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

Tuesday, 24 December 2013

Cogitamus

• Merry Christmas From The TransportInfo TeamWe will be taking a little break over the holidays. TransportInfo will not be updated on 25 and 26 December 2013 and also on 1 January 2014. Well, that's unless something extraordinary happens and we can't stop ourselves… Thank you for your continued interest and support.

BBC News

• Weather warning limits rail servicesSevere storms forecast to hit the West Midlands are causing disruption to rail services, London Midland says.
• Gritter comes off road on icy routeA gritter slides off the road in the Scottish Borders due to icy conditions on the region's roads.
• VIDEO: Air passenger: 'Really dodgy landing'Alex Milton from Devon, who was hoping to fly to Gatwick Airport last night, explained that his journey had been delayed by the storm
• Councils 'make £594m from parking'A report finds councils in London make the biggest surpluses from parking, with seven of the 10 highest amounts from authorities in the capital.
• Bus hits bridge after wrong turnA bus is damaged after the driver took a wrong turn and hit a railway bridge in south-west London.
• British Airways plane clips buildingA British Airways plane carrying more than 200 people hits an office building while preparing to take off from Johannesburg in South Africa.
• Rail fares rise by average of 2.8%Rail fares will rise by an average of 2.8% from January, the smallest rise in four years, but passenger groups say that season ticket prices are going up faster than wages.

Financial Times

• EasyJet blazes trail on customer serviceLow-cost airline aims to seize more market share by retraining staff and putting passenger satisfaction at the heart of its business
• Small airports hit hardest by rivalsLife has been tough for most British airports in the past few years, with passenger numbers declining from a 2007 peak of 239.9m
• Two die as storm hits Christmas travelThe transport network was disrupted as thousands were left without power in high winds and rain that lashed the south and west – and were moving north

The Guardian

• Storm batters UK before Christmas: live blogDozens of flights diverted or grounded as torrential rain and storm winds that caused two deaths on Monday threaten the UK for a second day...

The Independent

• Ryanair steward in four-letter rant at passenger Ryanair's shaky customer service record has taken another blow, after the airline had to apologise for a steward's expletive-filled rant at a passenger over a bag of cheese and crackers.    
• Bus loses roof after crashing into railway bridge in south London A double-decker bus crashed into a railway bridge, almost slicing off its roof, after the driver took a wrong turn.    

The Telegraph

• Snowy roads cause Christmas travel chaos in ScotlandVideo from Scotland shows the chaos on the roads caused by snowy conditions as bad weather hampers the Christmas travel plans of thousands    
• Councils have 'no excuse' for failing to fill in potholes, minister saysCouncils have 'no excuse' for failing to fill in potholes and complaining about spending cuts is 'rich', roads minister Robert Goodwill says    

Daily Express

• Transport turmoil as surging storms batter Britain just days before ChristmasHEAVY rain and 80mph winds have struck the UK causing disruption for last-minute shoppers and people heading home for the holidays.

Mail Online

• 3 killed in North Circular crash 'during high-speed race'This is all that remains of a high-performance car after it crashed into a lorry and erupted into a fireball, killing the three men inside on London's North Circular near Arnos Grove.

Network Rail

• Changes to rail services at Pont BriwetThe railway line between Harlech and Pwllheli will remain closed until the new bridge over the River Dwyryd opens.

Daily Post (North Wales)

• Storms in Gwynedd send trees crashing on to railway Children's play area was demolished

London Evening Standard

• Boris Johnson: 'Dimmer switches' for street lights will cut billsThousands of street lights on all of London’s major roads are to be fitted with “dimmer switches”.
• Sixty mile network to open up city to casual riders in bid to 'de-Lycrafy' cyclingA sixty-mile central London network of bike lanes has been unveiled as part of Mayor Boris Johnson’s mission to “de-Lycrafy” cycling.
• Kent rail commuters hit by £5,000 season ticketsThousands of rail passengers from Kent will be forced to pay £5,000 for a season ticket for the first time after the annual fare rises were published today.

Manchester Evening News

• Motorists and passengers injured in NINE car multi-vehicle crash on M62 Paramedics scrambled to M62 westbound at J12 M60 / M602 near the Eccles Interchange

Northern Echo

• Rower to spend Christmas day battling the wold and wet in the middle of the Atlantic SUPERFIT fundraiser Dan Howie will be having anything but a warm and cosy Christmas this year – as he battles the winter weather in the middle of the Atlantic in a 23ft boat.

Nottingham Evening Post

• Civic car - a Ford Mondeo - gets scrapped in Nottinghamshire...NOTTS County Council is set to sell its £21,000 civic Ford Mondeo to save money.But Nottingham City Council says it has no plans yet to part with its two £91,000 Jaguars.Both authorities have revealed plans for how they will deal with a drop in Government funding, with services being cut and some charges being increased.The county council has to save £154 million over the next three years and is looking at saving £87,000 through cuts to the Civic Office. It used to run...

The York Press

• Thousands of pounds to be repaid to Derby taxi firmsTAXI firms in Derby are to be refunded thousands of pounds by the city council after it charged them money for things it had no right to do so. The authority, which has apologised, owes companies in both the hackney carriage and private hire trade a total of £25,300. The issue came to light after a complaint from Gary Matkin, of Chads Cars, to the district auditor, who investigated the council's accounts. Mr Matkin said:
• New £60 million fleet of trains on First TransPennine Express routes from YorkA £60 million new fleet of trains will mean a 30 per cent increase in capacity on First TransPennine Express trains from York to cities such as Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool next year.
• York Park & Ride fares to rise in New YearFares for York Park & Ride buses are going up in the New Year.

This Is Local London Network

• Sutton Council nets almost £2m in parking profits The council made almost £2million from parking fees last year - although many other boroughs cash in more on motorists.

Yorkshire Post

• Drunk driver jailed for killing sister and partner in car crashA DRUNK driver who got behind the wheel after consuming 11 pints of lager before a car crash which claimed the lives of his sister and her new partner has been jailed for five years.

Carlisle News & Star

• Is this the end of Carlisle railway station gridlock? GRIDLOCK outside Carlisle’s railway station may be avoided in future because a problem pole on its forecourt has been moved.

East Anglian Daily Times

• Suffolk: Rail season tickets from Ipswich to London Liverpool Street to reach £6k in 2014Rail users in the region are set to see another increase in fares next year, with some facing season ticket costs of over £6000.
• Suffolk: Police urge motorists to take care as trees come down in county because of strong windsTrees came down across Suffolk last night as a severe storm brought gusts of up to 70mph to the county.
• Suffolk/Essex: Major disruption for rail services this morning because of storm damageRail commuters in the region are facing major delays this morning because of the damage caused by last night’s storm.

North Wales Live

• Travel company says axed No 11 route is a victim of Liverpool bus lane suspension Claims dismissed by Mayor of Liverpool who blames Christmas for increase in traffic

The Shields Gazette

• Man charged over £1.5m drugs find at Port of TyneA DUTCHMAN has been charged with drug smuggling after drugs with a street value of £1.5m were seized at the Port of Tyne.

Other Regional Press

• Rail passengers face £160 rise in ticket prices RAIL commuters in Hampshire are facing hikes of more than £160 for their annual ticket to London.
• Council approves airport expansion but government review neededA marathon eight-hour council meeting resulted in the London Luton Airport expansion being approved by Luton Borough Council on Friday.
• Ferries continue through the bad weatherFERRIES are still running between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight despite the bad weather.

Aviation Industry

• Emirates firms deal for 50 additional A380s Emirates Airline has signed a firm order for 50 additional A380s, cementing a commitment that was first announced at the Dubai Air Show in November. read more
• German carrier increases capacity on business routeLufthansa will increase capacity on the Heathrow-Frankfurt service from March 30

Other News Sources

• China Shipbuilders to Forefront in Active Dry Bulk SectorAnother week of ordering across the sizes in the dry bulk market, say Clarkson Hellas in their latest S+P Weekly Bulletin, with orders to report from Ultramax up to Capesizes vessels.
• 17 drivers and managers sentencedSeventeen drivers and managers of a haulage firm have been sentenced at Carlisle Crown Court. Following a joint operation between the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and Cumbria Police lasting 3 years. Two managers and thirteen drivers pleaded guilty to the offences. Two drivers who pleaded “Not Guilty” and who stood trial and who were found guilty by a jury at Carlisle Crown Court in November have also been sentenced. The investigation began after intelligence reports were received about two companies, Ross International and Ross International Haulage Ltd. Ross International was a...
• FTA hits out on parking finesThe Freight Transport Association (FTA) has stated today that the half a billion pound profit for councils in England generated by parking fines last year, is a “tax on business too.” The FTA was responding to the publication by the RAC Foundation today which reported figures recording record profits made by English local authorities for parking fines – known as Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs). The report showed that in 2012-13 a surplus of £594m was made from parking activities. The Association noted that as well as the private motorist, and said that these funds are raised by fining delivery c...
• Shortlist announced for Paddington tunnel link to connect Crossrail and Bakerloo Line platformsCostain/Skanska and Morgan Sindall joint ventures are among those shortlisted for the contract to build the tunnel link between Crossrail platforms and Bakerloo Line platform’s at London’s Paddington Station.