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

Wednesday, 30 October 2013

BBC News

• MSP calls for a 'stricter liability' law proposed by cycle campaignersGreen MSP Alison Johnstone called for a new law to make motorists automatically at fault in civil actions after an accident.
• VIDEO: Cyclist filmed road rage threatMore than 50% of drivers in Wales claim to be victims of road rage, according to a BBC Wales survey. Cyclist Matt Turner, a college student from Prestatyn, Denbighshire, caught road rage directed at him on camera.
• VIDEO: 'Hexacopter' makes BBC News debutIn order to cover the HS2 story, BBC News has used a
• Traffic shake up in city centreA major traffic shake up is to be piloted in Edinburgh city centre to improve facilities for pedestrians and cyclists.
• HS2 benefit to UK revised downThe government's latest business case for the HS2 high-speed rail link slightly lowers the amount of benefit it predicts for every £1 spent on the project.

Department for Transport

• Rail demand cap researchExamines the rationale, theory, evidence, practise and options to account for market saturation and uncertainty in long-term rail demand.
• Rail alternatives to HS2Examining the case for conventional alternatives to HS2 and possible enhancements to the existing rail network.
• HS2: strategic caseSets out strategic reasons for building HS2; the new north to south high speed rail line between London, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester.
• Transport appraisal in investment decisions: understanding and valuing the impacts of transport investmentSets out why and how DfT appraises transport investments, the latest research to develop the appraisal framework and future plans.

Financial Times

• The only HS2 analysis that mattersArguments about capacity could open up the charge that the high-speed railway line will be of more benefit to London than the rest of the UK
• Stagecoach to increase US expansionUK-listed transport group wants to add up to 20 per cent over the next year to the 38m annual miles it covers in North America as coach usage rises
• HS2 argument shifts to rail’s ‘popularity’Usage of Britain’s railways has doubled over the past decade, but the existing network could struggle to cope without the high-speed project
• Cities warn Miliband over HS2 ‘conflict’Sir Albert Bore, leader of Birmingham city council, warned if Labour put out a negative message on HS2 there was a risk of ‘protracted public conflict’

The Guardian

• HS2: Labour to support rail project if costs brought downEd Miliband recruits Lord Adonis – founding father of HS2 – to advise him on how party can back high speed rail lineEd Miliband is to throw Labour's support behind Britain's first high-speed rail line north of London if the project's incoming chairman, Sir David Higgins, is given a free hand to bring down the £42bn cost.The Labour leader has drafted in a founding father of the HS2 project, Lord Adonis, to advise him on how the party can back the scheme.Senior Labour sources claim the move is a sign of Miliband's

The Herald

• Whitehall delays new drink-drive limits for ScotlandHOME Office red tape threatens to delay the introduction of a new, life-saving lower drink-drive limit in Scotland.
• Glasgow's City Sprinter bus firm loses licenceA BUS firm which prided itself on offering some of the cheapest fares in Glasgow has had its operating licence revoked after failing to provide evidence of

The Independent

• Predicted economic benefits of HS2 are falling - but ministers insist it will revitalise Britain’s rail network Ministers insisted that the High-Speed 2 link will revitalise Britain’s rail network despite the Government’s latest strategic case for the scheme downgrading the economic benefits it will generate by up to £10 billion.     

The Telegraph

• Transport Secretary: HS2 needed for capacity as well as speedTransport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin says that current weekend disruption shows that upgrading the current rail system is not a viable alternative to the HS2    
• HS2 will become 'difficult' without Labour support, Patrick McLoughlin admitsPatrick McLoughlin, the Transport Secretary, has said that HS2 will become a
• HS2 economic benefits cut back as Government admits people can do work on the trainThe economic benefits of HS2 were revised when it was pointed out business people can do some of their work while on the train    
• Cycle sales outstripping carsSpiralling fuel prices and the Wiggins effect has seen cycle sales soar with 1.6 more bikes bought than cars last year    
• Warning of Labour HS2 splitOne of Labour's most influential council leaders has told Ed Miliband he could split the party if he abandons HS2    
• Labour will 'support HS2 if costs come down', sources claimEd Miliband will throw his weight behind the high speed rail project if incoming chairman Sir David Higgins is allowed to reign in the costs, it is said    

Mail Online

• Ministers scale back claims for economic benefit of HS2 routeLatest forecasts claim the 351-mile high speed line will earn £2.30 for every pound spent by 2026 – 20p less than thought last year.

Network Rail

• Todmorden curve set to boost Lancashire’s growing railwayMore travel opportunities are on the way for passengers in Burnley and East Lancashire as engineers start work to construct a 300m section of track known as the Todmorden west curve.
• Improvement work at Ansford counts down to completion

Birmingham Post

• Birmingham-based Monarch Airlines to double fleet with 60 new jets Monarch, which operates a host of services from Birmingham, is currently in the final stages of a tender process with Airbus, Boeing and Bombardier to re-equip its short-haul fleet
• Labour big city leaders warn Miliband he risks open warfare over HS2 U-turnLabour's big city leaders have warned Ed Miliband he is heading for a long public battle over HS2 with his own party in the Midlands and North, in the run up to the next election

Derby Telegraph

• Derby Telegraph commented No HS2 would mean years of delays for passengers, says Derby rail...AN organisation that represents Derby's rail firms has backed a Government-commissioned report that claims there would be years of delays if the existing network was upgraded in favour of creating the HS2 service.The report was penned by Network Rail and consultancy Atkins Rail, which has an office in Derby.It claims that upgrading existing lines would severely harm routes including the Midland Main Line, which serves Derby.It claims that the work would see 14 years of weekend route closures,...

London Evening Standard

• Demand will soon outstrip supply on London's buses, report findsLondon’s bus passengers face increasingly overcrowded journeys unless the Mayor and Transport for London take action, a London Assembly report has warned.
• Economic benefits of HS2 fallingThe Government is continuing to enthusiastically back HS2 even though an official report has shown the estimated economic benefit of the £50 billion project is falling.

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• HS2: New Government report lowers project's predicted economic benefitsThe Strategic Case For HS2 report says the scheme will produce a benefit of £2.30 for every £1 spent - lower than the £2.50 estimated in August 2012

Northern Echo

• Work to officially start on £82m train factory WORK to build an £82m factory to bring train building back to the cradle of the railways will officially start this week.

Sheffield Star

• Doncaster rail worker in ‘wrong place’ when train hit himA Doncaster rail worker killed by a train was standing in the wrong place to do his job of supervising a work gang’s safety, an inquiry has found.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• HS2 vital to future transport needs of Britain, says new reportBritain cannot meet its future transport needs without HS2, according to new evidence published today.

Yorkshire Post

• £1bn transport fund under threatThe Government stands accused of scuppering a £1bn investment programme for West Yorkshire’s transport network with a new law forcing councils to hold an annual referendum if they wish to fund the scheme through council tax rises.
• Labour
split over
HS2 after
cities back
fast railTHE Labour leaders of England’s largest regional cities have written to the party leadership in Westminster expressing “urgent” concern at their wavering stance on HS2 and warning of open warfare with Northern town halls ahead of the next election.
• Northern rail routes to benefit if HS2 gets approvalA MAJOR consultation will be gin in the coming months to assess how towns and cities across the north of England can benefit from the huge increase in rail capacity brought about by the construction of HS2.

Bucks Free Press

• Council teams work for 20 hours to clear fallen trees TRANSPORT for Bucks worked for 20 hours to clear the roads of trees yesterday after high winds hit the area.
• Economic benefit of HS2 downscaled in latest Government business case THE Government was accused of launching “a desperate attempt to prop up a failing business case” by a council leader today, as it was revealed the economic benefit of HS2 would not be as great as previously predicted.

Doncaster Free Press

• Doncaster rail worker in ‘wrong place’ when train hit himA Doncaster rail worker killed by a train was standing in the wrong place to do his job of supervising a work gang’s safety, an inquiry has found.    

North Wales Live

• HS2: New Government report lowers project's predicted economic benefitsThe Strategic Case For HS2 report says the scheme will produce a benefit of £2.30 for every £1 spent - lower than the £2.50 estimated in August 2012

Other Regional Press

• People urged to take part in HS2 compensation consultationResidents in the south of Northamptonshire have a few weeks left to respond to a consultation about compensation they could receive if the HS2 high speed rail link is built.
• Thameslink line now fully open after repairs by Network Rail are completeBedford to Brighton, Wimbledon and Sutton Thameslink lines are now fully open, First Capital Connect has reported.

Global Rail News

• MPs voice concerns about impact of Thameslink delaysMPs have said they are ’sceptical’ that Thameslink can be delivered to the revised 2018 deadline following a string of delays. A new report compiled by the Public Accounts Committee[...]
• ‘Patch and mend’ rail investment no substitute for HS2HS2 is still the best option for meeting the UK’s rail capacity needs, that is the message coming out of the Department for Transport. Publishing its new strategic business case[...]
• India sets up high-speed rail authorityIndia has established a new body to lead the development of high-speed rail across the country. The High Speed Rail Corporation (HSRC), which was launched today at a railways event[...]
• Civils contract awarded for Copenhagen-Ringsted line upgradeA Danish-German consortium has bee awarded a €562 million civils contract to construct a series of structures along Denmark’s  Copenhagen-Ringsted line. Eriksson and Züblin will deliver 18 kilometres of earthworks,[...]

Railnews

• MPs criticise Thameslink Programme progress A House of Commons Committee has produced a critical report about the Thameslink Programme, claiming that passengers will not see the benefits of the £7 billion project 'until the 2020s'. The Public Accounts Committee highlights the fact that an upgrade of the north-south route through central London was first discussed in 1989, just after the tunnel between Farringdon and Blackfriars had been reopened to passenger trains. But new rolling stock will arrive several years later than planned, following the financial crisis in 2008-2009.
• DfT says railways will be 'overwhelmed' without HS2 The Department for Transport has published a revised business case for building High Speed 2. The new analysis has been welcomed by supporters of the project, but opponents are claiming that the Government 'is looking desperate'. The DfT said 'Britain cannot meet its future transport needs without HS2', while the transport secretary said this morning that the alternative suggestion, that existing routes should be upgraded, would still cost £20 billion, take 14 years and result in tremendous disruption to existing services.

The Business Desk

• Virgin Rail holds talks with DfT for greater revenue chunk of West Coast serviceMANAGEMENT at Virgin Rail Group is holding talks with the Department for Transport on a deal which could see the West Coast Main Line operator take a greater revenue chunk from the service

Aviation Industry

• Bag fees coming to Southwest Airlines?For years, you couldn't watch an NFL game on Sunday afternoon without being reminded in commercials that on Southwest Airlines, bags fly free.
• Garuda confirms start of Gatwick serviceIndonesian airline will operate flights to Jakarta from late May
• Airlines benefit from boom in ancillary salesResearch shows that revenue from add-ons has nearly doubled in three years

Other News Sources

• Rural bus to benefit all ages in Mole ValleyGrant of £305,147 helps to launch minibus service to support rural residents
• The numbers are good - but HS2 was always a political projectThe figures in today's Treasury benefit cost ratio of HS2 are both positive and spuriously exact. But don't be fooled - this is a political rather than an economic project.
• How UK has fallen behind at high-speed rail - videoThe UK may have been the first to develop trains that travelled at high speeds - but since then we have fallen steeply behind our global peers.
• Government makes renewed case for HS2New report highlights impact of not going ahead with high-speed rail project