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

Saturday, 13 March 2010

BBC News

• Five charged over 'rail bribery'Five rail contractors appear in court accused of bribing a Network Rail manager who later killed himself with his wife.
• Strike 'will not hit rugby fans'Rugby fans travelling to the Scotland v England match should not be affected by the rail strike, First ScotRail says.

The Guardian

• London's eighth wonder of the worldThames tunnel, created by Marc Brunel and son Isambard in 1843, reopened to walkers for first time in 145 years

The Herald

• ScotRail pledges to get fans to big matchScotrail has promised to run extra services for today™s Calcutta Cup rugby fixture at Murrayfield, despite a strike by conductors.

The Independent

• Open again after 145 years, the eighth wonder of the world In 1839 the entrepreneurial Frenchman Marc Brunel had a white elephant of mammoth proportions on his hands.

Bolton News

• New leads in hunt for railway metal thieves DETECTIVES investigating a gang of criminals wanted in connection with a string of metal thefts in and around Bolton™s railway network are looking into new lines of inquiry after they released these CCTV pictures.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Scots cities join forces in high speed train callEDINBURGH and Glasgow have joined together to call for their early inclusion in a £30 billion high-speed rail network.
• Jenny Dawe calls for public report into Edinburgh tram woesCITY leader Jenny Dawe has pledged to come clean over the city's tram scheme by ordering full details to be made public.

London Evening Standard

• Boris Johnson clashes with David Cameron on high-speed railMayor Boris Johnson clashes with the Tory leader as he fails to back policy on high-speed rail in Britain
• Suicide rail boss ‘bribed by contractors’
• Supervisors back national rail walkout

The York Press

• New CCTV cameras fitted in bid to make train travel safer NEW CCTV cameras are to be fitted on trains ferrying passengers from York to London and Edinburgh as rail bosses beef up security measures.

Bucks Free Post

• Man killed by train at Beaconsfield A MAN died after being hit by a train at Beaconsfield railway station tonight.

Carlisle News & Star

• Rail workers back strike action in jobs battleUnion members fighting job cuts which they say would jeopardise rail safety have given overwhelming support to a possible strike which could cripple the network.
• Blow to Cumbria high speed rail line hopesHopes for a high speed rail line all the way from Cumbria to London were deal a blow last night “ after the Government excluded anywhere north of Manchester or Leeds from the core route.

Sunderland Echo

• High-speed rail network will not reach North EastA new 250mph national rail network will not include the North East “ but passengers will still get shorter journey times.
• Tyne and Wear Metro cancelled after cable theftsMetro trains were suspended for the third time in two days after thieves targeted a railway line.

The Shields Gazette

• Cable thieves cause Metro miseryMETRO commuters faced frustration today after cable thieves struck in South Tyneside.

Washington Post

• Union Pacific CEO seeing signs of better business NEW YORK -- The CEO of Union Pacific said Friday that shipments carried by the nation's biggest railroad are stronger than expected this year, but are still a long way from full recovery.

RailNews.co.uk

• News: Widespread welcome for High Speed rail plan There has been a widespread welcome for the announcement of a 540km High Speed rail network by the transport secretary Andrew Adonis, but there have been renewed calls for the major Scottish cities to be included in the High Speed plans as soon as possible. ATOC is warning that the plans must make financial sense, and calling for private sector involvement.

Other News Sources

• Good news for train usersWigan commuter trains will soon be less of a strain at peak time The Government has announced extra carriages to reduce congestion and standing up on rush hour services betw
• £30bn high-speed rail network gets go-aheadA new £30 billion high-speed rail (HSR) network, with 250mph trains, which will improve transport links to Sheffield and Leeds, has been announced by the Government.
• Will the £30bn bullet train raise rail fares?A 335-mile rail link to whisk travellers from London to the Midlands and the North at up to 250mph was announced by the Government yesterday
• Super-fast - 250mph - trains could stop in LeicestershireSuper-fast trains which race from London at 250mph may stop in Leicestershire under plans for a high-speed rail network. The £30bn...
• £71m premium to DfT drives FGW into the redTrain operator First Great Western plunged to an operating loss of £8.8m in the year to 31 March 2009, according to its annual accounts, before exceptional restructuring costs, which cost the business another £4m. The company holds the Greater Western franchise, which runs InterCity services from London Paddinton to Bristol and Cornwall, Cardiff and Swansea as [...]
• TfL to set out business case for Tax Increment FinancingMayoral agency Transport for London is to publish a report next month to make the case for using a US infrastructure funding tool to fund a £600 million extension of the Northern Line to the Nine Elms area in Wandsworth.
• EASTER RAIL UPGRADE FOR SOUTHAMPTON MAIN LINE
• Bourne Tunnel in Rainhill gets listed Grade II status ONE of the earliest tunnels from the railway age has been given listed status.
• Birmingham Airport winner in high-speed rail plansTransport secretary Lord Adonis has confirmed that a new high-speed rail link will be connected to Birmingham Airport.Speculation had been growing about where would be serviced by the super-fast trains, which will travel at speeds of around 250mph.Heathrow Airport in the capital will not be directly linked to the network, but a new interchange will be built providing a connection to the travel hub on the Heathrow Express.It is thought that when completed the network will allow journey times of an hour-and-a-half from the West Midlands and 75 minutes from Leeds, Sheffield and Manchester to the ...
• Fury as Scotland is left out of 250mph rail plansBusiness leaders and politicians reacted with fury last night as Scotland was left out of plans to build a network of high-speed rail lines in the UK.
• Rail chiefs bid to improve rural serviceRAIL bosses are aiming for an improved service on rural lines when through trains to London are axed at the end of the year.
• Police hunt for two men after cable stolen from Stockingford rail line POLICE want to speak to two men after cable was stolen from a railway line at Stockingford.
• Tram line project 'may be sped up'Pro-tram councillors seeking re-election in Edinburgh in 2012 may speed up the building of a tram line in the city.
• Gordon Brown: High Speed rail a great day for Birmingham THE announcement of a new high speed rail line making Birmingham the centre of Britain’s national network was “a great day for Birmingham and the Midlands”, the Prime Minister said.