Rail operators suffer fall in dividends as Waterloo closure and strikes hit bottom line January 30, 2019 Rail operators’ dividends dropped by a quarter last year, with firms blaming strikes and a month-long platform closure at London Waterloo. Dividends totalled £300m for 2017-18, down 27 per cent on 2016-17, according to Office of Rail and Road (ORR) figures released today, as the station closure hit journey numbers. Read more: Passenger satisfaction falls [...]
Network Rail awards £5bn worth of contracts for next 10 years of railway management January 30, 2019 Network Rail has tasked engineering giants including Babcock and Colas with looking after Britain’s railways for the next decade, handing out £5bn worth of contracts. The firm, which is in charge of managing the UK’s rail networks, said the winning bidders would be responsible for “anything needed to make the rail system work including track, [...]
Westminster City Council to spend £28m tackling traffic and air pollution along the Strand January 30, 2019 Westminster City Council has pledged £28m to tackle the traffic jams and air pollution plaguing the Strand and transform the area into a “world-class cultural and learning quarter”. The local authority plans to address the “poor public spaces and safety” and traffic congestion around the Strand Aldwych, seeking feedback from the public as it develops its [...]
Truck maker Volvo pays out special dividend after strong fourth quarter January 30, 2019 Volvo shares were down 1.7 per cent this morning despite announcing rising income and its core trucks division recording its most profitable year on record. The Swedish truck maker said on Wednesday it would pay a dividend of five Swedish krona (42p) per share after what it called “a good finish to a strong year”. [...]
Wizz Air profits tumble but airline clings to guidance as passenger numbers grow January 30, 2019 Wizz Air witnessed an 88 per cent drop in pre-tax profits at the end of 2018 but has insisted it’s on track to meet its annual guidance. The figures The budget airline suffered a drop in pre-tax profit to just €1.7m for the three months to the end of 2018, down from €14m over the [...]
London startup backed by the Mayor and National Grid launches embedded car charging points January 29, 2019 Connected Kerb has today launched its first series of electric car charging points fully embedded into the road's curbside. Built into Borough Road in Southwark, the launch was supported by Southwark Council, Virgin Media and National Grid. The move comes after the London startup won the Mayor's Award for Urban Innovation last year. Users of electric cars [...]
Transport misery: Passenger satisfaction with Britain’s railways drops to 10-year low, says Transport Focus January 29, 2019 Passenger satisfaction with the UK's railways has fallen to a 10-year low, a new survey out today has found. Independent watchdog Transport Focus warned that overall satisfaction with services stood at 79 per cent, the lowest since 2008, according to its latest national passenger survey of 25,000 passengers. More than one in five passengers were [...]
Budget airline Norwegian takes a beating as it turns to shareholders in bid to raise cash January 29, 2019 Shares in Norwegian Air Shuttle crashed this morning as the company went cap in hand to shareholders after a potential bid for the struggling airline fell through last week. The 3bn Norwegian krone (£268m) fundraise comes as the business tries to move away from the rapid growth which has characterised it in recent years. Read [...]
Boeing and Airbus to deliver $4.3bn worth of jets to Japan in deal with airline ANA January 29, 2019 Japanese airline ANA Group confirmed this morning it is to buy 30 aircraft from US manufacturer Boeing and 18 from European competitor Airbus, nudging the latter’s shares up one per cent this morning. The orders from Boeing and Airbus are worth $2.3bn and $1.99bn respectively, according to list prices, but airlines typically get large discounts. [...]
PG&E files for bankruptcy as wildfires batter California’s biggest utility January 29, 2019 California’s wildfires claimed their latest victim this morning as the state’s main utility provider PG&E filed for bankruptcy. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company said it had submitted a so-called Chapter 11 filing in a bid to deal with potentially $30bn (£22.8bn) in liabilities as its network sparked hundreds of fires. Read more: PG&E burnt to [...]