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

Wednesday, 14 July 2021

BBC News

• Covid: Plea to wear masks on trains from Wales to EnglandWales' main rail operator wants people to wear masks in England when the legal requirement ends.
• London Tube workers to hold four 24-hour strikesThe action in August is over plans to abolish the grade of Night Tube driver, the union says.
• Covid: Masks to remain compulsory on London transportFace coverings must be worn despite restrictions easing in England on 19 July, London's mayor says.

Financial Times

• Khan and Sturgeon rebuff Johnson by insisting on masks for transportLondon mayor and Scottish government will enforce mandatory mask wearing after July 19

The Guardian

• Masks to remain compulsory on London tube, buses and trainsFace coverings still required on London transport from 19 July despite national rail operators making them optional

The Telegraph

• Taking the train is 50 per cent more expensive than flying, study finds [subscription]Airlines have launched dozens of new routes in wake of demand for UK holidays, with flights the cheaper choice on 8 of 10 popular journeys

Times Online

• Pressure mounts on transport firms to make Covid-19 masks mandatory [subscription]The mayor of London has announced that masks will still be required on the Tube when laws making them mandatory are dropped next week, putting pressure on transport operators and retailers across the country to follow suit.

Mail Online

• As airlines cut fares, rail trips will cost staycationers up to three times more than flyingFour in five long journeys in the UK cost more by train than by plane - by nearly three times the price in some cases. The huge differences were revealed amid a boom in staycations this year.

Network Rail

• Network Rail to connect ground-breaking 11,000-tonne tunnel near Peterborough to existing track this monthNetwork Rail will carry out vital work to connect a new tunnel north of Peterborough to the existing railway, ready to further improve journeys for passengers on the East Coast Main Line.

Bolton News

• Journey into the past and future at Platform 5AN new exhibition which takes visitors on a journey to Bolton's past, present and future has opened at Bolton Train Station.

London Evening Standard

• Sadiq Khan asks TfL to make mask wearing a condition of carriageLondon mayor said he was not prepared to put transport users in the capital at risk by removing the rules on face coverings after July 19

Sunderland Echo

• £16m funding deal signed off for Sunderland railway station transformationA multi-million pound funding deal has been signed off to radically overhaul a dilapidated train station reminiscent of “really bad pictures of the 1970s”.

Other Regional Press

• Fears over HS2 spur ‘decimating’ green belt and wildlifeCALLS are being made for the ‘totally unnecessary’ HS2 Golborne spur to be scrapped.
• New disabled access set for railway stationA NEW footbridge allowing disabled passengers to access a Monmouthshire railway station has moved a step closer.
• Hope for new underpass under East Coast Mainline at DunbarAN UNDERPASS connecting new housing in Dunbar to the older part of the town is “needed”, according to a senior councillor.
• Irvine train station holds worst record for trespassing on tracksIrvine train station has been identified as one of the worst locations in Scotland for people trespassing on the railway tracks and risking their wellbeing.

New Civil Engineer

• Crossrail reveals best and worst case scenarios for Elizabeth line opening dateCrossrail Ltd has revealed the best- and worst-case scenarios that it is working towards for the opening of the Elizabeth Line.
• Welsh MPs call for HS2 to be reclassified as ‘England only project’Welsh MPs have called for High Speed 2 (HS2) to be reclassified as an “England only project”. A report from the Welsh Affairs Committee – Railway Infrastructure in Wales – says that while significant investment has been dedicated to HS2, Wales will not benefit in the same way as Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Railnews

• Transport campaigners condemn facemasks plan Plans to let rail and bus operators choose whether to enforce the wearing of facemasks from next Monday have left transport campaigners 'disappointed'. Leaving the matter to the operators risks causing confusion, it is being claimed.

Other News Sources

• More details on transforming iconic Holbeck railway into Leeds' own New York High Line revealedHilary Benn MP "strongly supports" the plans