Exclusive: London MPs warn of DLR decline without new TfL funding deal December 5, 2021 The capital’s Docklands Light Railway (DLR) will be under serious threat of long-term decline without a sustainable funding deal for Transport for London (TfL), a group of London MPs have warned. The six MPs, all Labour members in East or South East London constituencies, wrote to transport secretary Grant Shapps today to say “some of [...]
A hammer blow to the industry: Business travel body slams new restrictions December 5, 2021 The travel industry has reacted with fury following the re-introduction of pre-departure mandatory tests for those travelling to England. Clive Wratten, chief executive of the UK Business Travel Association (BTA), has slammed the government’s decision, calling it a “hammer blow to the business travel industry.” “Public safety is a priority, but businesses will fail, travellers [...]
Easyjet adopts a more aggressive strategy to face rivals December 5, 2021 Easyjet’s chief executive Johan Lundgren is reportedly adopting a more aggressive business strategy, following accusations of having behaved too cautiously during the pandemic. Lundgren stated that, after seeing encouraging signs for next summer, he expects demand to go back to pre-Covid levels, allowing the company to buy slots at airports such as London Gatwick. The [...]
London businesses and charities call on Rishi Sunak to provide long-term TfL funding December 5, 2021 More than 80 London business, universities and charities have written to Rishi Sunak to call on the chancellor to provide a long-term funding deal for Transport for London (TfL). Signatories to the letter – including the chiefs of Eurostar International, the ExCel Centre and London City Airport – called on Sunak to provide a funding [...]
Travel industry in shock: Pre-departure tests for all UK arrivals from Tuesday December 4, 2021 Everyone arriving in England from abroad will be required to take a Covid-19 pre-departure test from 4am on Tuesday, Health Secretary Sajid Javid said this evening. The pre-departure tests will have to be taken a maximum of 48 hours before departure and will apply to all travellers arriving in the UK, regardless of their departure [...]
Easyjet is coming to town: Airline announces second Lapland route December 3, 2021 Easyjet announced today the opening of its newest service to Lapland, with the first flight departing this morning. The new route – linking London Gatwick to the Finnish city of Kittila – joined an existing service connecting the British capital to Santa Claus’s hometown of Rovaniemi. Flights to Rovaniemi, which departed for the first time [...]
Used car prices hit record growth in six months December 3, 2021 Used car prices have registered five years’ worth of growth in six months, with costs increasing by £3,400 since May. Data from the Auto Trader Retail Price Index has shown that used car prices – now at an average of £17,366 – have gone up 28.6 per cent on a year-on-year basis, making November the [...]
BA first airline to use sustainable fuels from next year December 3, 2021 British Airways (BA) will become the world’s first airline to use sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) produced on a commercial scale in the UK for its flights starting from 2022. The carrier entered yesterday a multi-year supply agreement with US energy company Phillips 66 to use SAFs produced at the Humber refinery, the company’s factory in [...]
Ministers postpone rail fare increase following HS2 cuts backlash December 2, 2021 A UK Government announcement regarding a 3.8 per cent increase in rail fares from March was postponed last week following the backlash caused by the slashing of rail investments in the north. Rail fares in England and Wales will see the biggest increase in nine years, the Guardian reported exclusively after seeing leaked documents. A [...]
Ryanair remains positive despite Omicron concerns December 2, 2021 Eddie Wilson, chief executive of Ryanair DAC, said this morning the airline remains positive about summer demand, bypassing concerns related to the new Covid variant, Omicron, and its impact on Christmas demand. Speaking at London’s World Aviation Festival, Wilson said that the carrier’s focus remained on next summer. “We were hoping that the demand curve [...]