London drivers pay £70m in Ulez charges February 20, 2020 London’s drivers have been hit by £70.4m in charges and fines in the eight months since the Ultra-Low Emissions Zone (Ulez) charge was introduced in the capital. The data, which was obtained through a FOI request from car insurance provider By Miles, has revealed that drivers have paid out £48.9m in charges and £21.5m in [...]
Kaz Minerals posts profit and revenue boost in 2019 February 20, 2020 Kaz Minerals boosted both its profit and its revenue in 2019 as higher production rates and sales volumes offset a decline in copper prices. Shares in the mining company rose almost a per cent today. The figures Operating profit increased eight per cent in 2019, up to $923m (£717.2m) from $851m the year before. Revenue [...]
BAE Systems sees profits rise as aircraft contracts pay off February 20, 2020 Defence giant BAE Systems posted an 18 per cent increase in profit in 2019 as the firm said work on F-35 fighter jets and its Qatar Typhoon contract would help earnings to grow by a mid-single digit percentage next year. Shares in the company had increased over 2.5 per cent by midday. The figures Operating [...]
London St Pancras tops list of Europe’s best train stations February 20, 2020 Europe’s best train station for passengers has been revealed, with London St Pancras taking the top spot. A new survey from the Consumer Choice Centre has ranked Europe’s fifty largest train stations by a series of metrics including accessibility, cleanliness, number of platforms, hospitality and number of strike days, to give a composite score out [...]
Andrew Stephenson named minister for HS2 February 20, 2020 Andrew Stephenson has been named as the minister for HS2 and Transpennine Rail, the Department of Transport (DfT) has announced via tweet. Last week Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that a dedicated ministerial post would be created to oversee the controversial high speed rail project, which was finally given the go-ahead after months of delays. [...]
Maersk warns that coronavirus will hit 2020 earnings February 20, 2020 Global shipping giant Maersk warned today that the coronavirus outbreak would hit earnings this year as the Danish firm missed earnings forecasts in the fourth quarter. The company expects full earnings for 2020 of $5.5bn, down on analyst estimates of $6bn, largely due to the economic impact of the virus. In a statement, Maersk said [...]
Global aviation to lose $30bn as a result of coronavirus outbreak February 20, 2020 Global aviation body the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has today said that the coronavirus outbreak will cost the world’s airlines a combined $29.3bn in revenue, a reduction of five per cent on December’s estimates. The vast majority of the cost – $27.8bn – will be borne by carriers based in the Asia-Pacific, with Chinese [...]
HS2 reveals Old Oak Common station design February 19, 2020 HS2 has unveiled its new designs for its planned passenger super-hub at Old Oak Common in west London, which will serve 250,000 passengers per day. The plans for the new hub, which were submitted for planning approval today, are part of a wider regeneration project for Old Oak and Park Royal, which will see the [...]
Ryanair doubles passenger carbon offset scheme in green push February 19, 2020 Ryanair today announced that passengers would be able to double their voluntary carbon offset contribution from €1 to €2 from April onwards. The increase, which the airline admitted was “modest”, is part of the low-budget carrier’s ongoing sustainability campaign. Three per cent of Ryanair’s passengers currently participate in the voluntary scheme, the funds from which [...]
Railway bodies call on government for rolling electrification programme February 19, 2020 The railway industry has written to transport secretary Grant Shapps calling for the government to begin a constant process of electrifying the UK’s rail networks or risk missing its 2040 decarbonisation goal. The open letter notes that although electrification is the only means to meet the target, once the Midlands mainline has been electrified, there [...]