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

Wednesday, 19 August 2009

BBC News

• Train station barriers turned on Automated barriers designed to stop people without tickets getting on to trains in Derby have been switched on.
• Feedback sought on bus services People are to be asked for their views on how bus services on Teesside could be improved.
• Train fares set to fall in 2010Nearly half of rail fares in the UK, including most commuter journeys, are set to fall by 0.4% next year.

Financial Times

• Commuters set to see fall in rail faresTrain fares are poised to fall in January for the first time since privatisation, with the average cost of a peak time ticket expected to drop 0.4 per cent
• Air China / Cathay PacificThere are two explanations “ one official, one not “ for Air China's decision to buy more shares in Cathay Pacific, raising its stake from 17.5% to 29.99
• Qantas looks for $1.2bn in cost cutsQantas Airways said it remained one of the few global carriers to remain in profit despite reporting an 87 per cent slide in full-year earnings to A$181m

The Guardian

• Magistrates object to on-the-spot driving fines plan Transport ministers are expected to press ahead with plans to allow the police to issue fixed penalty fines for careless driving offences, despite objections from magistrates today about the rise of "out of court justice".

The Herald

• Train fares to be lowered for the first time in over a decadeNearly half of all train tickets will fall in price for the first time since rail privatisation next January, causing a rare moment of relief for passengers but a further headache for train operators already suffering a downturn in revenues.

The Telegraph

• Greyhound buses start on British roads The first services will run from London to Portsmouth and Southampton, with fares starting from £1.50, including a 50p booking fee, and travellers will get leather seats, free wi-fi, air conditioning and complimentary newspapers.
• Commuter fares fall for first time in a generationMillions of commuters will see the cost of their season tickets fall in January for the first time in a generation as rail companies are forced to cut fares because of the falling rate of inflation.

Times Online

• Local authorities breach parking guidelines A freedom of information request by Which? found that the councils - Basildon, Richmond upon Thames, Lewisham, Bromley, Shropshire and Carmarthenshire - all “expect a certain number of tickets to be issued.” Setting such targets is against Department for Transport guidelines.
• Pendragon wants car scrappage plan to be extendedIt was less an about face than a screaming handbrake turn that would leave skid marks on the forecourt: Pendragon, Britain™s biggest motor dealer, having lambasted the Government™s scrappage scheme as too stingy three months ago, wants it to be extended.
• Watchdogs warn of sharp rise in off-peak and advance train faresRail companies are poised to impose sharp increases in the cost of advance tickets to compensate for a reduction in other fares because of deflation, it was claimed yesterday.

Press Association

• Greyhound takes to British roads Fares will start from £1.50, including a 50p booking fee, and travellers will get leather seats, free wi-fi, air conditioning and complimentary newspapers.

Birmingham Post

• Blackpool's trams get boost from DLA Piper legal teamA team of Birmingham engineering lawyers at international firm DLA Piper have finished work on a £100 million project to upgrade the Victorian tramway system in Blackpool. The lawyers oversaw the project, which includes building a landmark depot to house new trams.
• Report claims high-speed rail link would have no carbon emissions benefitA government commissioned report doubting the environmental credentials of a high speed rail link connecting the Midlands to Scotland and London should spark a public debate, train operators have claimed.

Bristol Live

• Bus change tickets for Bristol area 'a rip-off' Bristol passengers claim a service that sees customers receive a voucher instead of change is a rip-off. 'Change tickets' are issued by city bus operator First when a driver needs to give a passenger change for their fare but does not have it in cash

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Toyota back to full-time working at Deeside plantJAPANESE car maker Toyota has returned to full-time working at its Deeside engine plant thanks to a boost in orders through the government's car scrappage scheme.

Derby Telegraph

• East Midlands Trains should give holiday ticket discounts, say MPs MPs have demanded East Midlands Trains offers Derbyshire holiday-makers ticket discounts after it emerged a main route would be closed over the bank holiday weekend.

Edinburgh Evening News

• Rickshaws in safety row THERE have been calls for tighter regulations for Edinburgh's rickshaws, after numerous complaints about poor cycling and late-night disturbance.

Liverpool Echo

• Liverpool Lime Street child safe zone plansNETWORK Rail is the latest organisation to sign up to keeping children safe in Liverpool by making Lime Street station a Child Safe zone.

London Evening Standard

• Greyhound buses take to the British roadsGreyhound buses - a popular feature of travel in the United States - are to start running in the UK, it was announced today.
• Good news for 400,000 commuters as rail fares dropLondon commuters will see peak-time rail fares fall in January for the first time since privatisation in the Nineties as prices drop
• Philosopher becomes first writer-in-residence at Terminal 5Passengers using Heathrow's Terminal 5 this week could appear as characters in a new book being written by the first airport writer-in-residence
• The Tube station with a direct line to fruit and vegetablesTube workers have created an 'Underground allotment' to supply staff with fresh fruit and vegetables and bring 'biodiversity' to the Northern line
• Russians arrest eight 'pirates' over riddle of missing shipEight men were arrested on suspicion of hijacking the Arctic Sea freighter which disappeared near Sweden last month in circumstances that baffled marine authorities

Newcastle Journal

• How to turn seawater into jet fuelThe US navy has shown it can take carbon dioxide and hydrogen from the ocean and turn it into fuel – but this is far from free energy

Nottingham Evening Post

• Extra buses for NCT routes MORE frequent buses and extra services are due to be introduced on several Nottingham City Transport services from the end of August.
• Rail ticket prices to drop RAIL commuters in Notts will get a welcome 0.4% dip in season ticket prices in the new year as a result of today's inflation figures.
• Post comment: Let's team up to form rail lobby Tim Shoveller holds out the prospect of electrification of the Midland mainline between Nottingham, the East Midlands and London. The managing director of East Midlands Trains believes it is possible by 2022/3.

This Is Local London Network

• Wycombe to Maidenhead rail reconnection plans dealt blowPLANS to resurrect the Maidenhead to High Wycombe train line with a modern ultra light railway have been dealt a blow after transport chiefs said it was not financially “viable” at present.

Yorkshire Post

• High-speed rail link from Yorkshire to London 'could bring £33bn benefits' The study, commissioned by Metro and the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), concludes Yorkshire has much to gain from faster services to and from the capital.
• MPs raise pressure for fair deal on transport MINISTERS are under pressure to finally give Yorkshire a fair deal on transport after a committee of MPs backed claims the region is getting a raw deal. The MPs' verdict that there is "no case" for the widening gap in funding between London and the English regions undermines the Government's refusal to listen to pleas for more cash.

Bucks Free Press

• MP calls for answers on 225mph trains WORRIED MP David Lidington has demanded a rail chief to clarify comments in a national newspaper which said a proposed high speed rail line would run through the Chilterns.

New Scientist

• Future trucks: Cleaning up the kings of the roadSuper-streamlining, pothole power and heat recycling: a spate of innovation is about to transform diesel-guzzling trucks into green giants

Transport for London

• New card for people with hidden disabilities to make travel easierTransport for London is calling for volunteers with hidden disabilities such as autism, learning difficulties or people who are hard of hearing to trial a new Travel Support Card.

Aviation Industry

• inter airport Europe 2009: The Global Meeting Point for the Airport IndustryFrom 6-9 October 2009, inter airport Europe will open its doors again in Munich, Germany.

Other News Sources

• Rail plans could see house prices fall in Lowestoft House prices in east Suffolk could fall if the direct rail service between Lowestoft and London is scrapped, a train users group has said.
• Pedal power as Streatham commuter cycle scheme takes off Pedal power came to Lambeth on Friday - as cyclists nervous about commuting on two wheels into central London got a confidence boost with a guided ride.
• Southampton rail tunnel to be shut over Christmas period A rail users’ group has warned the work covering the stretch of track running from Southampton Central station, under the Civic Centre, Above Bar and the city parks will cause “mayhem”.
• Cable theft causes railway chaos on C2C Passengers were evacuated from the trains after the fire started at around 8.15am this morning on lines to the east of Pitsea station on the C2C line.
• Bank holiday disruption as railway lines are upgraded Network Rail is investing more than £50m to upgrade the lines between London Liverpool Street and Chelmsford and Southend.
• Rail ticket prices to fall due to deflation RAIL passengers will pay 0.4 per cent less for season tickets next year as a result of today's inflation figures.
• Sussex MP's compensation call over bank holiday rail work Rail passengers who are herded on to replacement buses over the August bank holiday should be compensated for the hassle, a Sussex MP has said.
• Rail action group criticises Route Utilisation Strategies LOCAL campaigners Bexhill Rail Action Group (BRAG) are criticising two recent studies by national rail infrastructure operator Network Rail claiming they are flawed. The two studies or Route Utilisation Strategies (RUS) - one for Kent and another for the Sussex Coast - form the blueprint for planning local train services over the next decade.
• Heathrow airport hires Alain de BottonMillions of disgruntled passengers might say it is more suited to high farce than literary endeavour, but Heathrow attained cultural respectability as the author Alain de Botton made his public debut as writer-in-residence at Britain's largest airport.
• Volunteers are providing secure environment at Upwey Station A RAILWAY station is being shown some tender loving care by a group of supporters. The unmanned Upwey station on the outskirts of Weymouth has been adopted in a new scheme to make it safe and more pleasant for passengers to use.
• Train fares to fall on July's RPI deflationCommuters should see a benefit from Julys RPI deflation with rail fares falling but other passengers may suffer sharp hikes in travel costs
• Saab saleGeneral Motors has reached a stock purchase agreement to sell its loss-making Saab unit to Swedish luxury sports car manufacturer Koenigsegg Automotive.
• Travellers want in-flight Wi-Fi but willing to pay less: IAG surveyTravellers are willing to pay less for in-flight Wi-Fi than in previous years, a new survey from Innovation Analysis Group (IAG) finds.IAG has been surveying the in-flight connectivity market for three years. In 2006 the typical traveller who opted for a fixed annual payment was prepared to pay $200. But that average has dropped to $137, according to IAG.
• Ship's location 'was kept quiet'Ship's location 'was kept quiet'