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

Monday, 02 April 2012

BBC News

• Sheffield railway station bridge offer accepted The government's offer to solve a long-running access dispute at Sheffield railway station has been accepted.
• Bristol airport seeks Welsh talksThe chief executive of Bristol Airport calls on the Welsh government to view his expanding business as an
• Airport plans £100m redevelopmentProposals for a £100m redevelopment of Aberdeen Airport over the next 30 years are unveiled.
• Workplace Parking Levy begins in Nottingham A levy which charges employers for their staff to park at work has begun in Nottingham.
• Workplace Parking Levy begins in Nottingham A levy which charges employers for their staff to park at work has begun in Nottingham.

Financial Times

• Doubts cast over fares cut promiseJustine Greening, transport secretary, raises questions over the viability of Ken Livingstone™s pledge to cut cost of public transport in London

The Guardian

• Fuel tanker firms and union set for Acas talks over strike threatTalks through conciliation service pencilled in for Wednesday, as Tory ministers defend government's handling of sagaCrisis talks between the Unite trade union and fuel distributors are due to begin on Wednesday, and William Hague said the government had done

The Herald

• Plans for Aberdeen Airport expansion deferredTHE owners of Aberdeen Airport have deferred expansion plans after revising downwards their forecasts for passenger growth.
• Islanders delighted as Jura ferry link restoredA VITAL ferry service that islanders feared had sailed for the final time last year will be relaunched after funding was secured for another two years.
• We can bring Coalition down, says fuel activistBRITAIN is threatened with gridlock after the prospect of thousands of lorry drivers blocking roads and refineries in support of striking tanker drivers was raised.
• Air fares row as departure tax rise hits passengersAIR passengers will pay higher fares from this week because of a rise in departure taxes introduced yesterday in the face of angry objections from airlines and businesses.

The Telegraph

• Passengers outside London face bigger fare rises Commuters outside London and the South East face higher train fare rises as a result of the Government’s review of the rail industry.
• Fuel prices could spike by 10p this week amid fears forecourts will remain dry until FridayPetrol prices could rise by up to 10 pence a litre this week as garages are left without fuel until the Easter weekend, industry bodies have warned.

Press Association

• 120 new flight services to begin More than 120 new air services will begin from UK airports over the next three months, it has been announced.

Mail Online

• The Crafty Traveller: Return of the airport time forgot as London Southend re-emerges Back in the Sixties, Southend Airport was the third-busiest in the UK after Heathrow and Manchester. Things have certainly been a bit quieter since those days.
• We got it right on petrol says Hague: Claims advice to hoard fuel has left UK 'better prepared'Ministers did nothing wrong by urging people to hoard petrol, William Hague claimed last night, as truckers warned they would join any strike by tanker drivers to ‘bring Britain to a halt’.
• Airport staff let hundreds of passengers skip checks on passports after immigration system failedThe incident on Thursday afternoon at Birmingham Airport followed a similar problem with the IT system at the airport the previous evening.
• Useless States Of America: Why the ramshackle US rail system speaks of the wider decline of a once-great nationWhen did the Americans become so utterly feeble? I grew up at a time when there was nothing on earth – nor in space – that the US could not accomplish. Whatever the challenge: scientific, military, medicinal, geographical… the Americans could find the answer.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Manchester Road is closed as bridge project moves to next stage A cyclist-friendly bridge over one of the city™s busiest roads is a step closer to completion after major work was carried out on the scheme over the weekend.

Sheffield Star

• Park-and-ride plan finally on the right track DISUSED land which was once a garden centre is set to be turned into a new 139-space park-and-ride car park at a Sheffield rail station over the next 12 months – a year later than first proposed.

The York Press

• A1 motorway scheme now open A MAJOR £318 million scheme to upgrade 12 miles of the A1 to a motorway through North Yorkshire is fully open to traffic now that the final southbound section has been fully opened.

Wales Online

• Welsh Government did not consult its advisors before cutting bus funding Two publicly-funded groups which are meant to advise the Welsh Government on public transport were not consulted when the transport minister decided in January to slash bus funding, we can reveal today.
• Fuel prices hit record highs as panic-buying fallout continuesFuel prices are set to hit record levels this week as garages across the UK face a lack of supply caused by panic buying at the pumps.
• Cardiff news: Cardiff Airport loses half its passengers on key routes to sunny SpainThe number of passengers flying to Spain from Cardiff Airport has nearly halved in the past five years, while Bristol has seen its numbers rise.

Yorkshire Post

• We™ll bring Britain to standstill warn truckersTRUCKERS have warned they will “bring Britain to a halt” as they prepare to side with striking tanker drivers in a head to head with the Army.
• Railway museum sets Mallard on track for steam gala dateTHE record-breaking Mallard locomotive is to be displayed away from National Railway Museum sites for the first time since the 1980s, with the engine released for an appearance at a historic steam event later this month.

Crewe Chronicle

• UK & World News: Peace talks due in tanker disputePeace talks between the Unite union and fuel distributors to resolve a threatened strike by tanker drivers are expected to take place later this week.

Daventry Express

• Congestion hotspot on canalsTHE Braunston and Napton canal networks have been judged to be one of the three most congested in the country.

Other Regional Press

• Fuel shortages continue across Gwent FUEL shortages continued across Gwent today as garages hit by panic-buying on Thursday and Friday waited for deliveries.

Airportwatch

• GIP and JP Morgan in dogfight for Edinburgh airport The £500m bid battle for Edinburgh airport is shaping up into a dogfight between Gatwick-owner Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) and a consortium led by JP Morgan.

Other News Sources

• Team has resource to estimate the impact of electric vehiclesA new tool has been developed that will help policy makers predict and prepare for the increased use of electric cars and how they will affect the power network.