More than two-thirds of the public think Heathrow expansion will signal Britain is open for business post-Brexit February 13, 2017 While questions remain over how the government will address air quality concerns over Heathrow expansion, for now the public backing lies very much with the third runway taking shape. That's according to a new ComRes poll of 2,003 people – commissioned by Heathrow (who else?) – which has found more than two-thirds of the public think building a [...]
Tube strike threat over staffing and ticket office closures is off after the TSSA accepts London Underground deal over jobs February 13, 2017 The threat of industrial action on the London Underground over jobs has come to an end, after the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) accepted a deal. As a result, the union has called off its overtime ban. Both the TSSA and the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union had been in dispute with London Underground over [...]
We just found out more details about Jim Ratcliffe’s new Land Rover Defender-inspired SUV February 13, 2017 We've just been given more details about a new SUV inspired by the discontinued Land Rover Defender, which fracking boss Jim Ratcliffe has vowed to lovingly recreate – although not to the letter, it turns out. Tom Crotty, the director of Ratcliffe's Ineos, told the BBC's Today Programme Ratcliffe is planning to create a Defender-style SUV. Pro-Brexit [...]
Snow in the City causes flight delays at London’s airports February 11, 2017 For once, it appears the Met Office's warnings of snow in the City were true. Snow showers broke out in London in the early afternoon – but now some flights leaving the UK are facing delays. Snow slow-mo on the River Thames #londonsnow pic.twitter.com/lCSUdmVAfc — Katie (@katbadgerallen) February 11, 2017 Heathrow said in a tweet it is experiencing some [...]
Severe Piccadilly line delays are cutting access Heathrow February 11, 2017 Severe delays on the Piccadilly line are limiting access to Heathrow this afternoon. A signal failure on the Tube line is causing travellers major delays. Transport for London (TfL)'s Piccadilly line tweeted there is no service between Northfields and all Heathrow terminals and severe delays between Acton Town and Northfields. https://twitter.com/piccadillyline/status/830368757247832065 One traveller asked when the issue would [...]
Ford gears up for a major AI investment to boost its self-driving car offerings February 11, 2017 Ford is spending big to up its game in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector. The US carmaker said it will invest $1bn (£800m) over the next five years in Argo AI, an AI software and robotics technology startup, to support its autonomous vehicle development. Pittsburgh-based Argo AI, which was founded by former Google and Uber leaders, will work to develop a [...]
Sigh. There’s going to be another British Airways strike this month February 10, 2017 Another day, another life-disrupting transport strike: today the Unite union announced members working for the company will stage a four-day strike, from midnight on 17 February to midnight on 20 February. It's the latest in a series of walkouts by cabin crew over low wages. The announcement was generously timed to coincide with the penultimate day [...]
Pay-to-use motorway fails to secure bidders February 10, 2017 A £1.9bn deal to sell M6 Toll road has fallen through, prompting lenders to consider refinancing Britain’s only pay-to-use motorway. Plans to sell the motorway were announced in February last year and were already delayed as a result of the summer’s EU referendum vote. The sale is now not expected to take place, according to [...]
HS2 payments to incoming chief executive’s firm CH2M surge from £1.4m to £32.5m in four years February 9, 2017 High Speed Two payments to its incoming chief executive’s company have surged, as the rail project awarded another contract to CH2M today. New figures have revealed that CH2M – where HS2’s new boss Mark Thurston is head of European operations; he joins HS2 in the spring – has been paid increasing amounts from HS2 over the [...]
HS2 announces flurry of new contracts including another for CH2M – the firm of its chief exec-to-be February 9, 2017 New contracts have been awarded for the second phase of HS2, including one for CH2M – HS2's incoming chief executive's company. The announcement comes after questions were asked over Mark Thurston's appointment last month and possible conflicts of interest. Thurston joins from his post managing European affairs at CH2M in the spring. American engineering giant CH2M is already the engineering delivery [...]