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

Wednesday, 26 October 2022

BBC News

• Translink: Public bus and train fares frozen for another yearTranslink's public transport fares will stay frozen for another year to help passengers facing higher costs of living, a Stormont minister has said.
• Menai Bridge closure 'nightmare' for local businessesThe sudden closure of a bridge linking Anglesey and the mainland will hurt the economy, locals fear.
• Unions reject regional airport owner's pay offerHighlands and Islands Airports Limited says it was disappointed by the decision.
• Avanti West Coast: Minister warns over troubled rail lineThe train operator is told it could lose the West Coast Main Line unless it makes improvements.
• Rail strike date moved over London Poppy Day clashThe RMT union says planned strike action by rail workers has been postponed for six days.

STV

• Avanti 'could lose West Coast contract' over reduction in servicesThe line connects Glasgow to major UK cities including Manchester and London.

The Independent

• Manchester Airport boss vows ’unacceptable’ airport chaos will come to an end in 2023The director of Manchester Airport has slammed luggage handlers for a summer of chaos and vowed to “mark their homework” going forward.

The Telegraph

• London Poppy Day saved as RMT cancels national rail strikeFundraising appeal returns to train stations on Nov 3 after trade union puts back start of walkouts by two days

Times Online

• FCA clamps down on ’greenwashing’ by investment firms. [subscription]Investment firms will be banned from “greenwashing” their products under proposed new rules to tighten up the marketing of supposedly sustainable financial products.

Liverpool Echo

• Liverpool passengers caught in 'chaos' as TransPennine cancels 30 trains in one daySteve Rotheram said issues with trains in the region "should be a national scandal"

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• The security area at Newcastle Airport is now under renovation - here is how it's expected to lookThese images show how the security area at Newcastle Airport will look following a major renovation.

The York Press

• Coastliner York to Malton, Leeds and Whitby 'most scenic' bus routeThe Coastliner route from Leeds via York through to Whitby has been named the most scenic in the country.
• 'Bring rail HQ to York' - says Rachael Maskell in plea to Rishi SunakBring rail HQ to York - MP's call to new PM Sunak
• York digital parking permits caused 'confusion and frustration', says watchdogCity of York Council failed to fully explain how its digital parking permit scheme worked to a local business owner and did not consult trade organisations before implementing it, according to a report by the local government watchdog.

Doncaster Free Press

• Great British Railways HQ will go ahead despite shelving of legislationResults of the competition for cities to become the home of Great British Railways will be revealed as planned, despite a pushback in legislation, according to a Conservative MP.

Other Regional Press

• West Yorkshire Mayor meets with rail bosses to address repeated train cancellationsThe Mayor of West Yorkshire has called for action after a meeting with TransPennine Express bosses following concerns that repeated train cancellations are causing chaos for rail passengers.
• Elizabeth Line's Bond Street station finally opens with direct links to Reading and Heathrow AirportBond Street station has finally opened five months after the Elizabeth Line started running. Passengers will finally be able to travel from Reading and Heathrow to Abbey Wood without changing at Paddington.
• Elizabeth Line TfL: Bond Street station opens in major transport boost for EssexThe stop will help Essex residents reach the shopping district of London
• Forest of Dean MP Mark Harper named Transport Secretary by new Prime MinisterForest of Dean MP Mark Harper has been announced as new Secretary of State for Transport. It comes as Rishi Sunak appoints his new cabinet hours after becoming Prime Minister.

Business Live

• Plans for £120m new train station and business district in Cardiff called in by Welsh GovernmentIt comes despite the Welsh Government having an ownership stake in the Cardiff Parkway Station and Hendre Lakes business park scheme

New Civil Engineer

• TfL to spend £215M upgrading its ageing road bridges in the next five yearsTransport for London (TfL) has allocated £215.2M for design and construction of existing road bridges between 2023 and 2028, figures obtained by NCE via a Freedom of Information request have revealed.
• Network Rail begins second phase of £35M Clapham Junction makeoverThe second phase of Network Rail’s £35M project to give the busiest interchange station in the UK a makeover has begun.

Rail Advent

• South Western Railway to bring 5G WiFi to Basingstoke and Earlsfield passengersThe superfast onboard Wi-Fi will be provided for customer's use between Basingstoke and Earlsfield

Rail Business Daily

• Digital barcode season tickets making daily travel a breezeSeason tickets undoubtedly make life easier, and Northern are doing all they can to make them even simpler.
• Superfast on-board browsing thanks to 5G Wi-Fi on SWR servicesThe first series of rail-5G poles are being installed along over 70 kilometres of railway between Basingstoke and Earlsfield, as part of project by evo-rail and South Western Railway, in partnership with Network Rail.

Aviation Industry

• Battle for Doncaster Airport enters final weekThere’s less than a week to go before Peel Group closes Doncaster Airport and efforts to keep it open are coming from all sides – except the government.
• Council threatens legal action to reopen Plymouth AirportPlymouth City Council will take legal action to regain control of Plymouth Airport, closed by property developers Sutton Harbour Group 11 years ago, if a deal cannot be reached.
• UK’s Southampton Airport: part one – no airport ’has right to exist if it can’t make money’The demise of the UK’s Doncaster-Sheffield Airport must have set many municipal authorities’ nerves on edge. Now Southampton Airport on the English south coast says it will need to build back up quickly to at least 1.2 million passengers annually if it is to survive – while it will lose GBP4.5 million this year.

Other News Sources

• Bookham railway line finally reopens two days after train collides with treeSignalling equipment between Bookham and Leatherhead was damaged in the incident
• Statement from Mayor Ros Jones on Doncaster Sheffield Airport I listened with interest to the debates in UK Parliament yesterday regarding Doncaster Sheffield Airport and what can be done to help save it.
• Research reveals that 60,000 skilled transports jobs will need to be filled in the West Midlands by 2035 Thousands of young people and those looking for a change of career will benefit from the huge transport jobs boom.

News from Europe

• European transport ministers discuss development of rail transportThe meeting included discussions on the TEN-T network and energy prices.