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

Wednesday, 13 September 2023

BBC News

• Derby Alstom train factory jobs fear as orders dry upDerby City Council is seeking talks with train builder Alstom over reports it could be about to lay off workers.

ITV News

• Tyneside bus company overturns £70 for using bus laneA tour company fined for driving its vintage bus in a bus lane has claimed victory after overturning the charge.

Financial Times

• The EV car crash is a warning for Europe’s industrial transitionChina is so far ahead in the electric vehicles market that its competitors are trailing in the dust
• China’s newest aircraft carrier prepares to take to the seasBeijing aims to challenge US air superiority in the Pacific but the Fujian still trails rival’s nuclear-powered warships

The Guardian

• High court rules Qantas illegally outsourced 1,700 jobs during pandemicDecision exposes embattled airline to mammoth compensation bill in major win for the Transport Workers Union
• Rail fares in England set to rise by almost 8% if tied to wage growthCampaigners say using same formula as this year for 2024 will push many season tickets over £5,000 mark

The Independent

• Network Rail reviewing crumbling concrete on Britain’s railwaysTransport secretary Huw Merriman has said Network Rail is searching for the crumbly concrete on its estate ’as a priority’
• Rail fares could shoot up by 8 per cent next yearHighest jump in prices for more than 25 years expected based on the formula used by the government this year

Times Online

• Lime takes a step closer to green light for flotation. [subscription]A shared electric bike company is eyeing a stock market listing in the United States after making a profit for the first time.
• Finances of Ferguson ferries shipyard ’need forensic analysis’ [subscription]Auditor-general and public audit committee call for review of how £128.3m of taxpayers’ money was spent on delayed vessels
• Increase in train fares in 2024 likely to be highest since privatisation [subscription]Rail passengers in England are facing the biggest fare increase since privatisation.

The Mirror

• Tory rail chief told to stop misleading passengers as ticket office claims debunkedLabour's Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh urged Rail Minister Huw Merriman to 'come clean' after she took apart his claims about the closure of rail ticket offices
• Rail passengers face biggest fare hike in 27 years despite ticket office cullCommuters are set to be hammered by the highest annual increase since 1996, analysis showed, after average wage figures were released this morning

Leicester Mercury

• Coalville residents back train station and Ivanhoe Line return but many doubt it will ever happenSceptical residents back the plan but fear it will not get green light from the Government

London Evening Standard

• London commuters could be hit with 8% rail fare rise in 2024The Department for Transport (DfT) aligned this year’s cap on train fare increases with Britain’s average earnings growth

Manchester Evening News

• Manchester Airport says most passengers waited less than 15 minutes at security last monthAfter chaotic scenes in summer 2022, bosses hailed 'one of the best summers ever for our passengers'

The York Press

• York: Rail season tickets could rise in price by 8 per centTHE price of a York to Leeds annual rail season ticket could rise by as much as £221 next year, new figures show.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Fears raised over jobs at train factory as HS2 project faces ongoing delayUnions and politicians are calling for moves to safeguard jobs on the new HS2 railway line through the West Midlands amid fears that delays could hit employment.

Yorkshire Post

• Tracy Brabin tells Labour a major transport project 'must be in your manifesto'West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin says the Labour Party’s General Election manifesto must include a promise to build a mass transit network in her region.

Other Regional Press

• New £1.3bn Heathrow Southern Railway to connect Basingstoke to airportPLANS to create a new £1.3bn railway line will provide a direct link from Basingstoke to Heathrow Airport, cutting the journey time.
• Shrewsbury bus service saved until 2025 as new operator takes over routeA bus route in Shrewsbury that was due to move to an on-demand service has been saved.
• Harrogate passengers to be boosted by improvements in public transport but warning is sounded on financial landscapeTransport leaders have said Harrogate passengers can look forward to bus and rail improvements as public transport bounces back strongly in the district but warned the outlook for funding remains challenging.
• Liverpool outlines roadmap to reduce car usage in climate change battleLiverpool City Council is to set out its key transport priorities for the next four years as part of its ambition to achieve Carbon net-zero status and tackle climate change.
• Battle to save Devon's railway station ticket offices steps up a gearRail operators have been summoned to explain the issue as campaigners fight to save the service
• Huge Gloucester to Birmingham rail fare increase could see £5,301 season ticket charge in 2024Rail commuters could face punishing increases if fares rise by up to 8% next year. The massive increase that will hit travellers hard would happen if the Government uses the same formula as this year, new figures show.

New Civil Engineer

• Trio of drainage tunnels completed on Transpennine Route UpgradeThe TRU East Alliance, working together with Active Tunnelling, has completed three new drainage tunnels beneath the railway line at Ulleskelf Mires in North Yorkshire.

Rail Technology Magazine

• Two months of track upgrades planned by TransPennine Route UpgradeTransPennine Route Upgrade (TRU) is continuing work on a stretch of the TransPennine line between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds, and York over multiple weekends in September and October.

Railway Gazette

• Replacement rolling stock components 3D printedAUSTRIA: Faced with the need to source replacements for obsolete components which are used to reduce vibration and prevent dust and moisture ingress on multiple-units, Austrian Federal Railways’ rolling stock maintenance business ÖBB Train Tech approached Chromatic to discuss the possibility of using 3D printed parts.
• Signalling team trials hydrogen powerUK: The use of hydrogen to provide power for staff welfare compounds and to recharge battery tools and electric vehicles has been tested by Colas Rail UK’s signalling team during a project in the Gloucester area.
• Open access start-up Le Train raises fundingFRANCE: Aspiring open access operator Le Train has raised a further €8m to support its plans to launch passenger services from Bordeaux to Angoulême, Poitiers, Tours, Nantes and Rennes.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• First Bus begins autonomous Metrocity EV trials in DidcotFirst Bus has commenced operation of what it says is the first zero-emission full-size autonomous bus in the UK as part of an ongoing project in Didcot. It is a 10.8m Switch Mobility Metrocity EV that has been put to work on a route between Didcot Parkway railway station and the Milton Park science, technology and business campus nearby.

The Business Desk

• Derby rail jobs crisis: ’Government needs to get its head out of the sand’Following the news that the Government is working urgently with train manufacturer Alstom to secure the jobs of its staff and suppliers at its Derby factory, due to recent stop-start decisions on rolling stock orders, key industry figures have reacted.

Transport for London

• Mayor sets out next phase of 4G and 5G across the Tube network as first West End stations go liveHigh-speed mobile coverage now available in ticket halls and Central line between Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road, with further sections of the Northern and Central line getting coverage in coming months

Transportxtra

• Lord Austin advises GroupNexusParking operator asks former minister to be non-executive director
• Portway Park & Ride is Bristol’s first rail station in almost a centuryA new park & ride rail station has opened on the Severn Beach railway line, which runs between Bristol Temple Meads and Severn Beach. Portway Park & Ride is the first new railway station delivered as part of the MetroWest programme, and the first station to open in Bristol since Parson Street station in 1927.

Other News Sources

• 'Planes should pay ULEZ': Readers react to plans for new direct Surrey train service to HeathrowThe Southern Rail Scheme has been backed by the Mayor of London
• Gatwick airport expansion: All you need to know now plans are up for debateThe planning inspectorate are asking for members of the public to tell them what they think of plans for a second working runway
• Charity Community First says Hampshire County Council’s cuts to transport budget will be ’devastating’ for vulnerable peoplePLANS by Hampshire County Council to cut £800,000 funding for community transport will have a “devastating” impact on vulnerable people, says a charity.
• Parents raise concerns over public buses that have replaced dedicated school transportParents living in the Telford borough have raised concerns over public bus services which have replaced dedicated school transport.
• UK transport ’low down’ on list of political prioritiesUK transport is “low down on the list of [political] priorities” warned political commentator Steve Richards, but he believes the High Speed 2 rail project is unlikely to be scrapped.
• Balfour team creates rail connection for logistics mega-hubA Balfour Beatty led team has completed intensive works to connect the West Coast Main Line with a huge under-construction logistics hub in Northampton.
• TfL Tube: More air-conditioning needed on trains and increased late-night staffing, say LondonersOne member of the public said the Tube needs “air-con pretty badly”, describing the network during the summer as “a pretty awful experience all-round”.
• Brilliant photos show what HS2's Euston station will look like, including new London Underground partHigh Speed 2 (HS2) has recently confirmed that work on its Euston terminus has 'paused' in the face of rising costs. However, other works nearby are still being carried out in preparation for the interchange's opening, including a new part of the London Underground network.