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

Sunday, 01 October 2023

Government

• Prime Minister puts local people in control of more than £1 billion with long-term plan for left-behind townsFifty five towns given £20 million endowment-style funds each over 10 years to invest in local people’s priorities

BBC News

• Hundreds of Go North East bus drivers begin week-long strikeHundreds of bus drivers have started a week of strike action over pay and conditions, bringing all services to a stop.
• Rail travel: How easy is it for all in Wales to access?Getting around by train can still be a struggle for disabled people and parents of young children.
• Flying Scotsman crash: Safety checks to be carried out on iconic locomotiveTwo people were treated in hospital after the low-speed shunt at Aviemore Station in the Highlands.
• Brexit: New system begins for moving goods from GB to NIA key part of the Windsor Framework is implemented with a system of
• More ticket gates to be installed at London's Victoria StationNetwork Rails says installing almost 40 more gates will reduce congestion at the London station.

Financial Times

• Achilles, the tortoise and lessons for HS2The problem with Britain's high-speed rail project is that we're looking at it all wrong
• New Brexit border checks to cost business £320mn a year Minister’s letter to Labour MP sets out government forecast as companies warn of food price rises

STV

• Residents with high polluting cars set to pay more for parking permitsGlasgow residents driving high polluting cars are set to pay more for parking permits – while motorists with ’greener’ vehicles could pay less.

The Guardian

• ’I’m not commenting on speculation’: Mark Harper refuses 10 times to answer questions on HS2In an excruciating BBC interview, the transport minister sticks resolutely to the party line on rail link … and fails to answer the question
• The Observer view on HS2: a failure of nerve by Rishi Sunak would be disastrousThe prime minister’s apparent wavering on the high-speed rail link could have knock-on effects for Britain for decades
• £600m of public money spent buying up property in north of England for HS2Homes and land purchased to make way for line that now appears to be in doubt, as Rishi Sunak refuses to commit to it
• A failure of nerve over HS2 would be disastrous | Observer editorialThe prime minister’s apparent wavering on the high-speed rail link could have knock-on effects for Britain for decadesA prime minister who has no idea whether he will spend the money to complete the single largest infrastructure project in the UK can hardly be said to have a long-term plan. Rishi Sunak's procrastination over the fate of HS2 undermines any faith the public and business might have in the government to bring together the expertise and funds to meet a significant challenge.Such was the chaos inside No 10 on the eve of the Tory conference that the transport secretary,

The Herald

• Glasgow LEZ: What we can learn from historic Tuscan townAs Glsagow’s low emissions zone face legal challenge, David Leask looks at similar schemes on the continent.

The Independent

• Transport secretary refuses eight times to talk about HS2 in painful BBC clashMark Harper refuses to discuss future of high-speed rail in excruciating radio interview – as Theresa May joins furious Tory backlash
• Revealed: Proof PM knows cutting HS2 would lead to chaosSecret document leaked to The Independent details dire consequences of cancelling high-speed rail extension – as Boris Johnson says Sunak would be ’out of his mind’ to scrap it
• Theresa May piles pressure on Sunak not to scrap HS2She joins calls by fellow ex-PMs Boris Johnson and David Cameron over fears scrapping line into Euston will disrupt trains from her constituency
• Panama Canal reduces the maximum number of ships travelling the waterway to 31 per dayThe Panama Canal is reducing the maximum number of ships allowed to travel the waterway to 31 per day due to a drought that has cut the supply of fresh water needed to operate the locks

The Telegraph

• Scrap northern leg of HS2 say 40pc of public in poll. [subscription]Theresa May becomes third ex-prime minister to defend troubled rail line after new survey shows public dissatisfaction
• Japan’s bullet trains make a mockery of Britain’s tragic HS2 farce. [subscription]Hurtling along the ground at a speed of 200mph is, above all else, really weird. The landscape races by in a blur, and your ears pop as though you’re on a plane taking off. I imagine this is what riding on HS2 will feel like in 2063 when – if – they ever manage to build the thing.
• Motorway service stations hiring staff to police surging levels of EV ’charge rage’. [subscription]Britain’s biggest motorway service station provider has brought in marshals to police “charge rage” among electric vehicle drivers battling for access to plug-in points.

i News

• Theresa May becomes latest ex-Prime Minister to oppose cutting HS2 to ManchesterTheresa May has become the latest former Conservative prime minister to call for HS2 not to be scaled back.

The Mirror

• 'HS2 mess is the perfect metaphor for 13 years of Tory failure'Labour's Shadow Paymaster General says it's a complete joke that the Prime Minister is apparently going to scrap building the train line that the Tories have already spent £25 billion on

London Evening Standard

• Transport Secretary refuses to commit to HS2 Manchester leg as pressure builds on PM to ’finish the job’Transport Secretary Mark Harper said he would not comment on “speculation” about HS2’s Manchester leg facing the chop as senior Conservatives continue to urge ministers to “finish the job”.

Nation. Cymru

• UK Transport Minister claims ’blanket’ 20mph speed limits make roads less safePutting in place “blanket” 20mph speed limits means drivers are less likely to slow down on roads where there is a school or children are playing, the UK Government’s Transport Secretary has claimed.

Wales Online

• Tory politician's impassioned plea to introduce 20mph limit in Wales'We know it's the speed limit that will encourage people to be more discerning about their use of the car [and] when they need to make journeys in built up areas'
• 20mph protesters stage 'go-slow' on the M4They are protesting against the new 20mph limit introduced on some Welsh roads

Yorkshire Post

• Potential scrapping of the second leg of HS2 will have “serious implications for capacity on the East Coast Mainline”The potential scrapping of the second leg of HS2 will have serious implications for capacity on the East Coast Mainline, according to York’s transport executive.

Other Regional Press

• TfL forced to bin costly £560m tram extension into SuttonTransport for London has binned the proposed Sutton tram extension due to its “weak business case”.
• Cyclists fear they’ll be cut out of decision making after Labour scraps active travel forumCyclists say they are worried about being cut out of local decision making after Labour scrapped the city’s active travel forum without telling them for months.

Calling All Stations - The Transport Podcast

• 2/3 Is the coming UK General Election the one (at last) to be dominated by transport?As the 2024 UK General Election looms ever closer, Christian Wolmar and Mark Walker examine why both the Conservative and Labour Parties are tying themselves in knots over HS2 [2:40] and whether the reform of Greater Manchester's bus network is the precursor to a wave of changes across the country [10:28]. Still with buses, Christian interviews Alex Warner about the 'Great Scenic Bus Competition' which aims to make travel on this mode of transport much more fun [17:44]. Returning to controversial infrastructure schemes, Christian looks into the findings of the inquiry into Edinburgh Trams [30:38]. Finally, Christian asks whether the UK Prime Minister is miscalculating by waging a culture war on behalf of the motorist [36:59].

Rail Advent

• Network Rail plans step-free access at Uddingston station, South LanarkshireNetwork Rail has revealed plans to improve accessibility for passengers at Uddingston station in South Lanarkshire.

Other News Sources

• Bus stops planned along the M32 motorway in Bristol and turned into an A roadNew bus stops would allow people living in St Pauls, Eastville and St Werburghs to catch the Metrobus services
• First Minister agrees to crisis meeting on busesThe First Minister has agreed to a crisis meeting with West Lothian council to find a solution for local buses.
• Mace boss repeats claim that leaving HS2 Euston site as it is will ’scar’ LondonMark Reynolds says not running railway into middle of capital makes no sense
• Network Rail to undertake work in Ledbury Road, HerefordNetwork Rail to undertake work in Ledbury Road, Hereford.
• Cycle Winchester: Record turnout for mass ride eventHundreds of people descended into Winchester city, a record turnout for Cycle Winchester's mass ride