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Tuesday, 23 September 2008

BBC News

• 'Island airport' idea criticisedA suggestion by London's Mayor that an airport could be built on an artificial island in the Thames estuary has been branded a "big bad idea".
• Commuters call for better valueTranslink needs to work to improve value for money on its Metro bus service and its rail service, the Consumer Council has said.
• Vandals attempts to derail trainsPolice have said the actions of vandals who made repeated attempts to derail trains could have been "catastrophic".
• Investment boost for rail networkScottish rail users have been promised more seats and faster journey times.
• Rally opposes new motorway plansCampaigners against a new motorway south of Newport are to hold a rally at the Senedd, claiming the plans would harm wildlife and increase pollution.
• 'Tighten ship cargo rules' callAccident investigators have called for hazardous cargo on ships to be more tightly regulated following the deaths of two seamen in the Channel.

Financial Times

• GE challenges EMD locomotive dominanceThe company that has dominated key segments of the European diesel locomotive market is set to face increasing competition with the unveiling this week of a rival product made by General Electric
• New business behind Aero Inventory advanceContract wins in Canada and Japan helped Aero Inventory, the wholesaler of aircraft parts, increase revenue from $247m to $440m (£239m) last year.

The Guardian

• Naked streets are no good for blind people [letter]Simon Jenkins' article (Elle Macpherson deserves a medal for defying the health and safety gods, September 19) ends in a justification that "eyes are the best traffic policemen" and shared space is the answer to many of the highway safety issues faced in our public spaces. He goes on to say: "Naked streets have even proved safer for the disabled."

The Scotsman

• Bikers ride to commute victoryMOTORCYCLISTS have emerged victorious in a battle to find the quickest way to travel into Edinburgh city centre.

Times Online

• Third runway at Heathrow ’is a done deal’ - even though public consultation goes on Ministers are pressing ahead with plans for a highly controversial third runway at Heathrow and intend to approve the expansion before Christmas, The Times has learnt. Although the Government is still sifting through tens of thousands of public submissions on the airport’s proposed expansion, it is understood that senior figures have already decided to sanction it.

Reuters News

• UPDATE 1-Bombardier wins train contracts worth $276 millionTORONTO, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Plane and train maker Bombardier Inc said on Monday it has won orders from German leasing company Railpool for 58 locomotives in contracts worth about 192 million euros ($276 million dollars).
• UPDATE 2-Alitalia's days numbered; last-ditch offers soughtROME, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Alitalia will lose its operating licence if a special administrator making a last-ditch attempt to sell the airline does not give Italy's aviation authority a credible new offer or cost-cutting plan by Thursday.

Daily Record

• New look design for Scotland's rail services revealed for anniversaryA NEW look livery for Scotland's trains has been unveiled - as the government vowed major improvements to some Scots services.

Mail Online

• High fuel costs drive motorists to share cars in bid to slash billsHigh fuel costs are driving more motorists towards vehicle-sharing, it emerged today.

Transport Briefing

• East West Rail Link secures £2m for next chapterPromoters of the East West Rail Link - the scheme to reinstate the Varsity Line between Oxford and Cambridge - have secured £2m to carry out GRIP Stage 4 work as part of Network Rail's eight-stage GRIP project development process.

Birmingham Post

• New Street judge hits back at Gateway 'whingers'The chairman of the judging panel which chose the winning design for Birmingham’s refurbished New Street Station has hit out at the scheme's critics.
• Byrne says New Street will be big enough for BirminghamThe Minister for the West Midlands has ruled out proposals for a brand new railway station in Birmingham, arguing that New Street Station will remain the heart of the UK rail network for up to 30 years.

London Evening Standard

• Oil firms told to cut petrol pricesFuel giants came under pressure from Alistair Darling to cut prices at the pump after the fall in the cost of oil
• Scrapping bendy buses 'will bring misery for passengers'Mayor Boris Johnson has come under fire over plans to scrap bendy buses on three key routes across the capital
• Boris slammed over plans for airport in KentAirline chiefs have condemned Boris Johnson's plans to close Heathrow and open a new airport on an artificial island on the Thames estuary

Manchester Evening News

• Free Bolton bus tripsA FREE town-centre bus service is to be launched in Bolton.

The News (Portsmouth)

• Road chiefs slammed as crash barriers on Eastern Road refusedCouncil leaders have been accused of putting lives at risk after refusing to install crash barriers on a road following a fatal accident.

The Press and Journal (Aberdeen)

• Eastern Airways the businessAS THE UK’s most punctual airline and with its main hub in Aberdeen, Europe’s energy capital, award-winning Eastern Airways prides itself on making life easy for its passengers.
• Public invited to give views on opening of canal bridgesThe public will get a chance on Thursday to have their say on a review of the existing arrangements for the opening of the Caledonian Canal bridges in Inverness.
• Enthusiasts flock to model railway exhibitionENTHUSIASTS flocked to the Highland capital at the weekend for the 9th annual Inverness and District Model Railway Club exhibition.

The York Press

• Metal thieves now target bus stops THEY have stolen lead from church roofs, copper cable from railway tracks, catalytic converters from cars and drains from streets “ now metal thieves are even stealing seats from bus stops in York.

Wales Online

• The bus station is no longer standing . . .THE demolition of the eyesore terminus building at Cardiff bus station has been completed.

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Yorks coach firm blames high fuel prices for its collapseA YORKSHIRE coach firm has gone bust after after nearly 40 years in the business.
• VIDEO Leeds railway celebrates 250 years of historyMiddleton Railway in Leeds celebrated 250 years of railway history at the weekend.

Peterborough Telegraph

• Council takes over transport service for elderlySomerset County Council has announced it will take over a transport service for elderly people in Taunton after the charity which ran it ceased trading.

Reading Evening Post

• Travel forum identifies key points to boost our townTravel and tourism information, cycle paths and adequate drop-off facilities at Reading train station, were just some of the points raised at Tuesday’s Transport Users Forum.

Railnews

• News: National Rail Awards hat tricks for train companies NORTHERN and National Express East Anglia both scored hat tricks at the National Rail Awards ceremony at London’s Grosvenor Hotel on 18 September, celebrating excellence and achievement in the UK’s rail industry while Southern scooped the prize for Maintenance Team of the Year
• News: New hope for Liverpool trams THERE is new hope that the proposed tram system for Liverpool may go ahead after all.

Aviation Industry

• Transport links critical in the development of NI economyThe Freight Transport Association has welcomed the remarks made by the Northern Ireland Assembly Transport Minister Conor Murphy, contained in his speech at the recent Scottish Transport Conference in Glasgow. The minister referred to the ten year investment strategy, including £3.1 billion for roads and specifically £2.5 billion for the strategic roads network.
• Cheapflights.co.uk calls on Chancellor to axe the air passenger duty taxCheapflights.co.uk, the UK's leading price comparison site online for flight deals, today called on Chancellor Alistair Darling immediately to axe Air Passenger Duty.
• New JFK TerminalNew York's John F. Kennedy International has opened a brand new terminal building today, 22nd September.The terminal is one of the first to have been opened in the USA since 9/11, and is the fifth terminal building at JFK.It is being used exclusively by JetBlue. It will handle 30% of the airport's entire passenger traffic, equating to 20 million passengers every year.JFK Terminal 5Terminal 5 is a three-story building, and is served by 26 gates.There is a 5,500m square central space reserved for retail and leisure facilities.The airport says the terminal's design and layout will make for a bett...
• Concorde at Manchester AirportThe planned hangar and visitor centre to accomodate Manchester Airport's Concorde has been delayed - after a colony of rare newts was discovered.The £1.1 million ($2.2 million) climate-controlled facility was due to open in a few weeks, but construction has been delayed by three months.Routine site surveys during August found dozens of protected great crested newts, and the airport has spent £5,000 on re-homing them in a pond away from the construction site.The area has now been declared newt-free.Construction has re-started on the new and the hangar is now due to open in the New Year.Tim Walm...
• American Airlines rolls out new privileges for preferred customersAmerican Airlines Inc. said Monday that top customers will be granted the carrier's new PriorityAAccess SM privileges - benefits that are designed to make the lines move faster and the boarding process easier ...
• COMMENT: An airline undertaker neededUrgent review of air transport bankruptcy arrangements required

Green Miscellany

• Wales creates 'tribrid' vehicleA research collaboration based at the University of Glamorgan in Wales has developed a triple hybrid technology vehicle, it has emerged.

Other News Sources

• Bus company planning relaunchStagecoach West Scotland has said it is planning a major relaunch of its bus network in Dumfries and Galloway.
• Road widening plans welcomed - NorwichPlans to widen a notoriously busy city centre road have been welcomed by public transport chiefs.
• Montreal rolls out bike-sharing planMONTREAL — Paris has Vélib, Barcelona has Bicing, and as of today, Montreal will start to showcase its own European-style bike-sharing program with a fetching name: Bixi.
• Congress wants rail reform after crashLOS ANGELES - After a fatal commuter train collision, Congress is hurrying to pass new laws that would limit hours engineers work, mandate technology to stop trains on a collision course and enact the...
• U.S. team in India for public transportation project talksNew Delhi, Sept 22 : A US delegation headed by James Simpson, the Administrator of Federal Transit Administration (FTA), met the Union Minister for Urban Development, Jaipal Reddy, here today to identify opportunities for joint projects between the public transportation industries of India and the United States.
• Robot cleaners go to hullNewcastle University engineers have developed an automated robotic cleaning system that removes marine growth from the hull of a ship.
• Burnt Tree opens Leeds branch Burnt Tree opens Leeds branch Contract hire and rental company Burnt Tree has opened a new depot in Leeds, bringing its total number of sites to 17. Gareth...
• STVA buys Automove's car transporter assetsVehicle logistics firm STVA UK has purchased the car transporter assets and contracts of Southampton-based Automove for an undisclosed fee.
• Bristol and Bath to bid for TIFBristol City Council yesterday confirmed it is to submit a joint bid with three other local authorities, including Bath, for Transport Innovation Fund (TIF) money to ease congestion in the two cities.
• BA likely to split Tiffany Hall™s remitBritish Airways looks set to split the responsibilities held by former head of marketing and distribution Tiffany Hall.
• Euro owners call for action on piracyTHE EUROPEAN Community Shipowners™ Associations (ECSA) has urged EU governments to do more to tackle piracy off the coast of Somalia.
• Aviation sector crisis: There will be consolidation, but not a bloodbathA combination of rising oil prices and weakening demand is

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