Crossrail’s delay sounds depressingly familiar September 3, 2018 With a plethora of talented engineers at our disposal and a rich history of leading the world in pioneering rail projects, it is depressing to witness Britain’s clumsy approach to improving the country’s transport links. Commuter services into the City still woefully under-serve the UK’s economic engine. Meanwhile, news has broken that Crossrail has succumbed [...]
No end in sight for Crossrail fiasco as budget overshoot could surpass £1bn September 2, 2018 Crossrail's budget overshoot could surpass £1bn as the flagship project works towards a new 2019 deadline. Last week it was confirmed that the £15.4bn Elizabeth Line, which stretches from Reading and Heathrow in the west to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east, has been delayed by almost a year over safety issues and will now [...]
Job cuts loom as Ford gears up for major business redesign September 2, 2018 Analysts at Morgan Stanley have predicted that car-maker Ford is preparing to axe around 24,000 jobs as part of major redesign of its European business. The Sunday Times reported that the car giant could axe up to 12 per cent of its global workforce across European outposts in the UK, Spain and Germany. The newspaper [...]
Ofo in £7.9m spot of hot water over unpaid bike bills September 2, 2018 Floating bike-sharing startup Ofo is being sued for defaulting on around 70m yuan (£7.9m) in payments to its supplier Shanghai Phoenix Bicycles, the company’s Shanghai-listed parent said in a filing late on Friday. Shanghai Phoenix petitioned a court in Beijing last week to demand Ofo repay 68.15m yuan as well as 1.87m yuan in losses incurred [...]
Apple reaches a new self-driving car milestone in its first road accident September 2, 2018 A test vehicle from Apple's self-driving car programme was involved in a road accident near its Silicon Valley headquarters last month, making Apple the latest tech giant to join a recent spate of autonomous driving incidents. One of Apple's Lexus RX 450h self-driving vehicles was preparing to join a motorway in Sunnyvale on 24 August when it [...]
Petrol station merger could drive up fuel prices, watchdog finds September 1, 2018 Motor Fuel Group's (MFG) takeover of petrol station supplier MRH could drive up prices, the competition watchdog has found. An investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the merger could increase fuel prices at 29 locations across the UK. Read more: Petrol prices soar to four-year high on back of weak pound Competition provided [...]
Blackrock voted to remove Elon Musk as Tesla chairman August 31, 2018 Blackrock-managed funds voted in favour of replacing Tesla's billionaire founder Elon Musk with an independent chairman, it revealed yesterday. Funds run by the New-York based firm backed a shareholder proposal to oust Musk as chairman, its filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission showed. More than 86m shares voted against the failed motion, which would not [...]
John Laing Infrastructure Fund boosts profit ahead of £1.45bn takeover August 31, 2018 John Laing Infrastructure Fund (JLIF) today announced a spike in pre-tax profit for the half-year, ahead of its takeover by a consortium for £1.45bn. Earlier this month JLIF agreed to a £1.45bn takeover by a consortium which includes Dalmore Capital and Equitix Investment Management. Read more: GAM Holding sets out plan to pay back investors [...]
Three-day weekend strike affecting South Western Railway services begins August 31, 2018 A strike on South Western Railway (SWR) services started overnight, and is due to last all weekend, causing disruption to commuters. The three-day strike started at midnight Friday and runs until midnight Sunday, leaving SWR running a reduced service across all routes save its island line to the Isle of Wight. It affects lines from [...]
TfL and Network Rail urged to stop ‘passing the buck’ over failures on Gospel Oak to Barking line August 30, 2018 Transport for London (TfL) and Network Rail have been urged to stop "passing the buck" over continuing failures on the Gospel Oak to Barking line. Commuters using the London Overground line have endured repeated delays to the introduction of new Class 710 electric trains, which manufacturer Bombardier has blamed on software problems. The trains were [...]