Rail reforms: the Fat Controller, new fares, and a ‘farewell’ to franchising May 20, 2021 After years of anticipation, and not a few false starts, the government today announced its much-lauded plan to reform the UK’s railways. Complete with pledges to “fix the broken system” and deliver a better service “for the passenger”, the white paper presents a vision of the country’s rail network that is a clear break from [...]
New York-London travel bubble vital for JetBlue: Its CEO is certain US will get on UK green list May 20, 2021 New York-London travel bubble vital for JetBlue: Its CEO is certain US will get on UK green list
Trainline shares tumble a third as government announces new ticket platform May 20, 2021 Shares in train ticketing app Trainline fell nearly a third this morning after the government unveiled plans for a new ticketing platform as part of sweeping rail reforms. By the early afternoon shares in the FTSE 250 firm had recovered slightly, but were still down 21.6 per cent at 335.25p. The move from the government [...]
Flexible season tickets on sale from 21 June under new rail plan May 20, 2021 Flexible season tickets will go on sale from 21 June as part of newly announced reforms that represent the most comprehensive overhaul of the UK’s railways in decades. The long-awaited Williams-Shapps review, which was first mooted nearly four years ago, has finally been published by the Department for Transport (DfT). The paper proposes a number [...]
Add Europe to ‘green list’, Easyjet begs, as airline books £700m loss May 20, 2021 No respite for Easyjet as airline dives to £701m loss as it pins hopes on UK green list growing
First Group signs new deals for South Western Railways and Transpennine Express May 20, 2021 First Group has this morning agreed new contracts to continue running South Western Railway and the Transpennine Express. The new deals, the first contracts to be awarded under new plans to reform the UK rail network, will start at the end of May and last for two years. There will be the option to extend [...]
Musk’s UK visit fuels speculation a Britain-based Tesla plant is on the cards May 20, 2021 Elon Musk visited the UK last weekend, fuelling speculation that Tesla is exploring the possibility of setting up a car plant in Britain. The government’s new Office for Investment has called upon regional agencies to urgently submit potential locations for a new factory, the Telegraph first reported, a move that would add £80bn to Britain’s [...]
Croydon tram crash: Driver may have had ‘micro-sleep’ May 19, 2021 The driver of a tram involved in a fatal crash in Croydon in 2016 may have been “disorientated” following a so-called micro-sleep, an inquest has heard. Simon French, chief inspector for the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB), said there was evidence the driver thought he was travelling in the wrong direction. He told an inquest [...]
JetBlue to enter transatlantic market with London-New York flights from August May 19, 2021 Low-cost airline JetBlue said that it would make its transatlantic debut in August as it seeks to shake up one of the world’s most competitive aviation markets. The carrier will launch daily flights from New York to Heathrow and Gatwick airports from 11 August and 28 September respectively. Tickets are now on sale for its [...]
Ryanair wins EU court challenges against KLM and TAP state aid May 19, 2021 Ryanair has this morning won its legal challenges against billions of euros in state aid paid to two European airlines as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. KLM, the Dutch wing of Air France, and Portuguese carrier TAP were granted a combined €4.6bn by the European Commission in response to the crisis in aviation. However, [...]