Public Transport news

• New South West Trains carriages set to be in service by 2018

  06-09-2014 02:00
  
  Other News Sources - The £210 million order will allow deliver an extra 18,000 passengers with the trains being used on the company's main suburban network
  
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• Sophie Morgan’s Fight to Fly review – the degradation of disabled people is jaw-dropping

  22-07-2024 23:00 via theguardian.com
  
  From the women manhandled out of their wheelchairs to the man forced to drag himself along a plane floor, this searing documentary is packed with horrors that will be painfully familiar to many people with disabilities‘This is like my legs. And I’m sitting there thinking: ‘Oh my God, they’re going to break it,’” says the broadcaster Sophie Morgan after her wheelchair is damaged by airline staff at the start of this searing documentary.For Morgan, this was a de
  
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• Cycling campaigners call for end to culture war on active travel

  21-07-2024 18:11 via theguardian.com
  
  Exclusive: New government urged to make coherent and committed investment in cycling for transportThe new government should end the previous culture war-based approach to active travel and start investing properly in safe bike routes, the country’s biggest cycling campaign group has said.The call from Cycling UK comes after a survey it commissioned, which looked into the reasons people don’t ride a bike, found that almost half cited safety worries, with older riders particularly conc
  
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• Aircraft industry high-flyers touch down at Farnborough airshow amid supply chain turbulence

  21-07-2024 12:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Fears about keeping up with demand have replaced post-pandemic concerns about a slump in the aviation sectorThe residents of Farnborough, Hampshire, are constantly disturbed by flights to and from the UK’s busiest airport for private jets. But for one week in July every two years, the whine of commercial aircraft is replaced by the bone-juddering roar of fighter planes.The occasion is the Farnborough international airshow, a gathering of top executives from airlines, aircraft makers and ar
  
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• Air passengers warned of more delays after global Windows outage

  20-07-2024 15:17 via theguardian.com
  
  Travellers advised to check with providers for ‘extra steps’, with at least 45 UK flights cancelled on SaturdayNHS England has warned of “continued disruption” to GP services into next week after Friday’s global IT outrage, as air passengers continued to face delays and flight cancellations.Passengers had their travel plans ruined on Friday as thousands of flights were cancelled internationally after a botched software upgrade hit Microsoft’s Windows operating
  
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• ‘Bedlam’ in UK as air and rail travel hit by global IT outage

  19-07-2024 17:06 via theguardian.com
  
  More than 5,000 flights cancelled worldwide after problem affecting Microsoft WindowsBusiness live – latest updatesPassengers have described “bedlam” at UK airport check-ins after a global IT outage on what was due to be the busiest day for flying since the start of the Covid pandemic, while train networks have also been disrupted.More than 5,000 flights have been cancelled worldwide after Microsoft Windows operating systems used by airlines, airports and some air traffic syste
  
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• Ghent showcases successful cycling policy

  19-07-2024 12:20 via passengertransport.co.uk
   
  The 2024 Velo-city Conference – Can cycling be a scalable and sustainable transport mode in the UK?
   The annual Velo-city Conference was held in Ghent, Belgium in late June 2024
   The annual Velo-city Conference was held in Ghent, Belgium in late June 2024. Velo-city is an annual event focussing on active mobility (primarily cycling) in the context of developing sustainable communities. The event is managed by the European Cyclists’ Federation, which is based in Brus
  
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• Chief Engineer – McGill’s Bus Group

  19-07-2024 12:04 via passengertransport.co.uk
   
  Chief Engineer
  This role will help our ongoing engineering transformation and would be ideal for an ambitious engineer either ready to take the next step up from depot or area management, or someone in a similar role wanting to excel in a can-do environment away from the shackles of a corporate environment. You will lead daily engineering functions, overseeing the work of our engineering managers across the Group, maximise our safety and compliance standards, oversee the introduction and
  
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• Area Director – McGill’s Scotland West

  19-07-2024 12:04 via passengertransport.co.uk
   
  Area Director
  This is a rare opportunity to lead McGill’s Scotland West Business in Inverclyde and Renfrewshire, home to one of the largest zero-emission fleets in the UK. You will oversee three depots, managing 6 managers and 500 colleagues. A multi-disciplined role, you will be the leader of the local operations, engineering and commercial functions, so it represents an excellent opportunity for someone wanting to take the next step up in their career, with the added ownership an
  
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• Head of Commercial and Marketing – McGill’s Bus Group

  19-07-2024 12:03 via passengertransport.co.uk
   
  Head of Commercial and Marketing
  If you’re after a wide commercial remit to help drive our growth ambitions, then this is the job for you. You would lead our commercial strategy, enhance revenue streams, and grow footfall – all to a standard that we want to lead the industry. Our network reviews and pricing policy would be in your hands, and you would manage a committed commercial and marketing team from our base at Greenock. As a business that had grown three-fold in the las
  
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• EU biometric checks for foreign travellers delayed again

  18-07-2024 12:42 via theguardian.com
  
  Digital border system that will require fingerprint and facial scans postponed until NovemberThe date for the introduction of the EU’s new entry-exit system has been pushed back again until November, allaying fears of long queues at the border during the October half-term holidays.The launch of the new biometric checks for foreign travellers, including Britons, entering the EU, has been delayed from 6 October until at least 10 November, with many smaller airports yet to have facilities in
  
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• Labour to hold talks with Aslef over rail strikes next week

  17-07-2024 19:17 via theguardian.com
  New government aims for rapid resolution to dispute that has disrupted train services for more than two yearsTalks between the train drivers’ union Aslef and the Department for Transport (DfT) will take place next week as the new Labour government seeks a swift resolution to the long-running national pay dispute.Aslef’s general secretary, Mick Whelan, said he believed fresh talks “can and will get a deal”, more than two years on from the start of a series of strikes by dr
  
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• Scotland and Westminster join forces on vaping, rail and renting reform

  17-07-2024 16:39 via theguardian.com
  Deputy first minister welcomes new approach but SNP colleague Stephen Flynn calls king’s speech ‘timid’UK politics live – latest updatesThe Scottish and UK governments have agreed to collaborate on new measures to control vaping, nationalise railways and ban landlords from barring families on benefits from housing.Kate Forbes, Scotland’s deputy first minister, said her government welcomed the new approach, which follows years of repeated confrontations between the S
  
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• Unions hail UK’s rail renationalisation bills as a return to ‘public service’

  17-07-2024 15:10 via theguardian.com
  
  Separate measures in king’s speech will allow government to take operators into public ownership while Great British Railways is set upBusiness live – latest updatesRail unions have said Britain’s trains will be “run as a public service, not for private profit”, as the new government announced early steps to renationalise the railways in the king’s speech.Labour will renationalise rail with two separate bills, decoupling laws to take train services into public
  
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• John Lennon wasn’t joking about Jesus | Brief letters

  16-07-2024 19:02 via theguardian.com
  Lennon and Christianity | Pepys loses it | Two-child cap | Guardian delivery | Gareth and Gove | MPs and buses“The Beatles joked about being bigger than Jesus” (I’m a Swiftie, but the staggering size of the Eras tour has left me feeling alienated, 13 July)? Not quite. One Beatle, John Lennon, during a wide-ranging interview with Maureen Cleave, discussed the decline of Christianity. He compared this to the rise in fame of the Beatles, who Lennon stated were “more popular
  
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• Buses, trains and bicycle paths: Labour’s mission to decarbonise UK transport

  16-07-2024 13:00 via theguardian.com
  Environment experts call for bold action as party attempts to revamp creaking infrastructure to hit net zeroBolster bus services, build cycle paths, impose frequent flyer levies and reopen old railway lines to decarbonise the UK transport system, environment experts are urging, as the Labour party begins to lay out its plans.The government’s proposals for rail nationalisation are likely to feature in the king’s speech on Wednesday – but experts warn far bolder steps will be nee
  
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• Ministers ‘inadequately briefed’ on alternatives to Stonehenge tunnel plan, lawyers argue

  15-07-2024 15:55 via theguardian.com
  
  Latest high court battle gets under way over approval of road tunnel under the world heritage siteMinisters were “inadequately briefed” by officials on alternative schemes before approving a road tunnel under Stonehenge for a second time, lawyers for campaigners have argued in the high court, in the latest legal attempt to stop the scheme.Campaigners argue that the proposed two-mile (3.3km) road tunnel, part of a new eight-mile dual carriageway for the A303 road costing at least &pou
  
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• ‘As prepared as we can be’: UK airlines and airports get ready for summer getaway

  13-07-2024 09:00 via theguardian.com
  
  Measures to manage disruption include recruitment to fill shortages and investment in control centresIt’s time. The summer holidays are upon us and that sunshine jaunt booked back in January is suddenly imminent. But as the first travel chaos stories of the season start to pepper the headlines – a power cut here, a baggage meltdown there – clouds of anxiety can gather over daydreams of beach bliss.In the post-pandemic rush to head overseas, the air and travel industry uncovered
  
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• M25 weekend closure: drivers told to expect ‘incredibly busy’ routes

  12-07-2024 11:50 via theguardian.com
  
  Roadworks mean stretch between junctions 10 and 11 will be shut from 9pm on Friday to 6am on MondayDrivers have been warned to expect delays this weekend as part of the M25 shuts down for the third time this year.Major roads in the south-east will be “incredibly busy” this weekend as National Highways closes a section of London’s orbital motorway for roadworks in both directions between junctions 10 and 11 in Surrey from 9pm on Friday to 6am on Monday, the AA said. Continue rea
  
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• Labour summons bosses of worst-performing train operators to meetings

  12-07-2024 10:45 via theguardian.com
  Network Rail route directors will also attend next week as UK government aims to reform railways quicklyLabour has summoned the bosses of some of the worst-performing train operators, including Avanti West Coast and TransPennine, for meetings next week as it seeks to rapidly reform the railways and reset industrial relations.The transport secretary, Louise Haigh, will bring in Network Rail route directors to attend all talks with the train companies, signalling the move towards an integrated rai
  
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• Out now: Issue 317 of Passenger Transport

  11-07-2024 15:32 via passengertransport.co.uk
  Issue 317 of Passenger Transport is published on July 12.Contents include:
   
   LEAD STORY
  ‘Our motto is simple: move fast and fix things’The new secretary of state for transport, Louise Haigh, says transport is ‘central to achieving the missions for government that the prime minister has committed us to
   NEWS
  Former ministers hail Hendy’s appointmentHuw Merriman, the previous minister of state for rail, hails his successor as ‘mentor’ and says &l
  
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• ‘Our motto is simple: move fast and fix things’

  11-07-2024 15:14 via passengertransport.co.uk
  The new secretary of state for transport, Louise Haigh, says transport is ‘central to achieving the missions for government that the prime minister has committed us to’
   DfT’s ministerial team (left to right): Lilian Greenwood (future of roads), Simon Lightwood (local transport), Louise Haigh (secretary of state), Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill (rail) and Mike Kane (aviation, maritime and security)
   New transport secretary Louise Haigh has promised to deliver the biggest
  
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• A sector poised for growth

  11-07-2024 15:13 via passengertransport.co.uk
  Our sample of public transport professionals expressed optismism about the sector’s future
   We are at the beginning of a new era for the country – and perhaps also for the public transport sector. This month’s general election saw voters indicate their desire for a change of direction – but what about those working in the public transport sector? What is their current mood?
  In 2021 and 2022, as we emerged from the pandemic, our The State of UK Public Transport survey
  
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• Transport’s GOAT is great appointment

  11-07-2024 14:50 via passengertransport.co.uk
   
  In Peter Hendy, we have a minister who understands the public transport sector and the role it can play. Big challenges await him
   Peter Hendy, pictured during his time as chair of Network Rail
   Congratulations to Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill on becoming a ‘GOAT’. He is one of a number of new ministers Keir Starmer has appointed to add experience and professionalism to his cabinet to emulate the last Labour prime minister Gordon Brown who created a ‘government
  
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• Ireland challenges car dependency

  11-07-2024 14:29 via passengertransport.co.uk
   
  Instead of continuing with the car-dominated policies of the past, Ireland has boldly prioritised public transport and active travel
   Transport minister Eamon Ryan, pictured last year at the launch of a new electric bus fleet for Athlone, County Westmeath
   Ireland’s ‘celtic tiger’ boom (between the mid-1990s and 2008) turned the Republic from one of the poorer western European countries to one of the wealthiest. In doing so it put a new car and a new house sud
  
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• A railway ready for renationalisation?

  11-07-2024 14:20 via passengertransport.co.uk
   
  As the new government begins bringing the railway back under public ownership, it would be wise to look at the history books
   Coming soon: Great British Railways
   I was in a boozer in Lancashire on election day, chewing the fat with a couple of old lags from the so-called bygone days of British Rail. I made some comment along the lines of, “Well, let’s be honest, it wasn’t really any better under British Rail and was a bit of a national joke at times,” o
  
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• Green light for open access expansion

  11-07-2024 14:11 via passengertransport.co.uk
  Andy Comfort reflects on the rise of Hull Trains and Lumo and the future of open access rail under a new Labour government
   Hull Trains managing director Martijn Gilbert (centre) and service delivery director Louise Mendham welcomed shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh during the election campaign
   Some may still consider them the new kids on the block on the UK rail network, but the first open access operator is getting ready to celebrate its 25th anniversary next year.
  Before the
  
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• A twin-lane approach for growth

  11-07-2024 14:06 via passengertransport.co.uk
  Regulatory reforms can help change buses long-term but there’s much we can do in the short-term
   Arriva is piloting an innovative new marketing and communications campaign to promote bus travel and encourage growth
   By Alastair Hands, Arriva UK Bus
  It’s been remarkable to see how the level of political interest in bus travel has increased over recent years.We should welcome ithat the major parties’ manifestos in the run-up to the general election all made reference to
  
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• Blackwall and Silvertown tunnels will cost up to £4 at peak times, says TfL

  10-07-2024 13:19 via theguardian.com
  Fares for road tunnels under Thames could be halved for low-income local residents, as pricing consultation opensDrivers will be charged up to £4 at peak times for a one-way trip through either the Blackwall tunnel or the new Silvertown tunnel after the latter opens in 2025, Transport for London has announced.However, TfL is proposing to halve these charges for low-income local residents in east London to use either of the road tunnels under the Thames, as well as exempting buses, black ta
  
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• ‘We’ll move fast and fix things’: the big transport issues for Labour

  09-07-2024 16:45 via theguardian.com
  
  Transport secretary Louise Haigh says reform of rail leading to full renationalisation will be a priorityThe new transport secretary, Louise Haigh, has told civil servants that Labour will “move fast and fix things”, prioritising rail reform and keeping an environmental focus throughout.Labour’s first moves are expected to include a rail reform bill that will also pave the way for the full renationalisation of train operations, with legislation announced in the king’s spe
  
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