink trains after blaze on track
• Terrifying footage of train track near-misses released by British Transport Police in warning to parents and children

Times Online

• Clearly able to engineer growth [Subscription]With Volvo Aerospace and, more recently, the venerable Fokker business in the Netherlands under its belt, GKN has shown the ability to carry out value-enhancing acquisitions even if this year is a bit of a trough for that side of the business. One analyst was setting an old hare racing yesterday — the demerger of the automotive and aerospace sides.
• Solar aircraft makes history after flying round the world (at 40mph) [Subscription]Bertrand Piccard, the Swiss aeronautical pioneer, touched down in Abu Dhabi yesterday aboard his Solar Impulse aircraft, completing an epic first flight around the world using only the power of sunlight.
• EU seeks arbitration for Norwegian dispute [Subscription]The European Commission will launch an arbitration procedure to resolve a dispute between Norwegian Air Shuttle and US regulators over the budget carrier’s wish to fly to the United States from Ireland, two sources have said.
• Pressure mounts on rail companies to publicise their cheapest fares [Subscription]The law should be changed to force rail companies to disclose the cheapest fares, Britain’s leading consumer champion has said.
• Come for a quick spin on my Tube of the future - Matthew Parris [Subscription]Transport policy was my great love as an MP, and my brain teems with plans

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Police speak of their 'passion' for making Bradford's roads safer as another crackdown landmark looms OFFICERS running the police crackdown on dangerous driving in Bradford are “passionate” about making the district’s roads safer.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Gwynedd bus firm in France crash to hold internal investigationExpress Motors, which is based in Penygroes, says both of its drivers are now on their way back to the UK

London Evening Standard

• Student launches app to claim compensation for delayed rail passengersA London student has launched a smartphone app to help delayed commuters secure compensation from the vast sums being “hoarded” by train firms.
• Southern rail: Chaos affecting commuters set to get even worse as unions threaten major new strikeA dramatic escalation of the Southern Rail dispute has been announced by union leaders.
• Commuters slam Southern Rail for cancelling train because of graffitiFurious commuters have slammed Southern rail after several trains were cancelled this morning because of graffiti.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• New Northern Powerhouse Minister 'not snubbing the North East' - despite tour omissionThe first official tour of Andrew Percy on Wednesday takes in Hull, Liverpool and Manchester - but not the North East

Nottingham Evening Post

• Nottingham City Transport to become 'one of the greenest' bus operators in UK More than £16 million will be spent on making Nottingham City Transport's bus fleet more environmentally friendly.

Sheffield Star

• South Yorkshire children dicing with death on rail tracksChildren are being warned to stay away from railway tracks as new figures show trespass incidents have increased in South Yorkshire.

The York Press

• UPDATED: Evacuation after fire on train near York Railway Station PASSENGERS on a train near York Railway Station were evacuated last night because of a fire alert.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• �5m Leeds University cycling hub will be a HQ for championsWork has started on a £5m University of Leeds sports development that it is hoped will boost facilities for cycling and triathlon in the region - and become a training headquarters for Britain’s world-leading triathletes.
• Warning to parents as rail trespassing increases by a third in LeedsPARENTS are being urged to warn their children about the dangers of trespassing on railway lines after incidents went up by a third in a year.

Crewe Chronicle

• Bus services almost back to normal following collapse of GHA Coaches Cheshire East's transport management company praised for restoring services so promptly

Daventry Express

• Central London comes to standstill after 'intimidating' cyclists take over the streetsOVER 1,000 cyclists brought parts of central London to a standstill after taking part in a cycle from Embankment to the O2 in Greenwich.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Could cycling be the future in Ipswich? New bike-friendly plans could ease congestion in town centreMajor improvements to Ipswich town centre’s cycle network could be on the horizon in a bid to make cycling safer and easier.

Other Regional Press

• WATCH: Video reveals shocking footage of real life risks of trespassing on the rail tracksWARNING: Graphic images show moment man is dragged under moving train::: British Transport Police hope it will help save lives
• Hayes in the House: I’m honoured to take on transport role – by MP John HayesAppointed Minister of State for Transport last week, I was honoured to be called again to serve in the new Government.
• Commuter chaos expected in Broad Lane for six weeks with start of gas works Buses heading towards the city centre from Eastern Green will not stop along Broad Lane
• Shocking British Transport Police video shows dangers of trespassing on the railway Officers are urgently warning youngsters not to use railway lines as playgrounds during the long school holiday

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Volvo B8RLE is top of the league for Leicester Park and RideEight Volvo Bus B8RLEs have been delivered to established Leicestershire company, Roberts Travel Group. The vehicles feature MCV bodywork, and are earmarked for use on the Leicester Park and Ride bus routes, operated on behalf of Leicestershire County Council. Jonathan Hunt, Managing Director of Roberts Travel Group, said: “We have always had a good experience with our dealings with Volvo, and the locality of our Volvo dealership in Bardon makes it very convenient for any back up support. “The fuel consumption, reliability and size of this particular vehicle, with capacity for 91 p...
• Optare shortlisted for National Transport AwardOptare has been shortlisted for Transport Supplier of the Year by the National Transport Awards judging committee for its latest innovation, the extended range Solo electric bus. Earlier this year Optare electric buses were independently verified by TfL as the most efficient in London.  However, the challenge set by operators has always been for electric buses to achieve a whole day’s operating range with little or no need for opportunity charging throughout the day. Optare have taken up the challenge and recent development work has increased the range of a Solo electric bus by 50% ...
• DHL to trial Smart car mobile addresses in GermanyDrivers of Smart cars could soon have their DHL parcel delivery dropped straight into their car boot as part of a pilot scheme organised between the two companies. The smartphone-based service would see customers create a unique single-use authorisation number through an app which lets the courier locate and open the vehicle for a limited time. Essentially, the car is acting as a mobile address. DHL hopes that this pilot, staged in Germany from September, will make it easier to send and receive a parcel as well as adapt the process to meet customers’ needs. A near-identical trial held in May l...

Rail Technology Magazine

• OXplus supporting Siemens in the Riyadh Metro Rail project The Riyadh Metro Rail project will have a total length of 176 kilometers with six different metro lines operating on the network and a total of 85 stations.

Aviation Industry

• Virgin America shareholders approve Alaska mergerVirgin America shareholders have approved the San Francisco-based carrier’s proposed merger with Seattle-based Alaska Air Group. read more
• Solar Impulse completes around-the-world flightThe solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse 2 (Si2) has completed the first-ever around-the-world solar flight without a drop of fuel. read more
• Heathrow passport queues: passengers hit by long delaysWhistleblower says Border Force staff are ‘stressed’ and ‘cannot cope’

Other News Sources

• Southern and Gatwick Express services delayed after railway track fireTrains are expected to be disrupted until Tuesday evening after a fire broke out on the track outside Gatwick Airport
• World's first 'car park hotel' opens at Heathrow Airport Genius or ludicrous? Give your car a holiday the same time YOU have a holiday
• FTA backs call for decent facilities for drivers“Decent parking facilities providing basic needs for lorry drivers are a must” – says the Freight Transport Association. ...
• Leader’s appeal to new Transport Secretary Birmingham City Council leader Cllr John Clancy has urged new Transport Secretary Chris Grayling to put improved transport links between the UK’s major cities at the top of his ‘to-do’ list.
• Hailo merges with Daimler-owned MytaxiHailo to rebrand its UK & Ireland operations by mid-2017