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

Friday, 29 September 2023

BBC News

• Six West Midlands councils to split £7.9m bus service potSix areas of the West Midlands are to split £7.9m of government funding for bus services.
• West Yorkshire buses: Public to be consulted over franchise plansA consultation on taking bus services in West Yorkshire back under public control will be held before Christmas.
• South Western Railway rethinks ticket office plan after outcryA train company that planned to close ticket offices is rethinking the proposal after feedback from visually-impaired passengers.
• Rishi Sunak says Leeds will be 'treated like London' for transport plansPrime Minister Rishi Sunak has addressed Yorkshire's transport concerns after speculation around the future of HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail.
• Car pollution stops bees finding flowers - researchersUniversity of Birmingham researchers say the discovery has implications for our food security.
• Rishi Sunak: Potholes higher priority for people than HS2Prime Minister Rishi Sunak refused to say whether the HS2 rail line would run to Manchester.
• Rishi Sunak repeatedly dodges questions over future of HS2 railSpeculation is mounting the government could delay or scrap the second leg of the line to Manchester.

ITV News

• Bristol Airport to get new car park and transport hub as part of £60 million transformationBristol Airport has announced plans to invest millions into transforming its transport and parking facilities, in what's said to be the largest single capital investment project since the terminal opened 23 years ago.

Financial Times

• Portugal puts national airline TAP up for saleIAG, Air France-KLM and Lufthansa have all expressed interest in a carrier with links to the growing South American market
• Travel sector risks reality check as summer boom starts to fadeExecutives in Europe remain upbeat but cracks are starting to show in the US market

The Guardian

• Sunak and Hunt can't play shocked at HS2's cost overrunsYes, the costs of the high-speed rail project are getting ˜totally out of control but it's hardly lacked political oversight. One piece of political spin about HS2's spiralling costs is nonsense: the idea that ministers have a right to be shocked by the numbers. HS2 Ltd, the body building the railway and new stations, may be arm's length for shorthand purposes, but it is not some faraway entity operating beyond government scrutiny. Rather, it is tightly meshed to the Department for Transport (DfT), which is involved in all big planning and spending decisions.
• Rish! fails to lay it on the line as local radio demands HS2 answersSunak refuses to speculate on his own speculation over future of Birmingham to Manchester leg. What goes around, comes around. Last September it had been Liz Truss's turn to do the annual local radio round before the Tory party conference. Like most things Truss comes into contact with, it had quickly descended into a chaotic disaster. One for the ages. It turned out no one had warned Liz that local radio presenters might actually ask her questions. Tricky ones at that. Maybe she had thought she was there to read out the traffic reports. Or the weather.
• Tesla trial begins over whether experimental autopilot caused driver's deathLawsuit claims company knowingly sold defective car that led to Micah Lee's 2019 death while Tesla blames ˜classic human error.

The Herald

• Can Manchester teach Glasgow a thing or two about buses?It's easy to be negative. It's the human condition to luxuriate in a right good moan. It's certainly the human condition to direct that moan at politicians.

Times Online

• Rishi Sunak expected to block new 20mph zones. [subscription]PM’s ’plan for motorists’ will prioritise drivers over bus passengers
• £280m for consultants on the HS2 ’gravy train’. [subscription]HS2 has spent more than £280 million on consultants in the last seven years, despite promises to reduce its reliance on external contractors.

Birmingham Post

• Summit to discuss HS2 called for by unionsThe statement was signed by the TUC, Aslef, Rail, Maritime and Transport union, Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association, GMB and Unite

Bristol Live

• Bristol Airport's 'biggest transformation' sparks fury with campaignersCritics say the transformation will bring more congestion and increased air and noise pollution

Daily Post (North Wales)

• 'They need to tread carefully' - your views on ULEZ-style charges and changing more speed limitsFirst Minister Mark Drakeford said a congestion charge would be a last resort, and said there were 'no plans' to change other limits

Manchester Evening News

• Rishi Sunak hits back at claims he is 'betraying the north' with wavering over HS2 Manchester legThe Prime Minister has denied that people feel betrayed by his wavering over the future of HS2 as he yet again remained tight-lipped on the future of the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the project.

Nation. Cymru

• One bus ticket for the whole of north Wales extendedThe 1Bws ticket available for bus services across north Wales will now offer a one price weekly ticket as well as daily.

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Three bus routes withdrawn as Transport for West Midlands changes to come into effect next monthEarlier this month it was announced that the region’s bus service network would be secured at near current levels and continue to operate without radical change until January 2025, following a £40 million injection of support funding from TfWM.

Carlisle News & Star

• ScotRail confirms services unaffected by upcoming strikeASLEF members at a number of companies across the UK are going on strike on September 30 and October 4. The trade union’s members will also withdraw from non-contractual overtime on September 29, and from October 2 and 6. However, ScotRail services won’t be affected on these dates, as the strike does not involve any ScotRail staff.

Leeds Live

• Leeds Bradford Airport accused of breaking night flight rules for second year in a rowLBA denies the claims

Other Regional Press

• Arriva explains 'extensive' Watford area bus shake-upArriva Bus has explained why it is making “extensive” changes to Watford’s timetables after the move sparked confusion.
• Councillors bemoan bus services as whole areas often without busesCOUNCILLORS have criticised bus companies after they said large swathes of both rural and urban areas are left without buses due to frequent cancellations and lack of services.
• Lies, damned lies and transport plansHow do the recent announcements about HS2 affect the North East?
• First Steps Taken on Sustainable Transport Delivery PlanFair Work, Economic Growth and Infrastructure Convener Cllr Steven Rome visited the Dundee Cycle Hub on Waterfront Place to launch the council’s draft Sustainable Transport Delivery Plan 2024-2034.
• West Dorset bus service for the elderly to be scrappedA travel service hailed as a ‘vital lifeline’ for elderly people of West Dorset will be scrapped at the end of the year

Bus and Coach Buyer

• Show shake-up: Coach and Bus UK scrapped entirelyOrganiser drops show from calendar following ’significant changes to the industry landscape’ Trade show Coach and Bus UK has been cancelled entirely.
• 80% of passengers satisfied – Transport Focus surveyEight in ten bus passengers were satisfied with their last journey according to a new survey by independent watchdog, Transport Focus.

New Civil Engineer

• Mace working on Euston designs to meet HS2 budgetThe chief executive of Mace has hit out at plans to scrap further parts of HS2, stating that the contractor is working on new designs for Euston which can meet the budget set for the terminus.
• Costain appointed to deliver second phase of upgrades to London’s A40 WestwayTransport for London (TfL) has appointed Costain to deliver the second phase of upgrades to the A40 Westway in London.

Rail Business Daily

• How hydrogen could get UK rail’s decarbonisation efforts back on trackBen Foulser, Partner, Infrastructure Advisory Practice and Head of the Future Mobility Team, KPMG in the UK, discusses the role hydrogen could play in traction decarbonisation.

Rail Technology Magazine

• All investment in Rail needs to answer the question – Is it adding value to our customer?Value for money is the constant challenge for many train operating companies. This is especially true for Southeastern Railway, according to its managing director, Steve White. Southeastern Railway is the country’s fifth largest operator, covering large parts of Sussex, Kent and Surrey has been under control of the Department for Transport since 2021.

Railnews

• Opposition grows to scrapping HS2 north of Birmingham Reports that the Prime Minister is preparing to scrap HS2 Phases 2A and 2B from Birmingham to Crewe and Manchester are igniting more opposition. Transport for the North has added its voice to the protests, saying that both HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail need to go ahead, and that any further delay will increase the eventual costs still further.

Railway Gazette

• Heritage railway to support Network Rail trainingUK: Network Rail’s Central Route has signed a memorandum of understanding with the heritage Severn Valley Railway for support, training and facilities to help its staff operate and maintain traditional technology such as mechanical signalling.

Railway Technology

• Transpennine Express plans questioned by northern mayorsThe rail operator will run a reduced timetable from December to focus on keeping services on time.
• GB Railfreight reveals £5.75m maintenance hubUK-based rail freight company GB Railfreight (GBRf) has announced the opening of its “state-of-the-art” £5.75m maintenance hub, which is set to transform the movement of cargo.

Route One (Bus and Coach)

• Claire Miles named Stagecoach Chief Executive OfficerClaire Miles has been named the new Chief Executive Officer of Stagecoach. She will officially take on her new role from 2 October, succeeding Martin Griffiths, who stepped down in January.
• First Manchester orders Mellor Strata Plus for Bee NetworkFirst Manchester in partnership with Transport for Greater Manchester has ordered 17 Mellor Strata Plus coachbuilt minibuses that are mounted on the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chassis cowl. They are for use on two local service contracts in Rochdale that were awarded as part of the second tranche of bus franchising in Greater Manchester.
• PLS Motus lift brings ’significant’ shift for coach accessibilityPLS will shortly debut two new passenger lift products, including what it says is a “significant advancement” for accessibility provision in the coach sector via the Motus cassette unit.
• Gordon Frost named Brighton and Hove, Metrobus Ops DirectorGordon Frost has been named Operations Director by Go-Ahead Group subsidiary Brighton and Hove and Metrobus.
• FlixBus parent sees patronage and revenue up by over 50% in H1FlixBus parent Flix has reported a 53% rise in patronage to 36 million for the first half of 2023 compared to the same period last year. Total revenue grew by 54% to €860 million over the same period across the FlixBus, FlixTrain, Greyhound and Kamil Koç businesses.

Green Miscellany

• 20mph limits: The heavier and faster a vehicle, the more danger it posesWhen drivers question the case for 20mph limits, they often overlook the laws of physics: The faster and heavier a vehicle, the more likely it is to cause injury or death in the event of a crash. It’s the reason the driver of a car who collides with a child is 7 times more likely to kill her at 30mph… The post 20mph limits: The heavier and faster a vehicle, the more danger it poses appeared first on ETA.

Other News Sources

• Martin Gilbert: We really need to sort out our transport infrastructureAs a founding director of FirstGroup and a keen historian, I recognise how important transport infrastructure is.