RMT staff at 14 operators to take action, affecting LNER, Avanti, LNER and Southern among others
Rail travel around Great Britain will be severely disrupted again this weekend after the second 24-hour strike in three days started on Saturday morning.
Thousands of members of the RMT union working as train staff at 14 operators are on strike in the long-running dispute over pay and jobs.
Continue reading...Choice says flight credits should work like gift cards with customers able to split them over a number of transactions
Qantas and Jetstar are being criticised for an “unfair” Covid credit scheme, despite extending the deadline for customers to use the credits by 12 months.
The airlines announced on Thursday they were giving customers an additional 12 months to use their Covid credits, carry-overs from the extensive cancellations and border closures that came during the pandemic.
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Continue reading...Former prime minister’s session with inquiry will be televised
Humza Yousaf, the Scottish health secretary who is seen by many as the frontrunner in the SNP leadership contest, claimed this morning that his support has “dramatically increased” among SNP voters.
Speaking on a visit in Dundee, he acknowledged that he and his opponents’ approval ratings were a long way behind Nicola Sturgeon’s. “What we’re trying to do is build upon that legacy,” he said.
In three weeks I’ve also quadrupled my support among the Scottish public.
If I’ve been able to do that in three weeks, I believe that bodes well for the next three months and even the next three years.
Continue reading...DfT document appears to undermine ministers’ claims, saying jobs are likely to go and construction firms could be at risk
An internal Department for Transport briefing on the HS2 project has admitted delays to the high-speed railway will increase costs, appearing to undermine ministers’ claims.
The document seen by the Guardian says the decision to delay the project is also likely to cost jobs, put construction firms at risk of going into administration and that the department could face compensation claims.
Continue reading...Professor predicts further outages as Labor attacks NSW government over $670m maintenance backlog
Sydneysiders have been hit with fresh train delays, and repeated outages due to outdated communications technology and poor backup system planning are likely to continue, a transport expert has warned, as the Perrottet government is accused of neglecting upgrades.
The warning came on Tuesday morning as commuters were told to “allow plenty of extra travel time” due to urgent signalling work at Broadmeadow and train repairs on the north shore line at Waitara that caused delays across the network.
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Continue reading...We look at who might be the winners in the industry’s biggest industrial dispute in decades
After 23 days of national strikes, two years of talking and hundreds of thousands of cancelled trains, rail workers are contemplating a pay rise that barely catches the coat tails of inflation. The rail industry’s biggest industrial dispute in decades may be approaching its final chapter – but with little chance of a happy ending for anyone involved.
The pain for passengers is not yet over – four more 24-hour strikes across 14 operators by train and station staff in the biggest rail union, the RMT, start next Thursday, 16 March.
Continue reading...Cybersecurity attack ruled out as rail shutdown puts pressure on NSW government before state election
The New South Wales premier, Dominic Perrottet, has apologised for a peak-hour meltdown of the Sydney rail network less than three weeks out from the state election.
The shutdown on Wednesday afternoon left tens of thousands of passengers stranded, with Uber fares spiking to hundreds of dollars in surge-price fees.
Continue reading...Decision by Civil Aviation Authority comes despite airport having argued for higher fees
Heathrow airport has been ordered to cut average passenger charges by about 20% next year, in a move that could translate to lower ticket prices for travellers.
The decision by the UK regulator the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) comes despite Heathrow having argued for higher fees, which are charged to airlines and are used to fund baggage handling, security and other costs across the airport’s terminals.
Continue reading...Irish Ferries says all passengers and crew are accounted for after flames discovered in engine room
Three lifeboats and a French salvage tug were launched after a fire broke out on board a ferry in the Channel.
Irish Ferries, which owns the vessel, said all passengers and crew were safe and accounted for after flames were discovered in the engine room of the Isle of Innisfree at about 5:30pm on Friday. The ferry was about halfway across the Channel on a journey from Dover to Calais.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Perrottet government backs away from building Sydney-Newcastle fast rail link by itself
The Perrottet government has quietly abandoned its vision to build its own dedicated fast rail line between Sydney and Newcastle despite four years and roughly $100m spent on feasibility studies, abruptly halting work on a final business case just as geotechnical drilling was being planned.
Confidential documents seen by Guardian Australia reveal that the New South Wales transport department now considers further planning and construction of a dedicated fast rail line to Newcastle to be a task for the commonwealth and its yet-to-be-operational High Speed Rail Authority (HSRA) – which will itself re-start feasibility studies when it is formed.
Continue reading...Fast-tracking development in the Macarthur region will give Sydney a massive new infrastructure challenge
It’s a simple and seductive solution: rezone more land on the fringes of Sydney for housing and real estate prices will fall, thanks to greater supply.
But the reality is more complex.
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Continue reading...Exclusive: High-speed rail advocates support call from Andrew Barr, saying even gradually beginning track duplication could cut travel times in half within a decade
ACT chief minister, Andrew Barr, has challenged the federal government to upgrade the snail-like Canberra-Sydney train line, calling for cheaper upgrades as a “no brainer” even if a true high-speed line has to wait.
Noting that the federal government has earmarked the Newcastle-Sydney corridor as the first priority for its new High Speed Rail Authority, Barr even raised the prospect of developing part of a Canberra corridor at the same time.
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Continue reading...The University of Melbourne study estimated that 11,105 people die prematurely from transport emissions, many more than past figures
Pollution from motor vehicles could be killing thousands more people than road accidents, with new research finding more than 11,000 Australians die prematurely every year from transport emissions.
The study from the University of Melbourne also found vehicle pollution could be putting more than 19,000 people in hospital for heart and lung issues, and causing asthma cases to spike by 66,000 each year.
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Continue reading...Exclusive: Progressive upgrades of existing sections will pave the way for a proper link between major cities, lobby group says
Labor should pursue its high-speed rail ambition by progressively upgrading sections of the existing train corridor, starting between Sydney and Canberra as the cheapest and quickest way to deliver fast trains by the end of the decade, transport planning veterans argue.
Committing to an inaugural section of track that is relatively straightforward to build – as opposed to the tunnelling megaproject required for the Sydney to Newcastle corridor earmarked as a priority by the Albanese government – will prove high-speed rail as a concept in Australia after decades of inertia, according to advocacy group Fastrack Australia.
Continue reading...The 24-hour strike kicks off on budget day in dispute over pensions and working arrangements
London Underground drivers are to strike on 15 March – budget day – in a dispute over pensions and working arrangements.
The Aslef union announced on Wednesday that members would strike for 24 hours, in a row over changes to working arrangements and pensions.
Continue reading...Delivery of rental cars using remote driving could be outlawed after Law Commission recommendations
The remote driving of vehicles from overseas, such as for the delivery of rental cars, could be banned following a government-commissioned review.
The review was carried out by the Law Commission of England and Wales, which recommended ministers regulate the technology.
Continue reading...Two-thirds of local authorities did not prosecute anyone for disabled parking scheme fraud, data reveals
Four councils are responsible for bringing more than half of the prosecutions in England for people abusing the use of disabled parking badges.
Figures released by the Department for Transport (DfT) show that Lambeth, Birmingham, Hammersmith and Fulham, and Bromley carried out 54% of all legal cases for people misusing the blue badge system, for the year up to the end of March 2021.
Continue reading...Strikes to begin on 16 March after union rejects offers from train operators and Network Rail
The RMT union has announced further national strikes and wider action on the railways after rejecting offers from both train operators and Network Rail last week.
The union’s 40,000 members across Network Rail and 14 train operators will strike on 16 March. Train staff will walk out for three further days, on 18 and 30 March and 1 April.
Continue reading...More than 5.4m passengers travelled through airport in January, double the 2.6m from 2022
Heathrow airport had its busiest start to the year since before the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns in 2020 as travel restrictions continued to ease, according to data published on Monday.
More than 5.4 million passengers travelled through the UK’s and Europe’s busiest airport in January, double the 2.6 million from 2022, Heathrow said in a statement to the London Stock Exchange.
Continue reading...Thousands are following and supporting Emily Turner’s epic journey on Twitter
A British woman undertaking an epic three-day expedition from London to Scotland using only local buses has expressed her surprise at the level of support from thousands of people following the chronicles of her journey on Twitter.
Writer and podcast host Emily Turner, from London, began her nearly 400-mile journey in the early hours of Friday, announcing on Twitter: “I’ve been wanting to do this for YEARS!!”, explaining that she “loves buses” and promising to share photos and observations along the way.
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