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

Friday, 13 January 2017

BBC News

• RMT warns of more Tube strikes over ticket office closuresStrike action will be escalated by London Underground (LU) workers from 6 February unless a dispute over ticket office closures can be resolved, a union has warned.
• Southern rail: Train drivers stage third strike day of weekSouthern rail train drivers begin a third day of strike action this week, bringing severe disruption.

Financial Times

• New Tube strike looms as RMT threatens escalationFurther wave of disruption from February 6 unless demands on station staffing are met

The Guardian

• How do Southern Rail passengers regain their self-respect? By going on strike | David BoyleAfter eight months of appalling service, one commuter decided that the only way to fight back was through nonviolent direct action – and cakeImagine you went to a restaurant and found they couldn’t provide you with the menu, or maybe with any food at all – but you still had to pay for the steak tartare you ordered even though you only got a cheese sandwich and waited an hour.Imagine that, as an extra humiliation, you also had to prove you had paid when you left, by handing over your receipt to a security guard. Continue reading...

The Herald

• Under-fire ScotRail records 90 per cent punctuality ratingsUNDER-FIRE train operator ScotRail has seen its annual performance figures rises to 90 per cent, with its punctuality the second best in the UK.
• ScotRail chief says attacks on railways have become personalTHE head of under fire ScotRail has admitted that criticism of the railways had become personal after details of his contract became the centre of media reports.

The Scotsman

• ScotRail buys time but clock is still tickingThe latest performance figures for train punctuality in Scotland show that some progress has been made since public and political dissatisfaction reached a peak towards the end of 2016.

The Telegraph

• Chris Grayling brands Labour a 'disgrace' for supporting their union backers despite commuter misery

Mail Online

• No ticket? No problem... in Melbourne! Bizarre ad campaign uses smiling inspector telling commuters they WON'T be fined on the spot if they evade the fare Advertising for Melbourne's train network has confused commuters after announcing on-the-spot fines would be abolished to be more 'lenient'.

London Evening Standard

• Londoners face further Tube strikes as early as next month, RMT union announcesLondoners face more crippling Tube strikes next month, the RMT union announced today.
• Southern rail strike bosses accused of being 'dictators'Union bosses were accused of acting like "dictators" with the Southern rail strike which hit thousands of commuters today despite train drivers coming back to work.
• Revealed: London commuters foot �4m bill for union officialsLondon commuters are footing a �4.4 million payroll bill for trade union officials, including militants "inflicting misery" on the Tube, it was revealed today.
• Southern rail drivers go on strike for the third time this weekSouthern rail drivers have started their third day of strike action this week, bringing fresh misery to hundreds of thousands of commuters.

Manchester Evening News

• Passengers anger at 'Sardine Express' rail service to Manchester Customers getting on at Littleborough and Smithy Bridge have said they are crammed on the Northern trains - with some unable to actually get on or off

Other Regional Press

• Dundee railway station redevelopment is still on track, say contractorsThe £28 million redevelopment of Dundee Railway Station is still on track to for completion by the end of the year.

Rail Magazine

• Shotts Line to be wired in �49 million dealCarillion Powerlines Ltd wins �49m deal to electrify Shotts Line.

Rail Technology Magazine

• GTR takes to the Supreme Court to block further Aslef strikes on SouthernAfter launching a failed legal challenge at the High Court in December and subsequently losing its appeal case at the Court of Appeal, Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) is now taking its legal action against drivers’ union Aslef to the Supreme Court in the hopes of finally curtailing further...
• RMT extends DOO dispute to Northern and MerseyrailThe RMT has widened its dispute with Northern Rail as it has given the franchise’s operator Arriva Rail North two weeks to clarify whether trains will retain their guards or risk dispute. The union is already balloting its members for strikes on Northern Rail due to a dispute over an...
• Network Rail awards Carillion �49m Scottish electrification contractNetwork Rail has agreed a contract with Carillion Powerlines Ltd to deliver the electrification of the Shotts Line between Holytown Junction and Midcalder Junction. The £49m contract will see the delivery of 74km of electrified railway as part of the Scottish government’s wider...
• 'Saga of strike misery' to continue as RMT plans 23 January action on SouthernThe RMT has announced that guards on Southern will hold another 24-hour strike on 23 January as the union’s dispute with Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) presses on. The action marks the latest development in the long-running row over Southern’s proposed introduction of driver-only...

Railnews

• DOO appeal set to be heard by Supreme Court The long-running dispute over driver-only operation on Southern is set to move to the Supreme Court. The result of the hearing will affect the lives of many thousand of commuters in Sussex and neighbouring counties whose daily journeys have been disrupted by the ASLEF walkouts, involving around 1,000 drivers. Twelve drivers who belong to the RMT have also been joining the action. Govia Thameslink Railway has already argued without success in the High Court that the ASLEF strikes are breaching European law. The RMT said its position was 'perfectly clear' -- it will not agree to any extensions ...

Other News Sources

• This Man Plans To Hire A Train During Southern Strikes Fed up with the Southern strikes? Why don't we hire a train. That's the idea of one West Sussex man, who's hoping to take matters into his own hands.
• Guards at Southern Railway to stage fresh 24-hour strike over staffing Southern Railway guards are to stage a fresh strike in their long-running dispute over staffing, threatening more chaos for hundreds of thousands of passengers.
• Passengers wrongly told they weren't entitled to compensation after computer error A COMPUTER glitch led to long-suffering train passengers being wrongly told they were not entitled to compensation for delays.