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

Tuesday, 29 November 2022

BBC News

• York: Train passengers warned of Christmas disruptionTrain passengers travelling to and from York over Christmas and the New Year will face disruption as track work takes place, Network Rail has warned.

The Guardian

• Rude drivers will swerve in my lane: are Tesla owners paying the price for Musk hate?US owners say they've been on the receiving end of road rage, but it may be more about EVs than the CEO himselfTesla lost at least one customer this weekend, after Alyssa Milano tweeted that she had returned her model for a Volkswagen electric vehicle, prompting jokes from Elon Musk and conservative commentators about the German manufacturer’s Nazi origin story. Milano said she had ditched Tesla due to Musk’s ownership of Twitter.While Tesla owners do not seem to be following the actor’s move en masse, some note that they have been on the receiving end of road rage directed toward their vehicl...

The Independent

• Why the rail strikes could all be over by ChristmasAll over by Christmas: that is my perhaps ambitious prediction for the toxic tangle of rail disputes currently wrecking the journey plans of millions of travellers. The long and bitter conflict between unions, train operators, Network Rail and a succession of transport secretaries is approaching a terminus.

Times Online

• Rolls-Royce and easyJet test is breakthrough for hydrogen fuel in air travel. [subscription]Green technology seen as the key to environmentally ’guilt-free flying’

City AM

• Rail Partners calls for government to give operators more freedom Rail Partners has called for the government to give train operators more freedom to attract back customers. According to the rail association, the current system – introduced during the pandemic and based on contracts instead of franchising – needs to evolve through an increase harnessing of the private sector. Rail Partners has called for a [...] The post Rail Partners calls for government to give operators more freedom appeared first on CityAM.

Network Rail

• Dartmoor Line passes 250,000 journeys on its first anniversary, as rail minister visits to mark official opening of the station building.Just over a year after the Dartmoor Line reopened to regular passenger trains, journey numbers on the line have passed 250,000 this Monday morning [28 November], with the arrival of an extra special visitor, Rail Minister, Huw Merriman MP, to officially open the renovated station building.

Belfast Telegraph

• Sadiq Khan, Sir Chris Whitty join public health leaders for air pollution talksMayor of London Sadiq Khan and chief medical officer Sir Chris Whitty will join public health leaders on Tuesday to discuss how they can work together to tackle air pollution.

Birmingham Post

• Rolls-Royce and EasyJet complete world-first hydrogen engine testRolls-Royce engines and general operations contributed 0.6% of man-made CO2 emissions in 2019. Rolls-Royce and EasyJet have teamed up to complete the world’s first test of a hydrogen-powered modern engine. The engineering giant and low cost operator carried out the test at the MoD’s Boscombe Down facility in Wiltshire, using a converted Rolls-Royce AE 2100-A turboprop aircraft engine.

Bradford Telegraph & Argus

• Northern's Zahida Sultana recognised at special awardsA WEST Yorkshire woman, who is believed to be the only Hijab-wearing Asian female train conductor, has received a well-deserved accolade.

Bristol Live

• Bristol Clean Air Zone reaction - we asked people in Broadmead what they thinkMany people said Bristol needs better public transport to deter people from driving into town

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Scrapping HS2 would help balance the books, admits Jeremy Hunt in visit to West MidlandsJeremy Hunt conceded he could have "balanced the books" by ditching HS2 during a visit to the controversial line's interchange station in the West Midlands.

Cambridge News

• Driver 'feedback' prompts Cambridgeshire County Council to make changes to East Road bollardsCambridgeshire County Council made the changes after motorists gave feedback
• Cambridge University Fellow says student cyclists have 'tradition' of ignoring one-way systemPeter Britton has called on the university to remind undergraduates of their duty to follow the Highway Code

Other Regional Press

• £9bn tunnel link 'billions over budget'A bid to build the country's longest road tunnel and ease congestion on the Dartford Crossing has been accepted for review despite budgetary concerns.

Forbes

• More Walking And Cycling Will Decarbonize Transport Faster And Improve HealthRoad vehicles account for nearly three-quarters of global transport CO2 emissions, and the percentage is rapidly increasing. But active travel remains a low priority and is under-funded, despite its potential to improve air quality and people’s well-being, according to a new coalition.

Intelligent Transport

• Mayor of London’s plan to accelerate capital’s transition to electric vehiclesThe Mayor of London’s strategy aims to maintain the progress that the capital has made in its transition to electric vehicles by quadrupling the number of public charge points in London by 2030.
• Stagecoach confirms plans to increase electric bus fleet by over 80 per centBuilding on the progress that the company has made across the UK in 2021-2022, Stagecoach’s electrification plans will see it increase its electric bus fleet from 184 buses to 343 in the next 12 months.
• New funding announced to boost active travel across West YorkshireThe £640,000 funding will be utilised to make it easier for people across West Yorkshire to walk and cycle, as well as remove the barriers that are often associated with cycling for people with disabilities.
• Getting passengers back on-board: Ireland’s National Transport Authority’s road to recoveryFor the latest instalment of Intelligent Transport’s exclusive COVID-19 recovery series, Anne Graham, CEO of Ireland’s National Transport Authority, discusses how investing in service level enhancements and improving value for money on public transport fares has helped to increase the authority’s passenger numbers post-pandemic, as well as why it is so important to get that balance right.

New Civil Engineer

• National Highways seeks security and protest management services for Stonehenge TunnelNational Highways is seeking to procure a contractor to provide safe and effective incident management and potential protest management response for its A303 Stonehenge Tunnel project.
• Trio signed up to deliver Swansea renewable energy transport hubEngineering consultancy HDR and infrastructure project solutions firm Enable have joined with technology giant Siemens to deliver a renewable energy transport hub, which will sit alongside a £1.7bn renewable energy scheme in Swansea.
• Network Rail director drafted in to support DfT-ordered Crossrail studyNetwork Rail senior non-executive director Rob Brighouse has been asked to support a Department for Transport (DfT) study into the delivery of the Elizabeth line.
• Up to £12bn needed over next 30 years to improve drainage and prevent floodingUp to £12bn of investment in drainage infrastructure over the next thirty years, along with stricter controls on new property developments, will be necessary to stop thousands more homes and businesses from flooding due to inadequate drainage, according to a new report by the National Infrastructure Commission.
• Closed River Thames crossing to reopen next monthThe railway line between Barnes Bridge and Kew Bridge will reopen by 5 December as Network Rail engineers carry out repairs to the Grade II listed structure over the River Thames.

Rail Business Daily

• Call for government to accelerate recovery and avoid spiral decline on Britain’s railwayThe government has been warned that a failure to focus on attracting customers to the railway risks a permanently smaller rail network.

Other News Sources

• All the airlines banned from flying to Gatwick and operating in EUAirlines in Russia, Iran and Afghanistan are banned from flying in parts of Europe
• ’Wait and see’: Tory ’fat controller’ defends Southeastern rail cutsThe Conservative minister in charge of the railways has defended Southeastern’s service cuts in SE London – and asked one local MP to “wait and see” how they turn out.
• High time to shift gear in transport sectorSocieties depend in many ways on moving people and goods economically and efficiently from one place to another. International trade gives us access to foreign products and markets. People need ways of going to school, work and other activities. Transport is an essential part of our way of life but, in its current state, it is dependent on fossil fuels and puts serious pressure on the environment and climate.

News from Europe

• How Hydrogen-Powered Passenger Trains Are Transforming Rail TravelThe trains, which emit only steam and condensed water, are projected to expand throughout Europe by 2035.