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

Thursday, 19 October 2023

BBC News

• East Yorkshire transport survey launched for rural communitiesPeople who have no access to transport have been asked to have their say on future services in East Yorkshire.
• Newport: Bassaleg must wait until 2027 for new bridgeThe bridge shut in August 2021, and a replacement will not be open until at least January 2027.
• London pollution: Maps shows worst areas for road run-off pollutionThe interactive online tool highlights Barking and Dagenham and Barnet as two of the hot-spot areas.
• Lawyer's Scottish ferries deal report finds no evidence of fraudA lawyer-led review was prompted by a BBC documentary into the Ferguson ferries controversy.
• BYD: The top electric car maker that is not TeslaChinese auto giant BYD is now ahead of Tesla in quarterly production - and second to it in global sales.
• Britishvolt aims to supply batteries to Australian militaryNew owner, Recharge, hopes to close a deal on the Northumberland site, paving the way to make batteries for export.

ITV News

• 'Unacceptable' overcrowding at Euston station is 'putting people at risk’Network Rail is failing to prevent safety risks from “unacceptable” overcrowding at London’s Euston station, regulator the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) said.
• 20mph: Mark Drakeford told MPs he will take the petition against 20mph 'seriously'The First Minister has told MPs that he will take seriously the petition against the Welsh Government’s 20mph policy but is standing by the change.

Times Online

• Infrastructure chiefs urge Rishi Sunak to not sell off HS2 land. [subscription]Land purchased for HS2 should not be sold off in a “kneejerk, snap reaction” and should be kept for up to three years, the government’s infrastructure adviser has said.

Daily Record

• Manchester mayor Andy Burnham offers to advise Humza Yousaf on bringing buses back into public controlEXCLUSIVE: Andy Burnham has said he was willing to meet the Scottish Government to share expertise on bringing buses under local control.

i News

• Axing HS2 Manchester leg could cost up to 157,000 jobs in the North, Rishi Sunak warnedAs many as 24,000 construction jobs will immediately be lost by scrapping HS2 Phase 2a of rail link

The Mirror

• Tories' own adviser warns they must drop 'knee jerk' sale of land for axed HS2 routeNational Infrastructure Commission boss Sir John Armitt said that it would be a 'mistake' to sell land earmarked for HS2 in a rush after Rishi Sunak scrapped plans to extend the high speed rail line to Manchester

The National

• No fraud in Ferguson Marine ferry contract award, review findsA REVIEW by a senior lawyer into the procurement of the delayed Ferguson Marine ferries found no evidence of fraud, though parts of the process were “not entirely satisfactory”.

Birmingham Post

• Transport for Wales behind on delivering 77 new trains this year - DrakefordOnly 33 new trains have been delivered and are operating so far

Derby Telegraph

• Transport Secretary hopes that Alstom 'maintains a significant presence in Derby'He was responding to letters about the company's future from Derby City Council

London Evening Standard

• Dominic Cummings gloats about HS2 cancellation and settles old scoresBoris Johnson's former adviser has also drawn up a list of enemies

Newcastle Evening Chronicle

• Mayor accused of 'naivety' by furious council leader as Leamside Line funding claims branded 'a lie'A mayor has been accused of “naivety” over the furore surrounding the Leamside Line, as a North East council leader branded claims that the region will be given enough money to reopen the railway “a lie”.

Wales Online

• Minister says HS2 will still benefit Wales after northern leg scrappedThe now-cancelled Manchester leg of the project was said to be of most benefit to Wales

Wolverhampton Express and Star

• Three big reasons to be cheerful after Birmingham Airport announces good newsBosses at Birmingham Airport are in bullish mood. Big change is in the air and after the nightmare of Covid the future appears brighter than ever.

Other Regional Press

• RMT boss 'doesn't believe' major Cumbrian rail project will happenRMT general secretary, Mick Lynch has cast doubts on the ’energy coast’ train line upgrade saying he ’doesn’t believe’ that any of the projects announced by the government will happen.
• Largs MSP Kenneth Gibson calls for faster trains to GlasgowLargs MSP Kenneth Gibson has urged ScotRail to deliver faster services on the Largs to  Glasgow rail line.
• Bus operator claims council missed deadlines to resolve Route 21 cancellationBedford Borough Council has claimed that a bus operator ceased the 21 bus route without “following the standard process”.
• Northamptonshire MP calls for train station at Silverstone following HS2 cancellationThe Member of Parliament for South Northamptonshire has called for the construction of “Silverstone International”, a train station at the High Speed 2 (HS2) compound off the A43 north of Brackley. Dame Andrea Leadsom MP has written to the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Transport and West Northamptonshire Council, to ask them to consider the proposal.

New Civil Engineer

• Big names secure work on £100M Manchester roads frameworkCivils contractors including Bam Nuttall, Colas and Eric Wright have secured spots on a £100M roads deal in the North West.

Rail Advent

• London Euston: Office of Rail and Road issues Network Rail with improvement noticeThe Office of Rail and Road has issued Network Rail with an improvement notice for London Euston Station to implement effective measures that will prevent risks to passengers and others during periods of surges and overcrowding.
• Transport for Wales to benefit from £125 million budge increaseIn an announcement in the Senedd today, Wednesday, 18 October, Rebecca Evans MS., Finance Minister said that Transport for Wales is to benefit from a £125 million increase in this year's budget, which will contribute towards helping to safeguard passenger services and continue the programme of transforming railways in Wales.

Rail Business Daily

• McGinley extends NIS partnership as HS2 apprentice milestone reached in the MidlandsOne of the UK’s leading recruitment and support services for the infrastructure markets has extended its long-term partnership with National Infrastructure Solutions (NIS).
• Scotland’s Transport Minister recognises RIA campaigning effortsRIA Scotland holds lively fringe meeting at the SNP Conference with Scottish Transport Minister Fiona Hyslop MSP

Rail Magazine

• Angry reactions as PM Sunak pulls the plug on HS2On October 3, Avanti West Coast 390126 waits at London Euston to head the 1830 to Glasgow Central. HS2 is still due to reach the London terminus but will no longer run north of Birmingham.

Other News Sources

• HS2 will benefit Wales even after northern leg is scrappedWALES will continue to benefit from HS2 - even after its northern leg has been scrapped, a minister has claimed.
• Siemens Mobility Goole Component Repair FacilityWhilst the Siemens Mobility Goole train manufacturing plant and supply chain rail village is still being finished, and no train building work is expected to commence until March 2024, one part is already up and running: its component overhaul business. With nearly 4,000 Siemens carriages in service or on order, most of which Siemens maintains, there was a desire to become self-sufficient for some overhaul work.
• Durham MP asks minister who was behind North East rail betrayal in just 24 hours“Who was it who decided that they would water down the proposal? Who decided that the Leamside line was far too north to be worthy of government investment? Was it the Prime Minister, the Treasury or the Minister who sold out the North East?”
• Sunak should reverse U-turn on HS2High-speed has advantages for train travellers and takes passengers and freight off the roads and off the aeroplanes.
• HS2: What challenges contributed to the scaling back of the megaproject?Geotechnical engineers have identified mismanagement and bad planning as key factors that may have contributed to the government’s decision to axe the northern leg of High Speed 2 (HS2).
• York’s big transport ideas – Light rail transit, water taxis and cheaper parking for electric carsYork could be on the verge of a transport revolution. City of York Council is committed to reducing traffic in the city by 20% by 2030.
• Department for Transport awards £200m to zero-emission trucking projectsFunds will support roll out of electric and hydrogen trucks, as well as charging and refuelling infrastructure
• £22bn required for major transport projects in cities, says NICThe National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) says the government should commit £22 billion in long-term funding for major transport projects in the four cities likely to have the greatest need for increased capacity.
• Heathrow passengers' hopes for cheaper flights dashed as charges fixedThe decision has left both Heathrow airport and airlines like British Airways and Delta Air Lines unhappy