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

Wednesday, 03 March 2021

BBC News

• Bid for new Oxford to Witney railway line study to be submittedA group campaigning to re-establish an Oxfordshire railway will bid for government funds to carry out a feasibility study.
• Larne Port: Council chief executive 'didn't know threat source'The chief executive of Mid and East Antrim Council did not know where threat to workers had come from.
• Covid: Qantas launches 'mystery flights' to boost tourismAirlines in the region are coming up with different strategies to tackle the pandemic travel slump.
• Some UK arrivals 'still waiting' for quarantine Covid testsInternational arrivals from countries not on the UK's

The Guardian

• HS2 to 'rewild' 127 hectares around its 10-mile Chilterns tunnelArea to be seeded with 70 grass and flower species and planted with native trees to create wood pastureA “rewildingâ€� of arable fields by HS2 will create 127 hectares (314 acres) of wood pasture, wetlands and flower-rich grassland using chalk taken from tunnelling under the Chilterns.The new wildlife haven will be founded upon all 3m tonnes of chalk that are to be excavated from the high-speed railway’s 10-mile Chilterns tunnel, with construction starting in May. Continue reading...

Times Online

• Half of smart motorway safety cameras not yet fully operational [subscription]Drivers could be escaping fines for ignoring lane closures on smart motorways because half of the safety cameras on these roads are not yet fully operational, The Times has learnt.

Birmingham Post

• Network Rail name new MD for its Wales & Western rail networkMichelle Handforth will take up her new role this summer

Manchester Evening News

• This is the north's plan for rail improvements for 'the rest of the century'Transport for the north has submitted its final preferred routs for Northern Powerhouse Rail

Wales Online

• Details updated of when Transporter Bridge could reopenWelsh Government funding is set for 'the most iconic feature on Newport’s skyline'

Hull Daily Mail

• Efforts to slash journey times to Sheffield and Leeds boosted with support for Hull rail electrification

Other Regional Press

• Wigan Council leader condemns 'catastrophic' plans to slash rail servicesCoun David Molyneux says a Department for Transport paper on rail routes in the region could significantly impact the borough.
• Some drivers to pay £50 a day to go through Bradford city centreThe plan for a "Clean Air Zone" to tackle pollution has got the go-ahead

Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport

• Go North East launches online lost property tool to reunite belongings with customers quickerGo North East has launched an innovative, online lost property system that makes it easier to unite customers with their lost belongings. The region’s largest bus company has a fleet of over 600 buses and receives around 10,000 lost property enquiries each year from customers who have misplaced their belongings. Due to the number of services and depots it is often difficult to co-ordinate lost items with their owner but thanks to the introduction of this technology its possible to reunite items quickly. The new system, provided by digital solutions company Not Lost, enables customers ...
• THE OPINION: Current issues facing the bus industrySince the onset of Covid-19 one year ago, sharp variations in performance can be seen. As shown in the Department for Transport’s regularly updated table of trends by mode, ridership fell to a very low level – around 11% of previous levels in April 2020 – but then rose to a high point around 55% to 60% in September and October, as restrictions were eased and schools returned, before falling to about 25% in January 2021 under the current lockdown. In all periods it has been substantially above trends for rail, but below car vehicular traffic.  Service levels varied much...

Aviation Industry

• AEF Briefing: Why International Aviation and Shipping emissions should be included in the sixth carbon budgetThe current approach – allowing ‘headroom’ for these emissions rather than formally including them – has allowed aviation emissions to rise, whilst emissions from other sectors have fallen. Including IAS …
• AEF Newsletter: Campaigners line up to resist airport expansion plansOur 2020 Annual Report is out! Have you read our 2020 Annual Report? We look back on a year largely shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic. This saw new issues added …

Other News Sources

• After four years and $7 million, Metrolinx quietly drops proposal for hydrogen-powered GO trainsMetrolinx has pulled the plug on its exploration of hydrogen-powered trains for the GO Transit network after determining the technology was too much of a gamble.
• High-speed rail’s role in transforming travel recognised in industry reportPublished by Britain’s High Speed Rail Group (HSRG), the report examines the benefits, opportunities and extent of international high-speed rail, with contributions drawn from across the infrastructure industry.
• Network Rail appoint Michelle Handforth as Wales and Western MDNetwork Rail has today announced that Michelle Handforth has been appointed as the new managing director for the Wales & Western region.
• Transport Minister rallies north Wales community against plans to weaken rail servicesThe Manchester Recovery Task Force (MRTF) has opened a public consultation, running until 10 March, offering three options to alter timetabled passenger and freight services in an attempt to improve the performance of the rail network in the Manchester area.
• Call for the Government to prioritise investment in existing rail infrastructureRos Jones, Mayor of Doncaster, is calling for the Government to prioritise investment in existing rail infrastructure and improved regional and local transport links to back up its claims of wanting to level up the UK.
• Heathrow Airport announces new charges for 2021 including £8.90 passenger fee The 'Airport Cost Recovery Charge' was introduced from January 1 for all departing passengers
• Aviation fuel made from air and next-gen hydropower: The best green innovations of February 2021 Every month, numerous eye-catching and potentially transformational innovations are being developed to help businesses and nations turn their green ambitions into actions. Here, we round up six of the best from February 2021.