Category Archives: Transport

UK coronavirus live: infection R rate rises to between 0.7 and 1 in England

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News updates: EHRC will look into ‘long-standing, structural race inequality’; those shielding in Wales asked to stay home until mid-August

A senior Northern Ireland police officer has made a strong appeal to protesters not to take part in demonstrations this weekend.

PSNI assistant chief constable Alan Todd said his officers are engaging with organisers of Black Lives Matter gatherings to explain the coronavirus regulations, adding if the warnings are ignored then enforcement will be used.

I have a very clear message to organisers, the best way to resolve this for everybody’s interests is to call off these events.

Large crowd protests are at this time inappropriate.

On any other day as a police service we would be fully facilitating those protests in a peaceful and lawful manner with the organisers, however this is not any other day, we’re in the middle of a pandemic and gathering in crowds, socially distanced or otherwise, is both a risk to public health and a breach of the health protection regulations.

It seems to be somewhat ironic that we would protest the avoidable and unnecessary death of an individual in the United States by risking unnecessary and avoidable deaths in Northern Ireland.

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RAC hits out at ‘truly shocking’ lockdown speeding offences

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Data reveals police recorded seven incidents of motorists in UK driving over 130mph

Two-thirds of Britain’s police forces caught people driving in excess of 100mph during the first three weeks of the coronavirus lockdown, new data has shown. 

The extreme speeds were not confined to motorways, as drivers also took the drop in traffic as an invitation to break the law on urban roads, thus endangering lives, police said.

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Transport network to get £283m for Covid-19 protection measures

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Roads, rail and buses receive funds to increase capacity and ensure space for social distancing

Roads, railways, buses and trams are to receive a £283m funding package to improve public safety and protect services, the transport secretary has announced.

Grant Shapps said the funding – £254m for buses and £29m for trams and light rail – would increase both frequency and capacity of services while ensuring there is enough space on vehicles to allow for social distancing.

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Business groups brand UK’s quarantine plan for arrivals ‘isolationist’

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All incomers – including British citizens – must disclose where they will be staying, Priti Patel says

Business groups have accused the government of pursuing an “isolationist” policy after the home secretary, Priti Patel, confirmed that arrivals in the UK will have to quarantine themselves for a fortnight or face a £1,000 fine.

From 8 June, almost everyone arriving at ports and airports, including UK citizens, will be required to travel directly to an address they provide to the authorities, where they must then self-isolate for a fortnight. The French interior ministry expressed its “regret” that it would not be exempt from the quarantine plan, after assurances this month that the country would be.

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UK quarantine plan: what will it mean for travellers?

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Major shift in border policy will require people arriving in UK to self-isolate for 14 days

The government has unveiled a major shift in border policy to be introduced next month in a bid to prevent a second wave of Covid-19 in the UK.

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Train services ramped up as coronavirus travel restrictions eased in England

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Services increased to 70% but capacity kept to 10% of normal levels to prevent crowding

Train companies will increase the number of services on Monday to reflect the easing of coronavirus travel restrictions in England.

Industry body the Rail Delivery Group said services would be increased from about 50% of the standard timetable to 70%.

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Is the Covid-19 crisis the catalyst for greening the world’s airlines?

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Aviation is struggling and seeking support, but there are demands for it to give something in return

“The political moment is now” to address the climate risks posed by the aviation industry, analysts, insiders and campaigners say, as governments across the world weigh up bailouts for airlines grounded by the coronavirus pandemic.

Rescue packages need to come with green strings, such as reduced carbon footprints and frequent flyer levies, they warn, or the sector will return to the path that has made it the fastest rising source of climate-wrecking carbon emissions over the past decade.

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Train union threatens strike action if staff and drivers are not protected

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Leaders condemn ‘complete shambles’ on London network that is ‘fraught with danger’

Train unions have said they could take industrial action and stop trains if drivers and passengers are not protected from coronavirus, after photos emerged of packed London Underground services as many people returned to work following seven weeks of lockdown.

Transport for London indicated that the number of commuters remained relatively low, at 63,000 on Wednesday morning, up 7% on the previous day.

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Cargo ship sailors press-ganged into keeping the world’s trade afloat

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‘Ticking time bomb’ as contracts aren’t honoured and ports stop crews going ashore even for urgent medical care

Thomas Stapley-Bunten was due to finish his contract aboard the Al Shamal, a huge cargo ship carrying liquid natural gas, early last month. The ship docked at the LNG terminal in Fos Cavaou, southern France, as planned, but by then the world was in coronavirus lockdown. He couldn’t disembark, and international flights were grounded, preventing him from getting home to Newcastle, UK.

So the 27-year-old former Royal Navy warfare officer has been stuck onboard as the Al Shamal criss-crosses the ocean from Qatar to Turkey and France and back. The 34-man crew, from the Philippines, India, Russia and Ireland, have had their pay increased by 50%, but they just want to go home.

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Two-week quarantine will cripple us, aviation industry warns Boris Johnson

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Air travel bosses want assurances that science is driving the move, and that a clear exit strategy is in place

A two-week quarantine period for all travellers arriving in Britain risks devastating an aviation industry already crippled by the Covid-19 outbreak, Boris Johnson is being warned.

It is understood that the 14-day quarantine period will be announced by the prime minister, alongside a slight loosening of the lockdown measures that were introduced to slow the spread of the virus. Mass quarantine upon arrival has not previously been used as part of Britain’s response.

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Visitors and Britons returning from abroad will be required to self-isolate for two weeks

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Stringent quarantine measures to be announced to prevent second wave of coronavirus

Travellers into the UK will be quarantined for two weeks when they arrive as part of measures to prevent a second peak of the coronavirus pandemic, Boris Johnson is expected to say on Sunday.

In his address to the nation, when he will present his roadmap out of the lockdown, he will announce the introduction of quarantine measures for people who arrive at airports, ports and Eurostar train stations, including for Britons returning from abroad.

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What will coronavirus mean for the British economy?

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As the UK faces what may be its worst ever recession, we begin a monthly series exploring the financial shock to business and living standards

One month after a national lockdown was declared in an attempt to limit the spread of Covid-19, it is clear that Britain is heading for the deepest recession in living memory.

Boris Johnson’s government launched unprecedented restrictions on 23 March, telling the British public that they must stay at home and bringing life as the nation knew it to an abrupt halt.

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Construction on HS2 can begin, government says

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Formal notification says firms can start work as long as coronavirus safety guidelines are followed

Britain has given the green light for companies to start putting spades in the ground to build a new high speed rail line, saying that work could proceed in line with coronavirus safety guidelines despite the national lockdown.

The prime minister, Boris Johnson, announced in February that the line, known as HS2 which connects London to northern England, would go ahead.

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Heathrow passenger demand expected to plunge by 90% in April

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Airport’s forecast comes as numbers shrank by 52% in March after Covid-19 lockdown

Heathrow airport expects passenger traffic to plunge by 90% in April, as demand is mainly limited to airlines focusing on repatriating citizens stranded abroad during the coronavirus outbreak.

The airport said passenger numbers had already tumbled by 52% to 3.1 million in March, compared with a year earlier, after the UK government advised against all but essential travel. Meanwhile, the total number of flights landing and taking off at Heathrow – covering passenger planes and cargo – fell 35% to 25,798.

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Union calls for cash payment ban on UK buses over coronavirus

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Move will reduce risk of infection for drivers during pandemic, says Unite

Cash payments on all UK buses should be abolished for the duration of the coronavirus crisis to reduce the risk of driver infection, the union representing bus workers has demanded.

Unite called on Wednesday for an end to cash payments on all the bus systems still operating across the UK to help drive down infection rates, particularly as the country enters the predicted peak period of the outbreak over Easter and beyond.

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London underground packed as services cut to curb Covid-19 spread – video

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Carriages and stations appeared crowded in footage shared on social media on Tuesday morning as Transport for London closed a number of stations and reduced trains despite thousands of key workers, including NHS staff, still relying on the tube to get to work.

On Monday, Boris Johnson announced that people should stay at home and only travel to and from work where 'absolutely necessary' as the UK tries to prevent the spread of coronavirus

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‘Time is running out’: airline industry warns government

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EasyJet and Ryanair to stop flying on Monday and less than 5% of passengers expected at airports amid coronavirus

Airlines and airports have warned that time is running out for the government to enact promised measures to help the aviation industry, with EasyJet and Ryanair set to stop flying after Monday and less than 5% of normal passenger numbers expected at major airports.

Further talks are expected between ministers and the industry on Monday as the government wrestles with how to keep critical infrastructure functioning.

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Train services across Britain to be stripped back from Monday

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Ministers and operators to slim timetables after Covid-19 causes 70% fall in passengers

Train services are to be pared back across Britain from Monday as passengers are urged to stop all non-essential travel to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Ministers and rail operators across England, Scotland and Wales have agreed to make progressive cuts to timetables, with the aim of keeping core services running – but reflecting a drop of almost 70% in passenger numbers since the outbreak started.

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Key issues for Transport for London during coronavirus lockdown

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Train and bus services are to be limited as travel is restricted, raising questions for both passengers and operators

More draconian restrictions may be needed in London to stop the spread of the coronavirus, with guidance to avoid non-essential travel and stay home being ignored by some, while confirmed cases of sickness escalate rapidly. The prime minister, Boris Johnson, told his Wednesday press conference that he was prepared to take “further and faster measures” to tackle the disease.

Transport for London (TfL) is now moving to cut the number of trains and buses running throughout the week, most likely to the level of weekend schedules. On Wednesday night it announced it was closing up to 40 stations with no interchange from Thursday onwards. But what are the key issues transport chiefs need to consider when limiting services?

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UK companies to invest £12bn in switch to electric vehicles

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With a fuel duty rise expected in this week’s budget, a survey by Centrica finds businesses on course to move to cleaner cars and vans

British companies are expected to spend more than £12bn switching their fossil fuel vehicles for clean electric versions over the next two years.

A survey found that nearly half of UK businesses are planning to invest in chargeable cars and vans in advance of the government’s ban on sales of new internal combustion engine vehicles by 2035.

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