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

Friday, 28 July 2017

BBC News

• East Lancashire Railway attacked by vandalsAbout 40 East Lancashire Railway carriage windows were smashed in Bury.
• Most overcrowded trains revealedThe data showed on the most crowded train 1,366 people typically crammed into carriages designed for 640.
• London's underground post train back on trackA hundred years after it was first built, trains are running again on the underground railway designed to transport London's letters.

Department for Transport

• New station boost for passengers thanks to £16 million government investmentFive new stations to be built across England and Wales.

Financial Times

• Nearly 1,400 crowd daily on to UK’s most packed trainEast Grinstead to London Bridge service carried almost double available seats

The Guardian

• Southern rail tops list of most overcrowded trainsSome services carried twice as many people as trains were designed for, Department for Transport figures show

Times Online

• 170,000 peak commuters can’t get seats on the train [Subscription]Four out of ten rail passengers cannot get a seat on the busiest rush-hour commuter trains as overcrowding on the network reaches crisis point.

City AM

• Here are the 10 most overcrowded peak train services for spring and autumn 2016The Department for Transport (DfT) has released new statistics revealing the most overcrowded train services in England and Wales last year.

The Mirror

• Secret world of London's underground railway: Forgotten tunnels where Royal Mail's postmen laboured for decades are opening to public The Mirror takes a trip below the bustling metropolis to take a look at the incredible six-mile, subterranean freight line from Paddington to the East End as it gets set to become a key attraction

Network Rail

• South Wales Railway Upgrade UpdateNetwork Rail is reminding residents between Monmouthshire and Cardiff that modernisation work is taking place along the South Wales Mainline as part of Network Rail’s Railway Upgrade Plan.

Birmingham Mail

• This abandoned underground line is opening to the public this summer Launching on September 4, the Mail Rail will take visitors to the Postal Museum on 1km journeys that will last 20 minutes

Liverpool Echo

• Removing Merseyrail guards could increase risk of sex assaults, warns former transport bossRemoving guards from Merseyrail trains could increase the risk of on-board sex assaults, according to a former regional travel boss. Former train driver Mark Dowd, who was the chairman of Merseytravel from 1992-2002, said the “strange decision” to “cull” guards could impact on passengers who are in distress.

London Evening Standard

• Tube delays: Piccadilly and Victoria line hit by chaos after warning of 'weeks of delays'Commuters faced rush hour chaos on the Tube as union bosses warned a shortage of trains could spark a "crisis" on some lines.
• Revealed: Eight in 10 busiest train routes are London commuter linesThe 7.16am East Grinstead to London Bridge was today named Britain's most overcrowded commuter train.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• The Government's rail priorities show that London will always trump the NorthAccording to the Conservative manifesto, closing the gap between London and the other cities of the UK is “the biggest prize in Britain today”.

Wales Online

• Ministers plan to ban diesel cars but electrification u-turn means the fuel will still power trainsFriends of the Earth have described the move as 'hugely disappointing'
• The Cynon Valley's poor Sunday train service is costing the area jobs, it is claimedThere's just one train every two hours, and it's costing people in Aberdare and the surrounding areas job opportunities
• A £5.6m new transport hub for trains, buses, cyclists, and taxis is almost completeThe multi-million pound transport hub in Port Talbot is entering the final stage of development, according to the council.

Yorkshire Post

• YP Letters: Northern economy has been put in a siding Chris Grayling’s announcement on Northern Powerhouse rail is the latest U-turn by this Tory government and abandons the commitment given by George Osborne and previous Tory administration to significantly upgrade and electrify the Transpennine link from Manchester to York.
• Chris Burn: From crisis to opportunity for North’s electric dream In every crisis, there is an opportunity. And from a week of bad news for Yorkshire’s transport infrastructure comes a golden chance for the region to flex its political muscles rather than bowing to the seemingly inevitable.

Other Regional Press

• TRAINS, HERE? Commuters baffled by obvious warning sign at station COMMUTERS were left baffled by a sign displaying an obvious warning at Charlbury railway station.
• Customers are happier with train services than they were last yearRail firms pledge more investment in new trains and carriages in the coming years

Buying Business Travel

• Funding secured for five UK rail stationsThe government has announced that it will partially fund five new rail stations to be built in the England and Wales over the next three years.

Rail Magazine

• Shooter hails prospects of battery-powered variantsVivarail Chairman Adrian Shooter welcomes comments that battery-powered trains present a viable alternative to electrification
• North underfunded by £6 billion per yearThink tank says northern England is underfunded compared with London by almost £6 billion per year.
• Class 50s lined up for Old Oak Common open dayFour Class 50s to attend Old Oak Common open day on September 2.
• New-look refurbished TransPennine Express Class 185 launchedRefurbished TPE Class 185 enters traffic

Rail Technology Magazine

• Free Public WiFi at Cardiff Central Railway Station Travellers expect Wi-Fi connection at every stage of their journey. Arriva Trains wanted to further improve what Cardiff Station offered by installing a free Wi-Fi service so that travellers could easily check e-mails, catch up with friends and famil…
• New Hitachi intercity trains pass UK DfT digital tests Japanese company Hitachi's new intercity trains have passed the UK Department for Transport (DfT) tests for integration with its digital technology.
• Southern runs five out of UK's top 10 overcrowded trainsFive of the top 10 most overcrowded services were run by Southern in spring last year, new statistics released by DfT today have revealed. On one of those services, from East Grinstead to London Bridge arriving at 8.20, capacity was at very cramped 1,366 passengers, more than double the max...

Railway Gazette

• Location technology to be incorporated into National Rail Enquiries appUK: Proxama plc’s mobile location data technology is to be embedded into the National Rail...
• Seattle welcomes BiLevel cab carUSA: The first of nine Bombardier BiLevel cab cars ordered by Sound Transit in 2014 arrived in...