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

Tuesday, 19 July 2011

BBC News

• HS2 high speed rail link flawed, says think tank The government's planned £32bn HS2 high-speed rail project connecting London and Birmingham is "economically flawed", a leading think tank has said.
• Derby Bombardier petition given to House of Commons More than 50,000 people have signed a petition urging the government to reverse a decision to give a £1.4bn contract to a German train maker.
• Four new cycle paramedics trained for Great Yarmouth The East of England Ambulance Service is training four new recruits for the Waveney Cycle Response Unit.
• St Erth railway station park-and-ride scheme plan Long awaited proposals for a park-and-ride scheme at St Erth railway station near Penzance are near completion.
• London Southend Airport opens station and control tower A new control tower at London Southend Airport has been officially opened as train services to its new railway station began.
• Pressure grows on PM over Bombardier's contract loss It's not every day you get a call direct from Downing Street. The boss of Derby-based Bombardier, Colin Walton, was preparing to back his bags to join the Prime Minister on a trade mission to South Africa.
• Hammond defends Humber toll riseThe Transport Secretary Philip Hammond has defended a decision to increase tolls on the Humber Bridge, making it the most expensive crossing in the UK.
• Union rejects new Tube pay offerA union rejects an improved pay offer for workers on the London Underground.
• M80 speed restrictions are liftedSpeed restrictions on a busy stretch of motorway linking Glasgow and Stirling are finally being lifted after more than two years.

Financial Times

• Bombardier chief drops out of Cameron’s Africa business tour One business leader is notably absent from today’s tour of South Africa: Colin Walton, chairman of Bombardier. Only last week MP Heather Wheeler told Westminster Hall that Walton would be on the trade trip. By the end of the week, however, his name had disappeared from the draft list.
• Aircraft makers struggle to fill back-ordersUS airlines contemplating a splurge of spending on new aircraft may face difficulties in securing the jets they want

The Guardian

• BAA set for legal fight if ordered to sell airports Heathrow owner could seek judicial review if Competition Commission makes it sell Stansted and either Glasgow or Edinburgh
• Yorkshire Wolds Cycle Route: 146 miles of back roads and huge skies A new cycle route runs across the least visited part of Yorkshire, along empty roads and spectacular coast. And you don't need to be Tour de France fit to do it

The Independent

• Cycle messengers: A really tyring way to work Cycle messengers have been part of our cities for more than a century. But despite the fashion for 'courier chic', their numbers are declining. Eleanor Morgan saddles up for the day to find out why
• BAA to lose sell-off battle Competition chiefs are expected to confirm today that the airport operator BAA will have to sell two of its airports.

Reuters News

• Olympics-London commuters fear strain on the trainsFaulty signals and crowded carriages are just part of the daily grind for London commuter Nick Maggs, even on a good day; this time next year, things could only get worse, he fears.

Daily Express

• Eurotunnel's rail buyCHANNEL Tunnel operator Eurotunnel is snapping up a fleet of British-built rail locomotives from France to expand its freight business.

The Mirror

• Bombardier boss bumped off PM's trade mission at the last minute DAVID Cameron was accused of sacrificing British jobs to save his blushes yesterday after bumping Bombardier off his trade mission to Africa. Colin Walton, boss of the Derby-based train manufacturer, was booked to join the Prime Minister on the trip aimed at drumming up business for UK companies. But on Friday, just 48 hours before he was due to set off for South Africa and Nigeria, Mr Walton was told he wasn’t welcome.

Birmingham Post

• Network Rail staff balloted over strike action in equal pay dispute Thousands of managers and technicians at Network Rail are to be balloted for strikes, which could affect Birmingham routes.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Gulf in transport spending for Yorkshire 'wrong' A huge gulf in Government transport spending between Yorkshire and the South-East is “simply wrong” campaigners said today.

Derby Telegraph

• MP says rail deal shows we need EU referendum A COUNTY MP has called on the Government to hold a referendum on Britain's European Union membership .
• Anger as PM drops Bombardier chief from trade mission to South Africa THERE was outrage after it emerged Bombardier was ditched from a Downing Street trade visit to South Africa that could have helped the firm win new work.

Liverpool Post

• Transport spending gulf between Merseyside and south is “simply wrong” A HUGE gulf in transport spending between Merseyside and the South East was described as

London Evening Standard

• 'Commuters to pay' for £150m Games giveawayLondon taxpayers could be landed with a multi-million-pound bill to fund free travel for Olympics ticket holders.

Manchester Evening News

• Manchester Airports Group cools on BAA airports Manchester Airports Group has cooled its interest in buying Stansted, Glasgow or Edinburgh airports, the M.E.N has learned.

Metro

• Two French-speaking Canadians given £7,000 as airline staff spoke in EnglishTwo French-speaking Canadians have won £7,700 in damages because staff at the country™s national airline spoke to them in English.

Yorkshire Post

• Rail managers in strike ballot over pay equalityThousands of managers and technicians at Network Rail are to be balloted for strikes over claims that female staff are being paid as much as £4,000 a year less than male colleagues in the same grade, it was announced yesterday.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Stansted: Airport sale expectedA CONTROVERSIAL decision which will force BAA to sell Stansted airport is due to be made later today.

Other Regional Press

• MP Annette Brooke backing helmets bill YOUNGSTERS under 14 should be made to wear cycle helmets to protect them from devastating head and brain injuries.
• Ruling expected on airports sale Competition chiefs are expected to finally confirm on Tuesday that airport operator BAA will have to sell two of its airports.
• Sink or swim time for Huddersfield Narrow Canal – changes in Government funding causing concern Control of Britain’s waterways will be handed to a charity next year. LINDA WHITWAM looks at the implications for a unique canal

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Humber Bridge toll rise 'will contribute towards debt'The UK's transport secretary has insisted that an increase in the toll charged to go over the Humber Bridge is essential.According to Philip Hammond, drivers should contribute to the cost of the bridge and its outstanding debt alongside government financing.Speaking to the BBC, he explained: "The increase in the tolls has been tested through the proper process with a public inquiry, that we ordered, and the inquiry decision has been that the tolls should be increased."The cost of a single car traversing the bridge will rise by 30p to £3 each way on October 1...

Global Rail News

• Thameslink pedestrian improvements complete at West HampsteadWorks to upgrade Iverson Road and West End Lane for pedestrians and road users are now complete ahead of the opening of the new West Hampstead ...
• Rail services resume as Arnside Viaduct reopensArnside Viaduct reopened on schedule this morning after a 16-week closure during which Network Rail completely rebuilt the deck of the 155 year old structure. Jo ...
• Eurotunnel buys 5 Class 92 locomotives for cross-Channel rail freightIn keeping with its strategy, Groupe Eurotunnel has bought the 5 remaining SNCF Class 92 locomotives, bringing its fleet to 16. The Class 92 is the ...
• High speed trains to Sandwich prove a successFollowing the successful completion of The Open, Southeastern has revealed that it carried 37,000 passengers to Sandwich to watch Darren Clarke win the Claret Jug. This ...
• Transport Minister faces Lords inquiry on the European rail marketTheresa Villiers, Minister of State for Transport, will appear before the House of Lords EU Internal Market, Energy and Transport Committee today. The Committee™s inquiry is ...
• More seats from Virgin Trains for North Wales passengersVirgin Trains will be providing more seats on its busiest services between London, Chester and North Wales this summer. The delivery of a new Pendolino train, ...
• RMT rejects latest London Underground pay offerThe RMT union has rejected London Underground’s latest pay offer, covering the period from April 2011 to April 2016, which includes the London 2012 Games. London Underground ...
• BTP takes action at Blythe Bridge level crossingBritish Transport Police and Network Rail braved the wind and rain on Friday 8 July to keep people safe at Blythe Bridge level crossing. More than ...
• London Southend Airport station opensSouthend Airport’s new train station opened for business this morning. The station is on the Southend Victoria to London line, National Express East Anglia’s route. It will ...
• Local MP sees access improvements at Grimsby stationPassengers using Grimsby station have better access to all platforms after improvements were completed by Network Rail and First TransPennine Express. Around 400,000 passengers use Grimsby ...

Railnews

• Think tank delivers fresh condemnation of HS2 A 'FREE MARKET' think tank has published a new condemnation of the plans to build a High Speed line between London, Birmingham and the north of England. The Institute of Economic Affairs dubs the HS2 scheme a 'vanity project', and claims that it is 'economically flawed'.
• Major demonstration planned over Derby job cuts A MAJOR demonstration opposing the government's plan to award the Thameslink rolling stock contract to Siemens is set to go ahead in Derby on Saturday, with organisers predicting that thousands of people will take part.

Aviation Industry

• Virgin calls for APD hike on short-haul flightsLong-haul passengers are being disproportionately penalised on flights, according to Virgin Atlantic
• SIA's no-frills airline chief announcedSingapore Airlines has appointed the CEO who will launch its as yet unnamed low cost carrier

Green Miscellany

• Cycle Derby gets 2,000 kids on their bicycles A team of cycle trainers in Derby has succeeded in getting 2,000 children to regularly commute to school by bike.read more

Other News Sources

• ScotRail insists there are big improvements down the line for Perth railway station Almost £4 million is to be spent modernising Perth railway station in the wake of criticism from some rail users and politicians.
• Green transport gets a boost Wales’ Transport Minister, Carl Sargeant, today announced that sustainable transport is to get a considerable boost across Wales by confirming that sustainable travel centre’s will be allocated £6million over the next year.
• EU procurement and Crossrail Following the controversial Thameslink decision, will the UK government have the courage to act differently when it comes to Crossrail procurement?
• Derbyshire MEP hits out after leaked reports claims David Cameron could have saved Bombardier jobsDerbyshire MEP Derek Clark said the Prime Minister’s claim he was powerless to stop a £3b order for train carriages going abroad has cost thousands of British jobs.
• Labour's transport board shake-up branded 'vindictive'A DECISION by Reading's ruling Labour party to slash all Lib Dem representation on Reading Transport's board of directors has been branded "vindictive".
• Free bus travel reinstated for disabledCONTROVERSIAL rules stopping disabled bus passengers travelling free before 9.30am have been reversed.
• What could TfL™s underspend mean for Londoners? 18 July, 2011 As of March 2011, Transport for London™s (TfL) underspend was more than £300 million higher than when it wrote its business plan[1]. What will TfL do with this money “ and could it contribute to reducing fares increases in future?[2] 360-house-thumb.jpg Yes read more
• London Southend Airport: New state-of-the-art Air Traffic Control Tower officially openedMinister for the Thames Gateway, Bob Neill MP, visited London Southend Airport today (18 July 2011), to officially open the first of the airport's completed new development projects – an all-new ...