Low fuel prices means it’s cheaper to run a car now than it was in 2013 June 6, 2016 One of a household's biggest bills is being held down by low oil prices. The average annual cost of running a car is around 22 per cent – or £622 – less than 2013, coming in at £2,197.42. The decline is due to the price of petrol at the pump, which makes up almost half of the costs of [...]
A new low-cost airline hopes to raise £5m through crowdfunding to offer cheap flights from the UK to India June 2, 2016 A soon to be launched airline hopes to raise £5m through a crowdfunding campaign to run flights between the UK and two Indian cities Amritsar and Ahmedabad. Called POP, which stands for "People Over Profit", the airline claims it will give back a minimum of 51% of its profits to charitable causes in both India and the UK. [...]
Euro 2016: Travel chaos looms as French pilots call a strike for 11-14 June June 2, 2016 French pilots could be set to throw thousands of football fans' travel plans into chaos, after calling a strike for 11-14 June – coinciding with the start of the 2016 UEFA European Championship. Pilots working for Air France are planning to take industrial action over a pay dispute, according to union Spaf – which represents around [...]
EasyGroup boss Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou slams Fastjet for reporting 2015 results “two months late” June 2, 2016 Entrepreneur Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou has issued another attack on African budget airline Fastjet, over its financial results for 2015, which were released earlier today. The low-cost carrier reported that revenue grew 21 per cent to $65.1m (£45.1m) from $53.8m in 2014, and also said it had narrowed its post-tax loss for the year to $16.9m from $58.5m. Haji-Ioannou, whose [...]
Buses in “walking speed” congestion exacerbate London’s pollution problem June 2, 2016 London's pollution is exacerbated by London buses travelling at snail paces due to growing congestion, a new report has suggested. A report by Professor David Begg, a former chairman of the government's Commission for Integrated Transport, pointed to some routes "close to walking speed" that mean buses chug out more fumes. "Fuel efficiency measured in [...]
Ryanair cuts its bag fee options from 108 to six June 2, 2016 Budget airline Ryanair is cutting the number of bag fee options it offers from a whopping 108 to just six. The Irish company said the move will reduce checked-in bag fees for 92 per cent of its customers. The changes, which come into effect today, mean customers on domestic flights under two hours will have [...]
Turbulent year hits African budget airline Fastjet June 2, 2016 London-listed African budget airline Fastjet said a poor financial performance in 2015 had overshadowed its progress with plans to dominate the region's low cost air travel market. The figures Revenue grew 21 per cent to $65.1m (£45.1m) from $53.8m in 2014. The company narrowed its post-tax loss for the year to $16.9m from $58.5m. Fastjet also [...]
Saudi wealth fund invests $3.5bn in Uber June 1, 2016 Controversial taxi app Uber has raised $3.5bn (£2.43bn) from Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund valuing the company at $62.5bn. The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund will now own approximately 5 per cent of Uber and the fund's managing director Yasir al-Rumayyan will join the company's board. Other board members include Benchmark Capital general partner Bill Gurley and Huffington Post co-founder Arianna Huffington. [...]
MPs say government has more to do to prove case for £250m lorry park in Kent June 1, 2016 The government was right to seek a solution to the huge disruption caused by Operation Stack, but hasn't done enough to prove the viability of a £250m lorry park, a group of MPs has said. The Transport Select Committee said that the decision to set aside £250m to build a permanent lorry park near the [...]
World’s deepest and longest rail tunnel to open in Switzerland June 1, 2016 A marvel to rival Hannibal's feat, the Gotthard base tunnel has been officially opened in Switzerland today as the world's longest and deepest rail tunnel. Conquered the Alps, the tunnel will provide high speed rail services under the Swiss Alps between northern and southern Europe, in the hope of revolutionising freight transport. At current freight relies mostly on [...]