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

Wednesday, 27 August 2008

BBC News

• Fuel price hike prompts bus planPlans to increase the amount of cash paid to community bus operators in Cumbria are being considered in the face of rising fuel prices.
• Bug causes US air traffic delaysAir traffic at some three dozen airports across the US has been disrupted by a computer glitch, the Federal Aviation Administration says.
• New fences to prevent rail crimeThousands of metres of steel fencing is being erected around railways lines to help prevent crime.
• Bus seat belt law challenged [video]Aberdeenshire Council says the current legislation on school transport is "complex and conflicting".
• Forced landing for Ryanair flightA plane carrying British tourists to Spain is forced to make an unscheduled landing due to a loss of cabin pressure.
• Green tech in 'Formula Zero' raceSix international teams competed this weekend in the first-ever hydrogen-powered motorsport race.
• Business travellers boost VirginRecord numbers of business travellers have boosted profits at Virgin Atlantic despite sky-high fuel prices.

Financial Times

• Premium travellers give filip to VirginA rise in business travel helped swell pre-tax profits at long-haul airline Virgin Atlantic, as the private UK carrier braces itself to battle against a planned transatlantic alliance between British Airways and American Airlines
• China COSCO doubles first half earningsChina COSCO Holdings, the listed flagship of the country's premier shipping conglomerate, more than doubled its first half earnings as China's unabated demand for raw materials boosted freight rates for dry bulk ships
• Alitalia-lite set to rise from the ashesIf

The Guardian

• Motor industry: Carmakers failing to achieve CO2 cuts· Activists say some MEPs influenced by industry · Targets 'like banning non-smokers from smoking'
• Mayor urged to act on London pollution to avoid EU finesHigh levels of air pollution in London have forced the government to seek an urgent meeting with the mayor, Boris Johnson, to avoid the risk of unlimited fines from Europe.
• High petrol prices 'leading to safer roads'Number of traffic deaths in America decrease to lowest rate since 1961

The Telegraph

• Ryanair boss in row with explorer Pen Hadow over emergency landingThe Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has been embroiled in a row with a polar explorer over claims that oxygen masks apparently failed to work during an emergency landing

Network Rail

• £710K INITIATIVE TO FENCE IN RAIL CRIME OFFENDERS IN WALESNetwork Rail is toughening its measures to tackle railway crime. It is installing over 15,000 metres of fencing around the railway in Wales, to make it more difficult for trespassers or those looking to commit crimes, such as vandalism or graffiti, to access the railway.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Arriva profits ’obscene’, says rail union chiefUNION chiefs last night blasted the Arriva transport company which operates trains and buses across North Wales for its “obscene” profits.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Transport funding: 'Trams levy on bus fares is a ludicrous idea'THE suggestion by a council "think tank" that a trams levy be put on bus fares is a ludicrous suggestion that deserves to be kicked into the long grass at the earliest
• Decision that flies in the face of common senseIT is impossible to under-state the importance of efficient transport infrastructure to growing economies.

Liverpool Echo

• Air passengers in meningitis scareMORE than 100 people were left stranded on a Liverpool-bound plane after a meningitis scare.

London Evening Standard

• Mayor wants cyclists' photos of strange but beautiful cityBoris Johnson and Transport for London have launched a photography competition which urges Londoners to get on their bikes and discover the city

Manchester Evening News

• Fuel costs ease m-way jamsCONGESTION on motorways around Greater Manchester has plummeted - due to the credit crunch and soaring fuel prices.
• 'Give commerce say on charging'A CAMPAIGN began today for a business-only referendum on plans to introduce congestion charging across Greater Manchester, in addition to the public vote due to take place in December.

Metro

• Credit crunch leads to less traffic jamsThe credit crunch coupled with sky-high fuel prices have caused congestion to ease on major roads, it was revealed today.

Newcastle Journal

• Solar-powered cargo ship will leave a cleaner plumeJapanese firms plan to build a less-polluting 60,000-tonne car carrier partially powered by solar panels

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Airline passengers hit by new bags blunderA DOUBLE airline blunder left angry holidaymakers flying without their bags. Andrew and Jillian Cleugh and 150 other passengers were in their seats on a plane at Newcastle Airport when they were given an ultimatum – it’s either you or your luggage.
• Rail work to disrupt rush-hour commuteRAIL passengers face three months of chaos as engineering works get under way.

The News (Portsmouth)

• 'Meters made our road a ghost town'ANGRY residents say parking meters designed to make parking easier are penalising residents and leaving their street looking like a ghost town.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Storm over call to give up cars and catch a busA row broke out last night after Scottish Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson urged people to get out of their cars and on to public transport.
• Canal operator urged to listen to locals over bridge opening timesAn Inverness councillor yesterday urged British Waterways to listen to the views of local people on canal bridges in the Highland capital.
• Elgin bypass has to wait for roads reviewTransport Minister Stewart Stevenson yesterday welcomed proposals for an Elgin bypass on the A96, but a decision on when work will begin will have to wait until later this year.

The York Press

• York cyclist™s roads fright A KEEN cyclist is calling for action to protect bike users after surviving several near misses on the city™s roads.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Congestion cut as credit crunch bitesCongestion on one of East Anglia's busiest roads has fallen amid rising fuel prices and the credit crunch, it has been revealed. Journey times from Ipswich to Cambridge ha

West Sussex Gazette

• Roads bosses evict 'spider' sculpturesA SOLITARY complaint that Arundel Festival sculptures on the A27 Causeway roundabout outside the town could frighten children and distract drivers has led to the Highways Agen

Forbes

• US Airways spent $520K lobbying gov't in 2QUS Airways Group Inc. spent $520,000 in the second quarter lobbying on legislation aimed at curbing oil speculation, funding for the Federal Aviation Administration and other issues, according to a recent disclosure form.

International Herald Tribune

• Chinese airlines report first-half operating lossesFor Air China and China Eastern Airlines, gains on some domestic routes and from a rising yuan did not offset surging fuel costs in the January to June period.

Wall Street Journal

• Southwest Airlines to Fight FAA PenaltySouthwest Airlines has decided to fight a $10.2 million fine for safety violations five months after the FAA lodged the penalty the U.S. carrier.

Washington Post

• On the Road Again In the early 1990s, all three major American automakers started building clean and efficient natural gas vehicles. But when a new federal law failed to create an expected guaranteed market, the momentum died. Today, only Honda sells a model in the United States -- and in minuscule numbers.
• Ford to spend $75M to retool plant for small cars WAYNE, Mich. -- Demand for Ford Motor Co.'s Focus and other small cars has been superheated ever since gas prices headed toward $4 per gallon in May, and since then, Ford hasn't been able to build the Focus quickly enough.
• High road accident toll a drain on Indian economy MUMBAI (Reuters) - The twisted metal of smashed up cars lining highways is a grim testament to India's road toll, one of the worst in the world with around 100,000 people killed in traffic accidents last year alone.
• U.S. airports back to normal after computer glitch WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Major U.S. airports were operating normally on Tuesday evening after a glitch in the computer system for filing flight plans delayed hundreds of flights, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

Railnews

• News: More people in Scotland taking the train FIGURES released by the Scottish government show that rail passenger numbers are at their highest level for more than 40 years — but car use on Scotland's roads has also increased.
• News: Rail festival to celebrate South-West local railways THE National Community Rail Festival is to be hosted for the first time in the South-West with a variety of events on the Looe Valley and Tamar Valley branch lines and in Plymouth on Saturday 20 September.

Transport for London

• Easier journeys as Mayor announces the installation of two wide aisle gates at Sudbury Town Tube stationThe Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has announced that London Underground (LU) has installed two new wide aisle gates at Sudbury Town Tube station to make life easier for passengers.

Aviation Industry

• Body-Revealing Scanners Now Widely Used at AirportsBackscatter X-ray and millimeter-wave screening machines that can see intimate details of people's bodies are proliferating at U.S. airports.
• FAA Communication Breakdown Delays FlightsBreakdown of a communication link between two FAA facilities delays flights at three dozen major U.S. airports.
• Ryanir flight's oxygen masks' failed'Sixteen passengers in hospital after sudden loss of cabin pressure forces flight to land in Limoges, France Photo taken by a passenger after the flight lost cabin pressure.
• Business travellers flock to VirginBA's rival says that the T5 effect has helped in an increase of load factor from 74% to 77%

Green Miscellany

• Should public transport be free?Following today’s news in The Scotsman that Scottish people are using their cars more than ever; TheGreenCarWebsite.co.uk has noted that in some cities public transport is free.
• Green transport hits Canterbury developmentCanterbury residents are being called upon to adopt more green transport, it has been reported.

Other News Sources

• Highland air services need support to secure futureScheduled flights to the key economic centres in England are performing well, an official announcement is imminent from Lufthansa of a new Dusseldorf service and we understand that good news may be on the way on Amsterdam.
• Government to review drivers' hours regulationsDrivers and operators covered by domestic driving hours' legislation have expressed
• FTA criticises proposed Cotswolds truck banPlans for a truck ban in parts of the Cotswolds have been condemned because they will increase costs for hauliers but provide few benefits for residents.
• 20% of trucks overweight in Oxfordshire checksNearly one in five trucks weighed in an Oxfordshire check last week were overweight, and more than one in four had mechanical defects.
• Cause of GE19 slip revealedTransport for London (TfL) has admitted that poor attention to detail was responsible for the sudden slippage of the GE19 bridge from a temporary position to its resting bearings in May.
• Mexican government tramples on bargaining rights of cabin crewThe Mexican government has breached its own labour laws after cabin crew working for the Mexican national carrier were denied the right to collective bargaining.
• Major car makers not cutting emissions fast enough to meet climate targetsTop car manufacturers selling vehicles in the UK and elsewhere in Europe are not cutting carbon dioxide emissions from their vehicles fast enough to meet proposed EU targets, Friends of the Earth said today.
• Hyundai leaps in for DaewooTHE WORLD™S biggest shipbuilder Hyundai HI has jumped into the bidding fray for Daewoo Shipbuilding.
• Vietnam building new portVIETNAM is building one more port to cater for the burgeoning onslaught of cargo; that is now straining its resources at its current facilities in Saigon Port.
• DFDS signs up for longer ro-rosCOPENHAGEN's DFDS has signed a contract with MWB in Germany to lengthen three ro-ros by 30m in a deal worth DK400M.
• Study: Carmakers still way off EU climate targetsCar manufacturers only reduced their CO2 emissions by 1.7% over the past year - a far cry from the average 17% cut they will have to achieve within the next four years to comply with planned European legislation, according to data published today by Transport & Environment, a green NGO.
• EU-China Consultations on Combating Climate ChangeThe EU and China held discussions on combating climate change on 18 August 2008 in Paris at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs
• Cameras to read number plates go up around airportGreater Manchester Police has introduced number plate recognition cameras at five sites around Manchester Airport
• Virgin Trains cancels direct services to London todayNo direct Virgin Trains services are running between Manchester and London Euston today because of engineering work.
• Jet2.com adds Manchester-Sardinia routeLow-cost carrier Jet2.com is to start direct summer flights next May between Manchester and Sardinia.
• Motorists shun UK public transport systemMany British drivers would only be prepared to get out of their cars and use the public transport system if it was free of charge, a new study reveals.
• Employment squeeze in transport and logistics sectorThe global credit crunch is placing an employment squeeze on Britain's transport and logistics sector, new figures indicate.
• End of the road for Vespa?The Vespa buzzes off the production line for the last time because its engine is too polluting. Helen Cacace reports.
• Free bus tickets for crooksFree bus tickets for crooks

Other Subscription Services

• MEPs row over inland waterway regulationTHE closest thing to a stand-up row broke out in the European parliament transport committee on Monday over inland waterway liability regimes.