Network Rail to spend £42bn on railway improvements after year of chaos March 28, 2019 Network Rail is to spend £42bn on the railways over the next five years after passengers endured a torrid year of delays and cancellations. Network Rail, which owns Britain's rail infrastructure, has said the funds will increase reliability and improve performance for the benefit of passengers during its next control period, CP6, which starts on 1 April this [...]
Tory mayoral hopeful Shaun Bailey pledges ‘aggressive’ action against absentee landlords March 28, 2019 Tory mayoral hopeful Shaun Bailey has said he will crack down on London's empty "ghost homes" if he replaces Sadiq Khan as the capital's mayor. Bailey has pledged to give more money to councils to levy empty dwelling management orders, which give them legal powers to take over unoccupied properties to use as housing. A review by housing [...]
TfL leak reveals plans for the world’s longest and tallest bridge across the Thames March 27, 2019 Transport for London (TfL) wants its proposed Canary Wharf Thames crossing to be the tallest and longest vertical lifting bridge in the world. TfL's planned bridge is a 90m tall and 180m-wide vertical lift bridge that will connect Rotherhithe to Canary Wharf across the River Thames. The bridge will be fitted with concrete towers that will be 90m [...]
Network Rail bosses could be fined out of their own pockets to pay for delays March 27, 2019 Top bosses at Network Rail could be forced to fund fines for poor performance through their bonuses under tough new measures proposed by the rail regulator. From 1 April, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) will push through a new policy to hold Network Rail, which owns the UK's rail infrastructure, to account. The [...]
Sadiq Khan calls for TfL to take over from Network Rail as London’s railway manager March 26, 2019 Sadiq Khan has said Transport for London (TfL) should replace Network Rail as the UK's rail infrastructure manager to improve the reliability of services for London's commuters. The London mayor wants responsibility and funding for key rail assets such as tracks and stations to be transferred to the transport body so it is able to plug the communication gap [...]
Rogue landlords must stop exploiting students, says universities minister March 25, 2019 Rogue landlords who provide poor living conditions to students will be censured by the universities minister today as part of a crackdown on ‘squalid’ student housing. Chris Skidmore will slam private landlords who do not fulfil their responsibilities to tenants amid growing reports of student housing lacking basic amenities such as heating or hot water. [...]
London tourism industry pivots to long-haul markets in the face of Brexit March 24, 2019 Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, the royal family: London is blessed with renowned attractions wrapped in tradition and heritage most cities can only dream of. But with Brexit looming, the UK tourism industry, which supports more than one tenth of the country’s jobs, has hit turbulence. Almost every industry representative I spoke with used the [...]
Thousands join Brexit march calling for second EU referendum March 23, 2019 Demonstrators have gathered in central London as thousands take part in the People's Vote march calling for a second EU referendum. The march, which began at 12pm, will see people walk from Park Lane to Parliament Square before culminating in a rally in front of Parliament. It comes as MPs continue to search of a way out of [...]
Brexit march London 2019: Londoners warned to avoid key Tube stations March 22, 2019 Transport for London (TfL) has warned commuters to avoid 13 key Tube stations across the capital ahead of tomorrow's People's Vote Brexit march. Londoners were warned to expect "extremely busy" stations and London Underground during Saturday's Put it to the People march, which hundreds of thousands of protesters are expected to take part in. Read more: Tusk says 'anything possible' [...]
TfL awards controversial £1bn ‘sale and leaseback’ Crossrail fleet deal to Natwest-backed group March 22, 2019 Transport for London (TfL) has awarded a controversial £1bn "sale and leaseback" deal for a fleet of Crossrail trains to a rail company backed by Natwest and Japan's second largest bank. 345 Rail Leasing, which was set up in January this year and comprises Equitix Investment Management, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Natwest, will own the [...]