Arriva seeks £200m from government over East Midlands franchise snub July 18, 2019 Rail giant Arriva is claiming £200m from the government over its controversial decision to disqualify it from the East Midlands franchise, City PM can reveal. Court documents seen by this newspaper show that Arriva Rail, which is owned by German parent Deutsche Bahn, is seeking to recover the amount following the Department for Transport’s (DfT) [...]
Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 delays hit British Airways passengers July 18, 2019 Heathrow Airport passengers face major disruption this morning as a baggage system issue has caused hours of delays. Passengers including comedian Eddie Izzard were left to queue for up to two hours to drop bags at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 this morning, leading to reports of missed flights. Reports suggested the luggage belt system had [...]
‘Abusive’ Jet2 passenger fined £85,000 and given lifetime ban July 18, 2019 An “abusive” passenger who attempted to open aircraft doors while on board a Jet2 flight has been fined more than £85,000 and given a lifetime ban by the airline. Chloe Haines has been accused of “aggressive, abusive and dangerous behaviour” that forced the Turkey-bound flight to be diverted to Stansted on 22 June. Read more: [...]
Easyjet grows revenue in ‘robust’ quarter as new COO joins July 18, 2019 Easyjet boosted revenue 11 per cent to £1.8bn in its third quarter, the airline revealed today, saying it is on schedule to hit market expectations on profit. Read more: Easyjet losses soar to £275m after fuel price hike and Gatwick drone chaos The airline also posted higher passenger revenue, growing that 10.7 per cent year [...]
DEBATE: Would the railways run better with a ‘fat controller’? July 18, 2019 Would the railways run better with an independent “fat controller” in charge, as recently proposed? Scott Corfe, research director at the Social Market Foundation, says YES. Commuters are right to be angry with the state of Britain’s railway network, with its unpalatable combination of high fares, delays, and trains so packed that one feels like [...]
Our next Prime Minister should understand how crucial infrastructure projects are to the economy July 18, 2019 Tory members are electing their new leader and the next Prime Minister. Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt’s premiership will be dominated by a few issues – solving the Brexit deadlock in parliament, funding public services, and healing the country’s divides. But while it hasn’t featured as prominently as the European issue, infrastructure is of key [...]
Uber rival Kapten partners with Citymapper on London travel July 17, 2019 Citymapper has teamed up with rival Kapten to offer a £10 credit to some of its users. Users of Citymappers’ pass, which was launched in March, will receive a free £10 weekly credit for rides via Kapten, the only private hire firm to have teamed up with the transport app. Read more: French ride-hailing app [...]
Chris Grayling admits Cabinet overruled him on Eurotunnel ferry settlement July 17, 2019 Transport secretary Chris Grayling has said he personally wanted to fight Eurotunnel’s legal challenge against the government’s no-deal Brexit ferry strategy in court but that Cabinet collectively decided to settle it. In what was most likely his last appearance before the Transport Select Committee, Grayling was asked why the Department for Transport (DfT), which he [...]
HS2 locks horns with Bechtel in bid to break contract stalemate July 16, 2019 HS2 has asked the High Court to allow it to push on with the construction of one its London stations despite an ongoing legal challenge from engineering giant Bechtel. HS2 Limited, which is overseeing the proposed £56bn railway linking London to the north, has applied to lift the “automatic suspension” that is preventing it from [...]
UK rail franchising system has ‘had its day’, says review head July 16, 2019 The UK’s rail franchising system has “had its day”, the man in charge with reviewing Britain’s railways has said. Former British Airways chief executive Keith Williams, who is leading a government-commissioned review into how to improve the industry, said the franchising model needed to be replaced by a “new commercial model” that worked in the [...]
