200 Post Offices vanished within last wo years as two branches close for good every week January 28, 2022 New research shared with City A.M. this morning shows that more than 200 Post Offices have closed in the last two years, the equivalent of two a week. The study also found that 1,291 Post Offices are currently deemed “temporarily closed”, but more than half of these have been shut for more than two years, [...]
What are ghost flights and what is the debacle around them? January 27, 2022 EasyJet’s chief executive Johan Lundgren this morning told investors the airline was in favour of airport slot rules going back to “a normalised delineation,” saying the carrier will not be forced to operate ghost flights to retain its slots. “We should remember that the reason why [governments] made these exceptions was because restrictions were in [...]
Heathrow passengers stuck as security checks cause hour-long queues for umpteenth time January 27, 2022 Passengers at Heathrow have been complaining of being stuck in queues of more than 3 hours, waiting to be processed by Border Force. “Stuck at the UK border (non-UK, EU, US) in LHR for 4+ hours. Last time it was 2.5+. Kids crying all around. Officers drift in and out,” a tech entrepreneur told TechCrunch’s [...]
EU court adviser green-lights airline passenger data law January 27, 2022 The European Court of Justice’s advocate general Giovanni Pitruzzella has given the green light to a law that allows the gathering of airline passengers’ information. According Pitruzzella, under the 2016 Passenger Name Record Directive, authorities should access passengers’ information on all flights to and from the EU only in security matters, including terrorism and other [...]
MSC goes in for majority stake in ITA, telling ‘the Germans’ to settle for minority share January 27, 2022 Shipping giant MSC has made clear it wants a majority stake in the takeover of Italian airline and Alitalia successor ITA Airways, leaving Lufthansa with a minority share of the company. “The most important thing for us is to have a majority share in ITA Airways. The Germans can come in as a commercial partner [...]
EasyJet remains optimistic about 2022, as UK spearheads booking growth January 27, 2022 EasyJet’s chief executive Johan Lundgren has said the airline remains optimistic about 2022, following a recovery in customer confidence. “Customers are more confident in their ability to travel due to our flexible policies,” Lundgren told investors this morning following the company’s first quarter results. In the UK, bookings initially jumped off on 5 January, when [...]
Commercial vehicle output grows amid ‘dismal year’ for UK car manufacturing January 27, 2022 The UK commercial vehicle output has grown 11.3 per cent in 2021, despite a ‘dismal year’ for the British automotive industry. According to figures released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), over the course of the year production climbed 27.3 per cent. As a result of the lockdown-induced surge in home [...]
Go green or go home: Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi invest £19.2bn in EV development January 27, 2022 A consortium formed by automotive giants Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi will invest €23bn (£19.2bn) within the next five years to develop electric vehicles (EV). As part of its Alliance 2030 electrification strategy, the consortium will increase the number of common EV platforms from four to five, developing 35 new EV models by 2030. The car [...]
Rail operators to lure commuters back to trains with bacon rolls January 27, 2022 Commuters are being lured back to trains via Greggs bacon rolls, as low passenger numbers spell crunch time for rail operators. A new complimentary breakfast rewards scheme has been hauled in by the Rail Delivery Group, with Omicron continuing to weigh on commuter levels. Those who sign up can also get their hands on free coffees [...]
Ola injects £100m into UK engineering and design innovation January 27, 2022 Ola Electric, India’s leading manufacturer of EVs, today announced Ola Futurefoundry, its global centre for advanced engineering and vehicle design.