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

Friday, 13 August 2021

BBC News

• Bristol Temple Meads rail upgrade reaches halfway pointPassengers can expect another four weeks of disruption to rail services as a major track upgrade reaches its half-way point.
• Electric cars: Do ministers put their motor where their mouth is?Politicians are keen for us to live greener lives, but how many have taken the electric car plunge?
• Can Americans pull the plug on petrol-powered cars?Joe Biden wants half of all cars sold in the US to be zero emission by 2030 - but getting there won't be easy.

ITV News

• Middlesbrough to London direct trains confirmed to run from December
The first new trains to run between Middlesbrough and London will start on 13 December, operator London North Eastern Railway (LNER) has confirmed.

Financial Times

• Shipping group Hapag-Lloyd earns more in 6 months than in previous 10 yearsSupply chain ructions during pandemic drive bumper earnings at German group and rivals
• UK watchdog to explore ‘immediate’ action on fees for PCR testsCMA considers moves before inquiry concludes after travellers are forced to pay up to nearly £600 for Covid tests

The Telegraph

• Slugging frequent flyers won’t stop climate change [subscription]We might still be three months away from the COP26 Glasgow climate conference, but the Government appears to be in a mad environmental policy scramble already.

City AM

• Congestion at Chinese container ports worsens after Covid casesCongestion around the two main container ports in eastern China has worsened following a shutdown caused by rising Covid cases. The post Congestion at Chinese container ports worsens after Covid cases appeared first on CityAM.

Daily Record

• Troon fire: Rail bosses told not to repeat restoration job done at another Ayrshire seaside townRailway bosses have been warned not to take the same approach to restoring fire ravaged Troon Station as they did with another Ayrshire seaside town.

Birmingham Mail

• Birmingham Airport has busiest day since Covid began - but says testing policy needs 'urgent review'Passenger numbers at Birmingham are still at 20 per cent of pre-pandemic levels

Birmingham Post

• EasyJet to use Bristol Airport as testbed for sustainability trials Any successful results from the trials will have the potential to be rolled out across 150 airports globally

Wales Online

• New restrictions set for parking at Ebbw Vale train stationA well-used carpark next to the Ebbw Vale Town train station is set to be restricted next month, as spaces inside become allocated for permit holders from the neighbouring General Offices.

Other Regional Press

• Electric cargo bikes coming to the streets of BradfordThe delivery bikes are 60 per cent faster than vans getting around the city

Train Operators

• First trains travel on proposed Northumberland Line routeSpecial rail services have taken place between Newcastle and Morpeth as plans to reintroduce passenger trains on the Northumberland Line gather pace.

Coach and Bus Week

• Ready2Go ready to go in AberdeenshireA new DRT service will hit the roads of Inverurie in mid-August, replacing some normal bus services in the area
• Swansea offers free local bus travel in AugustSwansea Council is offering free travel on local bus services within its area on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays between 30 July and 30 August. The offer is only available on journeys that start and finish within the Swansea Council area and which commence before 2300hrs. The offer is open to all, not just Swansea residents, and valid on services operated by First Cymru, Adventure Travel, South Wales Transport, DANSA, Briggs and Stagecoach.
• Face masks ’should be mandatory’ say disabled and older peopleDisabled and older people say the further easing of Covid-19 restrictions has left them feeling uncomfortable about using public transport, according to a recent report by Research Institute for Disabled Consumers (RiDC). The report suggests that more than 60% of disabled people now feel uncomfortable travelling with others and more than 85% think mask-wearing on public transport should remain mandatory for the foreseeable future.
• eStar Truck & Van Deeside gains EvoBus aftersales franchise in NWeStar Truck & Van has gained the aftersales franchise for EvoBus in Deeside, the North West and the North Wales area. The firm is able to service, maintain and repair all Mercedes-Benz and Setra bus, coach and minibus products, with work carried out by Mercedes-Benz-trained technicians using genuine parts and specialist tooling at its sites at Trafford Park and Deeside.
• Scottish transport trend data shows slow recovery in user numbersMonitoring by Transport Scotland (TS) of transport trends during the Covid-19 outbreak has shown a small increase in use compared to pre-pandemic levels over recent weeks. The information gathered by TS, which is used to help determine Scottish policy in relation to resilience and response to the outbreak, provides a snapshot of travel across main modes when compared to a pre-pandemic baseline, which for most modes is the same period in 2019. The figures use data from a variety of sources, including the DfT’s National Travel Survey, data published in Scottish Transport Statistics, and data collected by operators across the transport networks.

New Civil Engineer

• Crossrail site access issues put stations completion at risk, could add extra costs and is project’s ’greatest safety risk’ Crossrail progress is being significantly hampered by ongoing issues with site access, according to Jacobs latest project representative (PREP) report.
• Network Rail begins drawing up spending plans for next five-year control periodNetwork Rail is preparing its initial plans for the delivery of capital works in Control Period 7 (CP7), ahead of the government’s Spending Review in the Autumn.

Railnews

• Essex councillors call for Underground link Councillors in Harlow are calling for a new Underground link, saying that they are examining 'all possibilities for improving and modernising transport connections'. The idea is part of a Town Plan.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Action against climate change: SBTi certifies Go-Ahead’s carbon reduction targetsEmissions reduction targets published by Go-Ahead last month have been approved the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
• Stagecoach to deploy bridge-alert tech nationwide after Cambridge trialApproximately 18,000 low bridges across the UK are being mapped into the system in advance of the roll-out of the technology planned by late summer
• Reading Buses and MiX Telematics shortlisted for fleet safety partnership awardReading Buses and tech company MiX Telematics have been jointly shortlisted for a fleet safety partnership award at the 2021 UK Fleet Champions Awards.
• RHA publishes proposals for coach PSVAR solutionRHA has published its policy on how PSVAR should be applied to the coach sector. While it agrees that vehicles with more than 22 passenger seats that are used on services that are deemed to be in scope should be compliant, the trade body has called on ministers to amend the scope of the Regulations to focus on access to journeys, rather than on vehicles.
• DVLA licence application delays ’are costing the industry drivers’Delays in the processing of vocational driving licence applications by DVLA are turning urgently needed new staff away from the industry, one operator says.
• ScotZEB guidance published by Transport ScotlandDetailed guidance on the £50m first phase of the Scottish Zero Emission Bus (ScotZEB) fund has been published by Transport Scotland.
• Bus performance monitoring review coming, say TCs in reportPlans for the modernisation of bus performance monitoring will be taken forward by the Traffic Commissioners (TCs) as part of objectives for 2021-23, their annual report for 2020-21 discloses.

Other News Sources

• South Western Railway might cut Epsom and Dorking rail services to London under new plansPlans for one Dorking-Waterloo train an hour is said to be 'a disaster'
• Heathrow British Airways flights grounded in June may have become unsafe due to insect infestationsThe Air Accidents Investigation Branch is looking into it