Category Archives: Transport

London homes 500 metres from station ‘command £42,700 premium over those 1,500 metres away’

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Nationwide survey in London, Manchester and Glasgow shows pandemic trends may be reversing as more people return to office

People buying homes in London 500 metres from a tube or railway station pay £42,700 more than buyers of similar properties 1,500 metres away from transport hubs, according to new data.

The figures indicate that despite the reshaping of the housing market sparked by the coronavirus pandemic and dramatic changes to working patterns, the traditional estate agent mantra of “good transport links” continues to wield its power over buyers.

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Disruption continues at Heathrow, Brussels and Berlin airports after cyber-attack

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Zaventem asks airlines to cancel half of Monday departures, while most of Heathrow flights expected to operate

Hundreds of thousands of passengers at Heathrow and Berlin airports faced flight delays on Sunday after a cyber-attack hit check-in desk software, while cancellations at Brussels airport suggested that disruption of Europe’s air travel would continue into Monday.

Airlines were forced to revert to slower manual check-ins from Friday night after the attack hit Collins Aerospace, which provides check-in desk technology to various airlines.

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Heathrow flights delayed and cancelled as cyber-attack hits European airports

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Attack raises questions over security as Brussels and Berlin airports’ check-in and boarding systems also affected

Flights have been delayed and cancelled at three leading European airports – including London’s largest, Heathrow – after the company behind the software used for check-in and boarding said it was hit by a cyber-attack.

Airports in Brussels and Berlin are also experiencing delays and disruption as a result of the problem affecting Collins Aerospace, which works for several airlines at airports across the world.

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Train named Ctrl Alt Deleaf to help blast billions of leaves from Great Britain’s tracks

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Network Rail says train named after public vote will join fleet of ‘unsung hero’ leaf-busters this autumn

If Boaty McBoatface taught us one thing, it’s that the public do not take a naming ceremony particularly seriously.

Cue the newly named leaf-removal train: Ctrl Alt Deleaf.

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LNER urges customers to be vigilant after passenger details accessed in cyber-attack

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Data breach at third-party supplier involves contact details and some information about previous journeys

The train operator LNER has urged customers to be wary of unsolicited communications after revealing some passengers’ contact details and journey records have been accessed in a cyber-attack.

The data breach took place at a third-party supplier, and LNER said no bank or payment details or password information had been accessed.

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London tube strike shuts down services, causing congestion on roads

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Downing Street says ‘Londoners rightly fed up’ as commuters forced to find other routes to work on first of four days of RMT action

Downing Street said Londoners would be “rightly fed up” as commuters turned to the other trains, buses and bikes – or just stayed at home – as strikes by the RMT union closed the underground on Monday.

The numbers attempting to use any public transport were down by about a fifth, according to Transport for London (TfL) data, but that still left many crowding on to bus and overground services or congested roads at the start of four days of commuter misery.

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Couple tell of ordeal when kittens went missing after being left in plane hold

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British newlyweds feared worst when transportation of rescue cats from Greece to Paris went awry

A newlywed couple who married in Greece have said they feared the worst when three kittens they rescued from Crete went missing after being left in the hold of an aeroplane.

They first travelled to the island in September 2023 and found the mother cat, who “had a very distinctive bulging eye that needed to be removed”, Bethany Mulcahy-Stephenson, a veterinary nurse, said.

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This old railway yard is for sale. Could new solar-powered trains be built there?

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Push for NSW locomotive workshop to be returned to government hands and used to retrofit diesel trains and help meet 50% Australian-made quotas

One of New South Wales’ few remaining large railway yards has been put up for sale, with locals pushing for state and federal government intervention to reinvigorate the rail industry.

Lithgow’s locomotive workshop, owned by Pacific National and reported to have an asking price of $35m, includes maintenance pit bays and outbuildings. It was ceded to the freight operator in 2003 when the state privatised its freight services and has been little-used since.

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Four Chinese carmakers enter Australian top 10 for first time, while Tesla sales slump

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BYD overtakes Mitsubishi after nearly quadrupling sales in past year, according to official figures, as GWM, MG and Chery also surge

Australians bought more than 20,000 Chinese-made vehicles in August, putting four Chinese brands into the top 10 for the first time, while Tesla sales have slumped by more than a third.

BYD came in sixth for the month, overtaking Mitsubishi, after its sales nearly quadrupled compared with August 2024, while GWM, MG and Chery each outsold Isuzu Ute in the month to round out the top 10.

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Thousands of Tesla SUVs recalled in Australia over software fault that ‘can increase risk of injury’

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All 2025 Tesla Model Y variants affected by issue that risks window closing on body parts ‘with excessive force’

More than 7,000 Tesla electric vehicles have been recalled in Australia due to a software fault that could injure drivers.

Australia’s federal transport department issued the recall over the weekend, warning that all 2025 variants of the Tesla Model Y were subject to an issue affecting the driver’s side automatic window and its safety system.

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Tap-in, tap-out rail ticket trial to streamline fares using GPS tracking

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East Midlands passengers to test digital tickets that will automatically charge best fares at end of day

Train passengers in the East Midlands are to test technology that will let them tap in and out for journeys and be charged the best fare for their trip at the end of the day.

Trials of digital rail tickets based on GPS tracking will begin on Monday as part of the government’s plan to improve the rail network’s complex fare system.

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Safety and space at risk as SUVs reach 30% of car market in English cities, researchers warn

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Campaigners call for Paris-style parking charges amid fears big vehicles are taking up excessive public space

The number of giant cars in England’s cities has increased tenfold in recent years, according to researchers, who warn the vehicles are taking up excessive public space and posing a threat to public safety.

Analysis published by Clean Cities has found SUVs have gone from 3% to 30% of existing cars in the past two decades. In London, the number of SUVs has increased from about 80,000 in 2002 to about 800,000 in 2023.

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Passengers to get to Sydney CBD in minutes from new train station set to boost construction of 10,000 homes

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Commuters could get from Woollahra to city in eight minutes on eastern suburbs line with rezoning of area to include ‘a dedicated portion of affordable housing’

Australia’s oldest suburban rail network is on track for its first new station in more than a decade to boost construction of 10,000 homes in the country’s most expensive property market.

A station wasn’t built at Woollahra on Sydney’s eastern suburbs line when the route was built in the 1970s because of community opposition.

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An EV road user charge is looming. Could it slam the brakes on Australia’s clean car transition?

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The revenue from fuel excise is falling but it’s not only because of EVs, which make up less than 2% of cars on the roads

Every time a driver puts 10 litres of fuel in their car, they’re paying about $5 in tax that goes to the federal government.

That is, of course, unless they drive an electric vehicle. No petrol or diesel being bought means the government loses that 51c per litre.

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UK ministers urged to do more to protect new drivers in road safety overhaul

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Motoring groups welcome plan to ban over-70s who fail eye tests but call for young drivers to face passenger restrictions

Motoring groups have welcomed government plans to overhaul road safety laws that could result in over-70s being banned if they fail eyesight tests but have implored ministers to go further with measures they believe could protect younger drivers and their passengers.

Ministers are considering cutting the drink-drive limit in England and Wales and introducing mandatory eye tests for older drivers, the Times reported on Monday. The proposals also reportedly include tougher penalties for uninsured driving and failing to wear a seatbelt – but not measures to stop inexperienced drivers being responsible for the safety of groups of their friends.

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Some electric cars fall short of claimed range by up to 23%, Australian motoring group finds

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The Australian Automobile Association tested vehicles from Tesla, BYD, Kia and Smart in bid to give consumers more accurate information

A government-funded program to test the true performance of vehicles has found the driving range of five popular electric cars is between 5% and 23% lower than results from laboratory testing.

The Australian Automobile Association tested vehicles from Tesla, BYD, Kia and Smart – the first EVs to be put through its four-year, federally funded Real World Testing Program to give consumers more accurate information on vehicle performance.

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Storm Floris: Scottish government holds emergency meeting amid warnings of more UK travel disruption

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Scotland says there have been 119 incidents on the rail network caused by Storm Floris, including 75 tree-related ones

The Scottish government has held emergency meetings in response to the “significant disruption” caused by Storm Floris across the country, with warnings of further travel chaos on Tuesday as poor weather continues.

On Monday night, the Scottish government’s Resilience Room held a meeting to help decide an appropriate response to the storm, which has included power outages and almost 120 rail incidents. Representatives from the Met Office, Police Scotland, Transport Scotland and transport and utilities companies were in attendance.

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Calls for UK air traffic control boss to resign as new glitch disrupts flights

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System restored after Nats limited flights due to technical problems that raised fears of repeat of chaos in August 2023

The head of the UK’s air traffic control company is facing calls to resign after the second disruption to flights in two years due to technical problems.

Hundreds of flights were delayed after the air traffic control (ATC) system went down for about 20 minutes on Wednesday.

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Eurostar calls for ‘credible’ Channel rail strategy as monopoly decision looms

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Operator says if rivals are allowed to squeeze into existing facilities it could jeopardise its investment

Eurostar has urged the UK government to choose a “credible long-term strategy” for international rail or risk “falling behind” the rest of Europe, before a crucial decision by the regulator that could end its cross-Channel monopoly.

The high-speed train operator warned that a “premature” ruling from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to allow competitors to squeeze trains into existing facilities could jeopardise its planned investment and expansion.

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‘Inquisitive, relaxed’ humpback whale swimming in Sydney Harbour delays ferries and boats

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Whale is having a ‘full harbour experience’, says an expert aboard a maritime boat shadowing the supersized mammal

An “inquisitive” humpback whale that wandered from its usual migratory route and into the centre of Sydney Harbour is causing “navigational challenges” for ferries and vessels as its tour of the world-famous harbour continues.

The sub-adult whale was spotted by commuters on a harbour ferry service near Fort Denison about 8am on Wednesday. It swam to Circular Quay – Sydney’s central ferry terminal – before moving east towards the defence base of Garden Island then to Watsons Bay and north to Balmoral Bay.

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