Category Archives: Road transport

Burnham scraps restrictions on disabled people’s bus passes in England

Posted on by

Move means holders will be able to travel free on local services at any time of day or night from April next year

Disabled people across England will be able to use their free bus passes at any time of day from next April, as Andy Burnham expands a policy he introduced as mayor of Greater Manchester.

The prime minister has said the current weekday restrictions on when disabled people can use their bus passes will be removed from 1 April 2027. Their passes are valid only between 9.30am and 11pm on weekdays, although some councils pay to allow people free travel outside those hours.

Continue reading...

Burnham scraps restrictions on disabled people’s bus passes in England

Posted on by

Move means holders will be able to travel free on local services at any time of day or night from April next year

Disabled people across England will be able to use their free bus passes at any time of day from next April, as Andy Burnham expands a policy he introduced as mayor of Greater Manchester.

The prime minister has said the current weekday restrictions on when disabled people can use their bus passes will be removed from 1 April 2027. Their passes are valid only between 9.30am and 11pm on weekdays, although some councils pay to allow people free travel outside those hours.

Continue reading...

Number of children injured in e-scooter crashes in England surges

Posted on by

Calls for speed limiters or mandated helmet use after research into injuries at three paediatric trauma centres

The number of children involved in crashes on e-scooters has soared in recent years, with some as young as nine involved in collisions, research has found.

Researchers carried out a review of injuries among the under-16s at three specialist paediatric trauma centres – Alder Hey in Liverpool, and Sheffield and Royal Manchester children’s hospitals – between January 2019 and December 2024.

Continue reading...

EU border chaos feared at Dover crossing as busiest summer weekend looms

Posted on by

British domestic holidays are being pushed to their highest levels since Covid

The start of the peak summer season is set to bring millions of drivers on to British roads, with concerns of traffic chaos as the port of Dover faces its biggest test yet of new EU border controls.

The semi-functioning entry-exit system (EES) is credited, along with the heatwaves and fears about flights after the war in Iran, with helping push British domestic holidays to its highest levels since Covid halted international travel.

Continue reading...

London has lost ‘catastrophic’ 89% of car club vehicles since Zipcar exit

Posted on by

Only 330 car club vehicles available for rent after big provider left British market, data reveals

The number of car club vehicles in London has fallen by a “catastrophic” 89% since Zipcar ended its service in late 2025, with former users being pushed to consider buying or leasing.

Car clubs allow drivers to use vehicles parked around a city, using apps to book and unlock them. Zipcar dominated London’s car club market before the US company’s shock decision to pull out in December 2025. That left a gap that has yet to be filled for Londoners without a car.

Continue reading...

SUV buyers undeterred by warnings of risk to pedestrians, UK study finds

Posted on by

Exclusive: Research suggests financial penalties necessary if number of large vehicles on roads is to be reduced

Drivers who are told about the safety risks posed by SUVs to cyclists and pedestrians are very unlikely to be deterred from buying one, a new study has found.

The findings indicate that if governments want to reduce the number of large, dangerous vehicles on the roads, it is likely to require financial penalties, according to the psychologists at Swansea University who led the research.

Continue reading...

Trial of 12mph bike lane speed limit grinds gears of Dutch cyclists

Posted on by

Increase in road deaths amid rise of e-bikes prompts Houten to test willingness of freedom-loving cyclists to slow down

As road deaths increase and cycle lanes overflow with e-bikes, the Netherlands is considering a cycling speed limit of 12mph (20km/h).

The government has started a two-week trial in Houten, near Utrecht, to gauge whether freedom-loving Dutch cyclists are willing to slow down – and whether they have any idea how fast they are going in the first place.

Continue reading...

Extra EU border checks suspended at Dover as travellers face delays in heat

Posted on by

Wait times of more than two hours reported at terminal for cross-Channel ferry to France

French police have temporarily suspended extra EU border checks at the port of Dover as thousands of holidaymakers face long delays in the hot weather.

Waiting times of more than two hours were reported at the terminal in Kent for the cross-Channel ferry to France.

Continue reading...

Drivers told to look for cheapest fuel ahead of ‘busiest Easter on UK roads since 2022’

Posted on by

Bank holiday traffic predicted to peak on Thursday, as petrol and diesel prices surge from fallout of Iran war

UK drivers are being urged to look for the cheapest petrol and “to fill up as usual” as travellers prepare to make 21.7m journeys on what is expected to be the busiest Easter on the roads in four years.

The average price of a litre of unleaded petrol rose by 20p in March, from 132.83p on the 1st to 152.83p on the 31st, raising concerns about the cost of filling up for Easter journeys. The higher fuel prices have been triggered by rising oil prices as a result of the US-Israel war against Iran.

Continue reading...

The Voorhees law of traffic: when overtaken slow cars seem to always catch up at a red light

Posted on by

UK researcher uses maths to explain seeming inevitability of phenomenon experienced by many motorists

It is a situation experienced by many motorists: one driver overtakes another only to find the slower car is right behind them when they reach a red light. Now a researcher has used mathematics to reveal why the situation feels inevitable.

Dr Conor Boland from Dublin City University has called his work “The Voorhees law of traffic”.

Continue reading...

Ultrasound repellers could keep hedgehogs off roads, scientists hope

Posted on by

Study shows animals hear very high frequencies, making it possible to design a deterrent to cut deaths

Hedgehogs have been discovered to hear high-frequency ultrasound, raising hopes that they could be deterred from dangerous roads with ultrasound repellers.

Vehicles are estimated to kill up to one in three hedgehogs, a big factor in the much-loved mammal’s drastic decline across Europe over recent decades.

Continue reading...

Bots and third parties to be banned from booking driving tests in DfT shake-up

Posted on by

In effort to tackle severe backlog and end resale market, only learner drivers will be able to make bookings

Bots and third parties will be banned from booking driving tests as part of a government shake-up to tackle a severe backlog of almost 670,000 learners booked in for a practical assessment.

The Department for Transport (DfT), which recently consulted on how to crack down on touts reselling test slots at inflated prices, said that only learner drivers themselves and not their instructors would be able to make bookings.

Continue reading...

Australia Post releases footage of posties being hit by cars as it urges drivers to ‘keep an eye out’

Posted on by

More than 280 delivery workers injured in traffic collisions over past year, suffering everything from broken limbs to lacerations

At least five posties are injured each week on Australia’s roads, according to data released by Australia Post as the service published video of collisions and urged motorists to “keep an eye out”.

More than 280 posties sustained broken limbs, concussions or serious trauma from third-party road crashes in the past financial year.

Continue reading...

Doug Ford to ban speed cameras in Ontario in populist appeal to suburban voters

Posted on by

Canada premier’s move prompts criticism from road safety activists and is likely to cue new showdown with Toronto

Doug Ford has announced plans to ban speed cameras in Ontario, describing the devices as an out-of-control “tax grab” in his latest populist appeal to suburban voters.

The move prompted criticism from road safety activists and is likely to cue another showdown with Toronto, after the mayor of Canada’s largest city urged councillors to keep the cameras in place, warning that “speed kills”.

Continue reading...

‘Raring to go:’ the German remote-driving firm that hopes to make private car ownership redundant

Posted on by

Europe has been slow to embrace robotaxis but Germany will allow remote-controlled rental cars from December

Having been summoned by a few clicks in an app, the electric car slows to a halt outside the former cargo hall of Berlin’s now defunct Tegel airport. No one is at the wheel, but upon a passenger stepping inside, a voice announces: “This is Bartek, I am your driver today. Please buckle up and we can be on our way.”

The car emits a friendly jingle, then makes its way to the former runway, where it performs a fault-free manoeuvre around a route marked by traffic cones.

Continue reading...

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

Posted on by

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.

Continue reading...

Turkish transport minister fined after posting video of himself driving at 140mph

Posted on by

Footage shared by Abdulkadir Uraloğlu under hashtag #TurkeyAccelerates inadvertently shows him speeding

Turkey’s transport minister has been given a speeding fine after posting a video of himself racing down a highway with the hashtag #TurkeyAccelerates.

On Sunday evening, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu shared a video of himself on X driving along a highway near the capital, Ankara, listening to folk songs and clips of speeches by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Continue reading...

Tractor falls from bridge on to M20 leaving driver critically injured

Posted on by

Man airlifted to hospital after vehicle drops on to central reservation of motorway in Kent

A man has been hospitalised with serious injuries after a tractor tipped on to a motorway from a bridge following a crash.

Kent police said they were called to reports of a single-vehicle collision on the A227 overbridge near Wrotham at 11.17am on Monday. A tractor became separated from its trailer before falling on to the central reservation between junctions 2 and 3 of the M20.

Continue reading...

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

Posted on by

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.

Continue reading...

Noise pollution harms health of millions across Europe, report finds

Posted on by

About 110 million people suffer stress and sleep disturbance that lead to tens of thousands of early deaths

More than 110 million people across Europe suffer high levels of health-damaging noise pollution, according to a report. The resulting physiological stress and sleep disturbance leads to 66,000 early deaths a year and many cases of heart disease, diabetes and depression.

The report, from the European Environment Agency (EEA), focuses on noise from cars, trains and aeroplanes and found that 20% of the population of the European Economic Area (EEA) were affected. Separate research, using a slightly lower threshold for dangerous noise pollution, found that 40% of the UK population were exposed to harmful transport noise.

Continue reading...