The next moon landings will spur giant leaps here on Earth July 18, 2019 This week, we celebrate 50 years since Apollo 11’s first landing of humans on the moon – one of humanity’s greatest achievements. The technologies born of the Apollo missions shaped life on Earth in more ways than we often recognise through inventions we use every day. This anniversary is about more than where we’ve been [...]
Uber rival Kapten partners with Citymapper on London travel July 17, 2019 Citymapper has teamed up with rival Kapten to offer a £10 credit to some of its users. Users of Citymappers’ pass, which was launched in March, will receive a free £10 weekly credit for rides via Kapten, the only private hire firm to have teamed up with the transport app. Read more: French ride-hailing app [...]
HS2 locks horns with Bechtel in bid to break contract stalemate July 16, 2019 HS2 has asked the High Court to allow it to push on with the construction of one its London stations despite an ongoing legal challenge from engineering giant Bechtel. HS2 Limited, which is overseeing the proposed £56bn railway linking London to the north, has applied to lift the “automatic suspension” that is preventing it from [...]
Former BA operations chief to head up London Underground July 15, 2019 A former British Airways chief is to join Transport for London (TfL) as its new managing director of the Underground, taking over from the incumbent Nigel Holness. Andy Lord worked at BA for 25 years before progressing to the role as director of operations from 2008 to 2015. He also held the role of executive [...]
Uber rival Via Van wins three-year licence renewal from TfL July 15, 2019 Ride-sharing service Via Van has had its London licence renewed for the next three years, following its launch in the capital last year. The three-year licence renewal puts Via Van ahead of rivals Uber and Kapten, which are operating on a probationary 15-month licence and a 12-month licence respectively. Read more: Mercedes-backed ViaVan launches weekly [...]
See it, say it, sorted – it’s annoying, but effective July 15, 2019 Rail commuters across the country have heard it – the security announcement that starts “if you see something that doesn’t look right…” and ends with the earworm “see it, say it, sorted”. It’s one of those advertising lines that – through a mix of alliteration, questionable grammar, and sheer repetition – gets stuck in your [...]
DEBATE: Will Instagram’s new anti-bullying features help to make the social media platform safer? July 12, 2019 Will Instagram’s new anti-bullying features help to make the social media platform safer? Derek Roga, chief executive of EQUIIS Technologies, says YES. Instagram has been under a lot of pressure to tackle online bullies after a few highly publicised cases. With the government taking action against online bullying and finding ways to prevent it, the [...]
Sadiq Khan on course to miss another housing target, critics claim July 10, 2019 Sadiq Khan is on course to miss one of his key housing targets, critics have claimed, after new figures show that just over 300 homes have been built on land owned by Transport for London (TfL). In May 2016, TfL said it had set a target to build 10,000 homes by 2020. However, new figures [...]
Tube delays: Commuters endure rush hour misery amid Northern Line delays July 9, 2019 Commuters suffered a miserable rush hour commute this morning, with the Northern Line suspended along the Bank branch due to the same problem that caused huge delays yesterday. A signal failure at Kennington meant there was no service running southbound between Camden Town and Kennington on the Bank branch of the Tube line. Read more: [...]
City Moves for 9 July – Who’s switching jobs? July 9, 2019 Today’s City Moves includes Baird, Glenhawk and Astarte Capital Partners. Baird Baird has announced that Simon Pearson and Justin Prichard (pictured) have joined its European investment banking group as managing directors, continuing the expansion of Baird’s global technology & services practice. The duo will focus on the technology, media and telecoms space, and will be [...]