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

Saturday, 27 May 2017

BBC News

• Heathrow loses Crossrail access charge caseThe airport was planning on charging Crossrail �42m per year to use its track.
• Uber granted four-month licence to continue in LondonThe car hire service's previous licence was due to expire on 30 May.
• Damon Smith jailed for planting failed Tube bombDamon Smith claimed he left the device on the Jubilee line train as a prank.
• Gatwick Airport flights depart without luggageThe airport is working with airlines to get passengers's luggage to them

The Guardian

• Gatwick airport baggage system failure forces passengers to fly without luggageBreakdown of system for sorting and delivering suitcases to planes causes delays in run-up to bank holiday weekendPassengers have been flying from Gatwick without their luggage after a breakdown in the airport’s baggage system delayed check-ins and caused chaos in terminals. The airport announced the problem with its system for sorting and delivering bags to planes on Twitter just after 5.30am on Friday morning. Continue reading...
• Uber's London licence renewed for only four monthsTransport for London continues to consider five-year licence as unions express concerns over working practicesUber’s licence to operate in London has been renewed but only for a period of four months, as transport authorities continue to deliberate whether to grant it a five-year licence. The decision over renewal has become the latest focus of controversy around the app-based taxi firm, with black-cab drivers and unions demanding that Transport for London reject the application without assurances over Uber’s operation and working practices. Continue reading...

The Telegraph

• Bank holiday getaway chaos as 16 million drivers hit the roads during heatwave
• Dozens dead as gunmen attack bus of Coptic Christians in Egypt
• Ex-altar boy locked up for 15 years for planting home-made bomb on Tube train

Times Online

• Chinese jets intercept American spy plane [Subscription]Hong Kong An American spy plane was intercepted by two Chinese fighter jets, one of which flew within 200m in what US officials described as an “unsafe and unprofessional” encounter. The P-3 Orion was in international airspace 150 miles southeast of Hong Kong when one of the jets flew upside down above it and restricted its ability to manoeuvre. The US would take up the issue with China through diplomatic and military channels, the officials said. The incident on Wednesday came a week after Chinese jets flew within 45m of an American WC-135 aircraft over the East China Sea.
• Heathrow loses bid to charge Crossrail [Subscription]Heathrow suffered a heavy blow yesterday after failing to force Crossrail to pay millions to use its tracks into the airport.
• Flybe flight from Edinburgh to Manchester touches down with failed engine [Subscription]A passenger plane landed at Manchester airport with only one engine working properly after the pilot declared a mid-air emergency.
• City centre flats will come with free Uber rides [Subscription]First it was taxis, then fast-food takeaways, courier services, boats and even flying cars. Now Uber has plans to enter the property market.
• Airbus 380 in near-miss with private jet near Heathrow after controller became distracted [Subscription]A private jet was involved in a near-miss with the world’s biggest passenger jet after an air traffic controller became distracted at a vital moment, it emerged yesterday.

Mail Online

• Driver who killed man while using 2 phones jailed Ryan Freeth (pictured) was calling friends with one phone and streaming music with another when he struck 66-year-old Leslie Marks, left, in Amblecote, leaving him with fatal injuries.
• Prince William scrambled to try to save a teenage boy The Duke of Cambridge was scrambled to pilot an air ambulance helicopter to Lee Valley Park in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, after the emergency services were alerted.
• Damon Smith jailed after planting bomb on London tube Former altar boy Damon Smith built the device at home with a �2 clock from Tesco after finding an online al Qaida article entitled Make A Bomb In The Kitchen Of Your Mom.
• Gatwick Airport travel chaos as conveyor belt fails Britons will face Bank Holiday travel chaos as motorists take to the roads over the weekend amid major airport delays and speed restrictions on trains caused by the heatwave across the UK.

The Mirror

• Portland train attack: Man 'shouted racist slurs at young Muslim women' before fatally stabbing two passengers who intervenedPeople tried to intervene to protect the two women before the man began knifing them at random, police believe

Birmingham Mail

• Birmingham Airport's premium drop off facility is now open The cost here is currently £1 for ten minutes

Bolton News

• 'Show patience' on crowded trains after terrorist attackPEOPLE are being urged to show patience on the rail network as services face an ‘unprecedented time’ while Victoria Station remains closed following Monday’s terrorist attack.
• Drivers urged to follow diversion after reports of traffic chaosMOTORISTS are being urged to follow diversions after reports of ‘appalling’ signage and traffic chaos due to a road closure.

London Evening Standard

• London Boulevard: Plans to link east and West End with city's first 'healthy street'Plans have been unveiled to link the East End and West End with London's first "healthy street".
• Gatwick airport delays: passengers told to fly without luggage due to bag system faultPassengers flying from Gatwick Airport for bank holiday breaks were faced with chaos this morning as many were told they will have to fly without their baggage.
• Bank Holiday travel: Londoners face traffic chaos as they hit roads for long weekend in soaring temperatures Londoners face mammoth journeys out of the capital in the sweltering heat as thousands head off for Bank Holiday weekend breaks.

Northern Echo

• Off-road bikers targeted after they take to the streets A WARNING has been issued in response to off-road bikers driving through residential streets as police across the county crackdown on the problem.
• Eyes on the skies as Skylive Airshow 2017 returns to regionALL eyes will be on the skies tomorrow to see the long-awaited take off of the second-annual Skylive Airshow as it returns to Durham Tees Valley Airport.

The York Press

• New #walkcycle festival launched in York A NEW festival to promote walking and cycling in York and celebrate the city's heritage will bring the community together this half-term.
• Major revamp plan for city train station YORK Railway Station is set for a major redevelopment, including a new customer zone, first class lounge and shops, The Press can reveal.

Wales Online

• Later trains will be running as part of revised timetable for Champions League final Thousands of people are expected to descent on Cardiff for the match with train services expected to be extremely busy

Bucks Free Press

• PICTURES: Train enthusiasts bid farewell to iconic Bubble CarsResidents and train enthusiasts flocked to a railway station last week to bid farewell to the iconic Bubble Cars as they went into retirement.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Greater Anglia launches shocking new video to stop trespassing on tracks in Suffolk and EssexShocking new images of people dicing with death on the region’s rail lines has been released by train operator Greater Anglia in a bid to reduce the number of trespass incidents on the track.

North Wales Live

• Cyclists will ride 96km around Merseyside this weekend to fundraise in memory of Hillsborough victims All funds raised will benefit Alder Hey children's hospital and Jamie Carragher foundation

Peterborough Telegraph

• Are you unknowingly breaking the law on the road?One in four motorists admit to regularly ‘taking risks’ on the road, a study has found.

Other Regional Press

• BANK HOLIDAY GETAWAY: Oxford road 'one of UK's busiest' this weekend Drivers warned of significant delays as A34 listed a traffic 'hotspot' for bank holiday
• Transport chief: Queen Street closure just ‘experimental’A DECISION to close a busy Oxford shopping street to traffic could be reversed after six months if it causes problems, the county’s transport boss has said.
• HMS Pickle arrives in Hartlepool and is welcoming visitors onboard The original was a Royal Navy topsail schooner and the first ship to bring home the news of Nelson’s famous victory
• ROADWORKS ALERT: Major projects set to cause upheaval on roads - and 'significant disruption' to bus servicesDRIVERS and bus passengers are facing extensive disruption in the coming days due to major road projects in Weymouth and Dorchester.
• Are you unknowingly breaking the law on the road?One in four motorists admit to regularly ‘taking risks’ on the road, a study has found.

C.N.N.

• Man shouting 'anti-everything slurs' kills 2 in Portland, police sayTwo men were fatally stabbed Friday on a crowded commuter train in Portland, Oregon, when they confronted a passenger who was

Airportwatch

• Flight times to New York could be almost halved by first supersonic crossing of Atlantic since Concorde [Subscription]Journey times between London and New York could be almost halved under plans for the first supersonic crossing of the Atlantic by a passenger jet since the retirement of Concorde.

Rail Magazine

• Record number of passenger journeys, but the growth slowsGrowth rail passenger journeys being made slowed in 2016/2017, but still record numbers travelled

Rail Technology Magazine

• Firearms officers patrol trains for the first time For the first time in rail history, specialist firearms officers will patrol trains across the UK network to ensure that the travelling public are kept safe after Monday’s terrorist attack. Following the events of the suicide bombing in Manchester a few days ago, security has been stepped...
• Carillion plans job losses as NR renewal cutbacks start to biteThe RMT has this week vowed to fight “vigorously” against planned cuts to renewals work for Network Rail (NR) being carried out by contractor Carillion. The news was broken as the company handed the union a consultation document that warned that job redundancies and cuts could be...
• New Merseyrail fleet a platform for future innovationsDavid Powell, programme director of rolling stock at Merseytravel, talks about the procurement of the new fleet of metro trains for the Merseyrail network and plans for the future. Back in December 2016, Liverpool city-region leaders made the announcement for their preferred bidder, Stadler, to...

Railnews

• Heathrow loses Crossrail track access charges claim A three day judicial review has rejected a claim from Heathrow Airport which had been set to cost Transport for London �42 million a year in access charges for running Crossrail services to Heathrow. A claim for access charges had been lodged by Heathrow Airport Limited, which had argued that its predecessor BAA had invested some �1 billion in building the Heathrow link from the Great Western Main Line in the 1990s. Heathrow Airport Holdings said it was �disappointed� about today�s ruling.

Aviation Industry

• Bombardier plans 30-35 CSeries deliveries in 2017, confident on salesBombardier is sticking with its target of delivering 30-35 CSeries aircraft in 2017, but most of the deliveries will be back loaded toward the end of the year, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft president Fred Cromer said. read more
• SWISS takes delivery of its first Bombardier CS300Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) has taken delivery of the first of 20 Bombardier CS300 aircraft it has on order. read more

Other News Sources

• What you should do if you need to stop on a smart motorway and there is no hard shoulder Highways England has issued guidance about how to use smart motorways after dashcam footage showed a driver struggling along the M25 after losing a front wheel
• Bank holiday: Rail services set for disruption as engineering works take place Major engineering work is taking place over the bank holiday weekend which is affecting some services across Surrey