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

Wednesday, 01 July 2026

BBC News

• Ferry's new automated toll commencesA new automated toll process is under way on a popular south coast chain ferry after the installation of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras.
• Loss-making airport to go back on the marketAn airport is back on the market four months after a previous sale collapsed, it has been announced.
• Bus service U-turn after passenger protestsA bus company has reversed its decision not to stop at a Norfolk village after passengers said the move would cut them off.
• Cows on the line cause major delays to trainsRail passengers faced disruption for much of Tuesday after a herd of cows wandered on to one of the country's busiest railway lines.
• London's new towns need transport and social housingTwo "new towns" planned for north and south-east London will only succeed if paired with good transport, green spaces and enough social housing, ministers have been told.
• New five-hour bus route to connect north and south Wales The Welsh government say the service will cost about £2m to run in the first year.
• What you need to know as ScotRail starts charging ticket dodgers minimum £10 fareThe charge will be more than the standard ticket fare on most shorter journeys.

Financial Times

• Ministers told to cut budgets to fund higher UK defence spendingKeir Starmer locked in eleventh-hour wrangling with departments over how to pay for delayed investment plan.

The Guardian

• Northern Rail Project risks repeating costly HS2 failures, MPs warnThe £45bn scheme to link cities across north of England with new or upgraded lines has no convincing or properly costed plan, committee says
• Trains disrupted on UK's busiest intercity line as cows wander on to tracksLondon to Manchester among routes affected after cows blocked west coast mainline for more than three hours

The Scotsman

• Brand new CalMac ferry Isle of Islay out of action for repairs just 3 months after entering serviceBoth of the operator's newly-designated standby vessels also pressed into action to cover other breakdowns
• Senior Glasgow and Aberdeen airport executive to chair CBI Scotland groupEvery month of crucial projects being held up costs jobs and investment that Scotland cannot afford. Gavin Newlands. CBI Scotland has appointed a senior Glasgow and Aberdeen airport executive to chair its infrastructure working group amid a push to 'remove barriers to economic growth'

Times Online

• 'No 10 North' plans hit the buffers as train drivers set to strike [subscription]Andy Burnham plans to divide his time between Downing Street and a 'No 10 North' in Manchester, so he will be hoping for a reliable commute along the west coast main line.
• Shetland council backs £1.5bn tunnel plan with first link by 2034 [subscription]Officials believe fixed links will provide a cheaper long-term alternative to replacing ferries while supporting jobs, transport and economic growth
• Northern rail link stuck in sidings [subscription]The long-delayed Powerhouse project has been overshadowed by the HS2 clown-show and needs private sector expertise to get it on track
• Northern Powerhouse Rail could be HS2-style disaster, MPs warn [subscription]The ill-fated plan to transform railway services in the north of England still lacks a clear design and realistic budget, the public accounts committee said

Parliament

• Liaison allocates Government's National Policy Statement for Heathrow Expansion to Transport CommitteeThe Government's plans to add a northwest runway to Heathrow Airport with associated impacts including updates to terminal and transport infrastructure, has been allocated to the Transport Committee for examination by the end of 2026.

Public Accounts Committee

• Northern Powerhouse Rail: Considerable uncertainty still clouds project, PAC warnsIn a new report, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) warns that it is not confident that the Department for Transport (DfT) has learned all the lessons from its past failures in its management of other rail projects, with clear risks that the full programme and benefits cannot be delivered within its £45bn funding cap.

The Mirror

• Northern Powerhouse Rail at 'clear risk' of breaching £45billion funding cap, MPs warnThe Public Accounts Committee said the Northern Powerhouse Rail scheme - to boost poor northern rail connections - is in danger of repating the same mistakes as chaos-hit HS2

Local Government

• Plans for Greenwich town centre improvements progress with political backingPlans to improve cycling, walking and wheeling connections through Greenwich town centre continue to move forward. Further design and traffic modelling work is underway as the Royal Borough of Greenwich and Transport for London (TfL) develop proposals for the future of the town centre.

Bolton News

• Bolton in 'serious, funded conversation' on £1.5M tram plansA £1.5M announcement has made Bolton part of a 'serious, funded conversation' about extending the tram network.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Northern rail scheme has 'clear risk' of exceeding budgetThere is a 'clear risk' that a major scheme to boost rail connections in Bradford and across northern England cannot be delivered within its £45 billion funding cap, MPs have warned.

Edinburgh Evening News

• New airport link to launch between Edinburgh and West Lothian this weekAll-electric bus operator Ember has launched the new route which will run between Livingston and Edinburgh Airport from July 1. The new route will provide a service around every 20 minutes between the airport and Livingston bus station.

London Evening Standard

• London bus drivers to vote on strike over hot conditionsIt follows a record-breaking heatwave which saw temperatures in the capital climb above 36C
• Andy Burnham: I'll cut transport fares in London to lower cost of living for millionsExclusive: The Prime Minister-in-waiting also pledges more affordable homes including in the heart of the capital where property prices are sky-high

Manchester Evening News

• Warnings that Northern rail scheme has 'clear risk' of exceeding £45bn budgetA report by the Commons' Public Accounts Committee suggested the Department for Transport had not learned from 'past failures'

Sheffield Star

• Northern rail scheme set to improve Sheffield trains has 'clear risk' of exceeding £45bn budget, MPs warnThere is a 'clear risk' that a major scheme to boost rail connections across northern England cannot be delivered within its £45 billion funding cap, MPs have warned.

Yorkshire Post

• Questions raised by report into Northern Powerhouse Rail need to be answeredToday's report from the Public Accounts Committee will be a cause for alarm for everyone who wants to see better rail connectivity across the North of England.
• Northern Powerhouse Rail has 'echoes of same failures seen in HS2', MPs warnThe Public Accounts Committee has questioned how the £45bn Treasury budget will deliver the long-awaited rail network connecting cities on both sides of the Pennines.

My London

• Green belt damage and transport deserts - London's planned 'New Towns' spark warning and rebellionThe two 'New Towns' planned for London will only succeed if they are paired with transport, high-quality green spaces and optimal amounts of social housing, ministers have been told.

Other Regional Press

• Brittany Ferries to end Poole to Cherbourg sailings in 2026Brittany Ferries has announced that it will sell two of its vessels and permanently stop operating its Poole to Cherbourg service from November 2026.
• London City Airport names Jonathan Rayner as Chief Commercial OfficerUK. London City Airport today named well-respected senior industry executive Jonathan Rayner (right) as Chief Commercial Officer and a member of the Executive Committee. He joins the airport company in July.
• Police Operation Safe Landing launches at Prestwick AirportPOLICE Scotland has launched Operation Safe Landing, an initiative to prevent drink-driving among holidaymakers arriving at Prestwick Airport.
• Bev Craig's pledge to make bus travel free for young peopleWhen Bev Craig announced her bid to become the next Mayor of Greater Manchester last week, she also announced she is placing transport at the top of her agenda.

Highways News

• Government confirms £800m of transport cutsThe Treasury has issued more details of proposed cuts to fund more spending on defence, including £800 million from the Department for Transport budget.

New Civil Engineer

• Government considering cuts to RIS3 to pay for Defence Investment PlanThe Department for Transport will consult on plans to reduce the third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3), including the possible cancellation of the A38 Derby Junctions and A46 Newark Bypass schemes to help pay for the £15bn Defence Investment Plan (DIP)

Rail Magazine

• Call for government to help level the playing field between rail and air travelA more level playing field with the airline industry should be created to help international rail travel from the UK.
• "Clear risk" Northern Powerhouse Rail can't be delivered in full within funding cap - MPsThe government risks not being able to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) within its £45 billion funding cap, a report by MPs has claimed.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Bus services swerve DfT funding shift to defence - but roads are hitUp to £700 million impact on roads budget follows multiple warnings against the step from RHA
• Custom Denning reveals plans for coach and bus in UK and EuropeElectric coach alongside Element bus in hand with UK manufacturing a longer-term aspiration

Trafnidiaeth Cymru [Transport for Wales]

• Transport for Wales welcomes new retailers to Cardiff Bus InterchangeTwo new retailers have been introduced to Transport for Wales' Cardiff Bus Interchange (CBI), welcoming local favourite Kiwis Bowls and the international sandwich specialist Which Wich.

Aviation Industry

• Gatwick Named UK's Most Stressful Airport For Summer Travel As Delays Continue To Impact PassengersLondon Gatwick has been ranked as the UK's most stressful airport for summer travel, according to new research analysing flight delays and cancellations across the country's busiest airports.
• Lufthansa Prepares Big Campaign For Widebodies, Cuts Europe NetworkFRANKFURT- Lufthansa is preparing to launch a large competition for further widebody aircraft, according to CEO Carsten Spohr. The competition, envisaged to take off in spring 2027, will be 'a big campaign' for additional Airbus A350-1000s or Boeing 777Xs
• 'Clear and irrefutable evidence of harm': AEF policy recommendations following new noise researchFor the first time in ten years, the UK Government has published new research on the effect of aviation noise on the public.

Other News Sources

• Conservative ex-mayor Andy Street in the running to oversee Britain's nationalized railwaysGreat British Railways, the new publicly-owned company overseeing rail infrastructure and services, is due to be up and running in 2027.
• Brittany Ferries shuts routes and sells ships amid rising costsThe French company cited a rising tax burden, Covid loan repayments, cost-of-living concerns among passengers and 'unfair' competition on the eastern Channel for its actions.
• Euston Station masterplan: coordination and staging lessons for project engineersDevelopment of the new integrated Euston Station masterplan is being led as 'a team game', with the delivery body coordinating Network Rail, HS2 Ltd and commercial developers across the constrained West Coast Main Line and HS2 interface.
• Cambridge University objects to plans for new East West RailThe University of Cambridge is objecting to plans for a major new rail line set to come to Cambridgeshire.
• JCDecaux renews Heathrow advertising contract for 8 yearsAs Heathrow celebrates its 80th birthday, the partnership will support the next phase of growth in Heathrow's media offering, while enhancing the experience for passengers at Heathrow and Heathrow Express. JCDecaux will manage Heathrow's extensive media estate, comprising over 680 digital screens and premium advertising assets such as the iconic T5 Towers at Terminal 5.
• Minister Criticises Spending Cuts To Pay For Defence Boost In Another Blow For StarmerHamish Falconer said he was "disappointed" by the "uncertainty" the government's new defence investment plan offers.