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

Wednesday, 04 January 2012

BBC News

• Derby Bombardier campaigners call for train deal details [video]Campaigners backing Bombardier, who lost a £1.4bn contract in June, are calling for the winning German company to publish the financial details of the deal.
• Campaign against fare increasesLabour London mayoral candidate Ken Livingstone launches a leaflet campaign against transport fare rises.
• Councils in £1.7m pothole payoutsNew figures show that local authorities in Scotland have paid out more than £1.7m to drivers whose cars were damaged by potholes.

Financial Times

• Airline accident claims at lowest in seven yearsAirline insurers enjoyed a good 2011, with accident claims by carriers falling by $1bn, according to a report

The Guardian

• Drug-driving law could be toughenedDepartment for Transport advisory panel to assess legal 'body limits' and roadside tests to mirror drink-driving legislationThe government is assembling a panel of experts to look at introducing a law against taking drugs and driving, and to assess the means of testing and the possible legal limits for motorists.The Department for Transport is setting up the panel of academics and scientists to advise on whether or not drug-driving rules could be implemented in the same way as the UK's drink-driving laws.Legislation could be introduced if the panel decides it is technically feasible, in terms ...

The Herald

• Railways 'under attack' from metal thieves say police RAIL services gradually returned to normal last night after most of the ScotRail network was shut down by one of the worst storms in more than a decade, which saw around 200 trees blown onto tracks.
• SNP accused of dumping promise to reduce trafficTARGETS for cutting traffic growth have been dropped by the Scottish Government, which is now planning for up to 20% more journeys on Scotland's roads by 2020 and more rush-hour bottlenecks, The Herald has learned.

The Telegraph

• Lorries involved in two thirds of cyclist deaths in London Heavy goods vehicles and other large lorries were involved in two thirds of cyclist deaths on London's roads last year, according to accident reports released by TfL.
• Graphic: London's cycle accident black spots mapped Details of every accident involving a bicycle reported to Transport for London between August 2010 and July 2011 have been released. Explore London's bicycle accident black spots using the map below.
• More rail fares rises likely this year Rail passengers, already reeling from fare rises of up to 10 per cent, are facing the threat of two more increases this year.
• Lobby group calls for day of action against rail price hike Sophie Allaine from the Campaign for Better Transport wants passenger anger at above inflation ticket price increases to be harnessed into a protest.

Daily Record

• Drop in number of people injured or killed near safety camerasROAD safety cameras have cut the number of people killed or seriously injured at accident black spots by nearly two thirds, according to new figures.

Mail Online

• Rail fares rise by up to 11%: Commuters spending up to a FIFTH of their wages on ticketsAs new year rises took effect, campaigners greeted people at railway stations across the country to highlight the cost of travel in the UK which is 10 times that of many places in Europe.
• 1 in 9 under-24s drive on drugs... and 3 per cent do it once a monthThe findings have been published by road safety charity Brake as a team of Government experts draft Britain's first drug-driving laws.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Daily Post reporter spends time on North Wales busesWHEN the Beeching Axe fell on the Ruabon to Barmouth Junction railway in 1965 the Crosville Motor Company provided a replacement bus route.
• Mid Wales railway faces huge bill for a new level crossingA NARROW gauge railway run by volunteers will need to raise £100,000 by the end of 2012 to fit automatic barriers at one of its level crossings.

Liverpool Post

• Merseyrail plans alcohol ban on trains and stations (VOTE)MERSEYRAIL wants to introduce a total alcohol ban on its trains and stations.
• Edge Lane dual carriageway roadworks to finish by March after years of delaysTHE vision of a dual carriageway along the length of Liverpool’s Edge Lane will finally be complete in March when roadworks on the long-awaited creation of the widened road into the city centre will finish.

Manchester Evening News

• Passengers evacuated after conductor of Manchester-bound train is left on platform at Walkden stationThe conductor was unable to close the door in a carriage from inside the train at Walkden station so got off and tried to close it from the outside. But as it shut, automatically sending a signal to the driver to go, the conductor could not get on in time and the train drove off. Just after 8am at Moorside station passengers were told to get off the train and had to catch the next one, resulting in a 30-minute delay. Bosses said for safety reasons a train cannot run without its conductor.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Severe winds cause havoc on region's trainsSEVERE winds caused havoc in the region this morning. Train passengers on the East Coast mainline faced huge disruption after storms in Scotland forced Edinburgh Waverly station to close.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Nottingham Post commented Commuters to feel pinch as rail fares rocket across UKArticle

Yorkshire Evening Post

• Yorkshire waterways and rivers open up route to greener transportYorkshire’s waterways and rivers could re-emerge as a major form of freight transport as Britain tackles the problems of growing road congestion and the pollution that goes with it.

Blackpool Gazette

• Vital bus route future in doubtPENSIONERS could lose a vital bus service if a new provider is not found.
• Easter vow over new tramtracksCOUNCIL leaders today spoke of their excitement at the completion of Blackpool’s new tram tracks – and say it will be business as usual by Easter.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Suffolk and Essex: Rail services should be back to normal after delaysTRAIN bosses have said that services on the London mainline should now be back to normal after a day of delays.

Peterborough Telegraph

• East Coast delays as train fare hikes come into forceTuesday, 5.15pm: Poor weather conditions have been causing disruption for Peterborough rail travellers most of the day, with delays currently between Doncaster and London Kings Cross.

Other Regional Press

• ˜Passengers are getting a worse and worse deal™CAMPAIGNERS for better south coast train services have voiced support for a protest against higher rail fares.
• Airport shops take offA NEW designer shop has landed at Glasgow Airport.
• RISING COST OF POTHOLES Compensation claims for damage rockets by 822%COMPENSATION claims for pothole damage to cars in Glasgow has rocketed by 822% in the last four years.
• Passenger fury as train fare hike has them counting cost THE MAIN LINE These rail commuters share their viewsPASSENGERS reacted with fury after they were hit with price hikes by ScotRail.
• Bring and buy sale to fight HS2 in CubbingtonA VILLAGE campaign group fighting plans for the HS2 train line through Warwickshire is holding a bring-and-buy sale.

Campaign for Better Transport

• A banner drop at St Pancras launched a day of passenger protest, and Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall backs calls for fair fares.3 January; So far over a thousand tweets have been sent in protest against government fare hikes. If you haven™t already take part now. read more

Global Rail News

• Work to begin on Ashford to Hastings rail upgradeWork starts on 9 January 2012 on a major upgrade of the railway between Hastings and Ashford which will provide more reliable journeys for passengers and be the first step in potentially reducing journey times in the future. The nine-week programme centres on essential maintenance work in Ore tunnel to improve the drainage and repair [...]
• Faster trains & more services for York rail passengersThe south end of York station is no longer a bottleneck for services on the East Coast Main Line (ECML) after engineers worked through Christmas to bring online new track and signalling systems. Infrastructure work at Holgate to install an additional line and new junction was completed on time and on budget earlier this year. [...]
• Stormy weather disrupts East Coast servicesHigh winds of up to 95 miles per hour are affecting services on the East Coast Main Line this morning “ particularly those travelling within Scotland and on cross-border services. Passengers travelling north of Newcastle are being advised not to travel today. Network Rail, which manages Edinburgh Waverley station, has closed the building to trains [...]
• Edgware Road signalling improvements completeSignalling improvements at Edgware Road station, part of the Tube Upgrade Plan, finished a day early and under budget. Upgrade work near one of the busiest junctions on the Tube network will reduce disruption to passengers in the Christmas and New Year period and pave the way for new longer, accessible and air-con ‘S-Stock’ trains [...]
• JETRO consortium to conduct high speed rail pre-feasibility studyJapan External Trade Organisation and Oriental Consultancy, along with Parsons Brinkhoff India, has won a contract to conduct the pre-feasibility study on the proposed route for running high speed trains between Hyderabad and Chennai. The new high speed rail service will run between Hyderabad-Vijayawada-Chennai and will cover a distance of 664 km in just two km hours. [...]
• UK rail passengers pay ™3.5 times more than European commuters™Campaign for Better Transport ‘has discovered some UK commuters are paying three and a half times more for their season ticket than their European neighbours’. Campaign for Better Transport compared the cost of an annual season ticket into five major European capitals. Despite the Government™s concession in the Autumn Statement to cap regulated fare increases [...]

Railnews

• Fares protests mount on first working day of 2012 The first working day of the New Year is being marked by public protests over the new fare increases, which many commuters are encountering for the first time today.

Aviation Industry

• Eurozone crisis could cause aviation to lose $8 billion in 2012IATA warns of "downside risk" if Europe's financial problems are not resolved
• UK airports hit by delays and cancellations Storms cause disruption at Heathrow and other UK airports

Green Miscellany

• The electric bicycle faster than a Porsche 911 GT3 RS You might assume a drag race between a supercar and a bicycle would be a one-sided affair, but a battery engineer at American electric vehicle supremos, Zero, has built an electric ˜superbicycle™ capable of 0-60mph in 3.6 seconds, which is faster than a 2011 Porsche 911 GT3 RS.read more
• Digital coffee table book charts bicycle history The Cyclepedia app is a digital coffee table book that captures the evolution of cycling with wonderful clarity.read more

Other News Sources

• Birmingham New Street works hit milestones over ChristmasSite workers have carried out major works for the redevelopment of Birmingham New Street station over the Christmas period, marking a year to go before the first phase completes and a new concourse opens.
• News from Caroline Pidgeon: Boris Johnson™s fare rises are hitting low income Londoners 3 January, 2012 Commenting on the Mayor's 2012 fare rises being introduced from the start of 2012, Caroline Pidgeon, the leader of the Liberal Democrat London Assembly Group said: "Once again we start the year with another painful fare package from Boris Johnson. For the fourth year in a row he has racked up fares by far more than the rate of inflation. 360-house-thumb.jpg Yes read more
• Box sector toasts New YearLONG-HAUL box rates are rising in the New Year, reflecting the zeal how keen shippers were to get goods sailing before the holidays.