Shadow transport secretary says Labour will not hand HS2 a ‘blank cheque’ March 20, 2019 Shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald has said Labour will not grant the controversial HS2 project a "blank cheque" if it gets into office. Giving a keynote speech of Labour's transport policies at the Institute for Government, McDonald reiterated Labour's support for HS2 but said the costs of the £56bn railway would have to be watched "like [...]
Beware of these Tube terrors if you’re travelling on the London Underground March 20, 2019 Only the bravest explorers traverse the London Underground. The tunnels of the Tube have their own microclimate and ecosystem, and are inhabited by a wide array of eccentric species. Most of these specimens are placid, if not friendly, but recently I have observed a worrying trend of hostility from Undergrounders. It’s rough out there, so [...]
Tube delays: District Line and Circle Line hit with delays after Paddington signal failure March 20, 2019 Severe delays have hit the Circle and District lines this morning, leaving commuters to contend with travel chaos on their ways to work. Read more: Revealed: The Tube line with the worst delays A Paddington signal failure has left the District Line with severe delays between High Street Kensington and Edgware Road this morning. While [...]
Rail review head Keith Williams says government role in industry ‘has to change’ March 19, 2019 The government's role in the UK railways will "have to change" if the industry is to become more customer-focused, the former boss of British Airways has said. Keith Williams, who was appointed to lead a "root and branch" review of the railways following last year's May timetable chaos, hinted that the Department for Transport (DfT) could take [...]
One in five Tube staff report being physically abused, says union March 19, 2019 One in five Tube staff have been physically assaulted by passengers while working, according to the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT). Read more: Revealed: These are London's most stressful Tube stations The union's survey also found that one in 10 workers reported being sexually harassed by passengers. Three quarters of surveyed staff reported being [...]
London climbs world’s most expensive cities ranking March 19, 2019 London has become a dearer place to live in the last year, causing it to climb eight places in the world’s most expensive city list, according to the latest worldwide cost of living survey. After dropping considerably last year the capital is now the world’s 22nd most expensive city to live in, far behind its [...]
Businesses bag £90m to overhaul UK city transport in government review March 19, 2019 Businesses will be offered up to £90m to implement their ideas on how to improve transport in UK cities and towns as part of a new government review. Businesses will be asked to offer their ideas into how to make transport more innovative, convenient and reliable, and how data sharing can improve public services by [...]
Rent rises: East London outpaces West London in rental growth race March 18, 2019 Fresh evidence of demand for East London’s housing market has been underlined by new figures today, with traditional high-growth areas in the west of the capital seeing more of a slowdown in recent years. Rents in East London’s nine boroughs rose on average by more than 20 per cent since January 2012, compared with growth [...]
Oman Air beats British Airways to top Heathrow’s greenest airlines league March 18, 2019 Oman Air has topped Heathrow Airport's league of green and quiet airlines, beating rivals such as British Airways and Etihad Airways. Oman's flag carrier landed itself at the top of the league after it phased out its older aircraft and replaced it with the ultra-quiet and green Boeing 787 dreamliner. The Heathrow "fly quiet and [...]
City Hall accused of ‘repeating mistakes’ of Garden Bridge scandal over £22m housing loan March 18, 2019 City Hall has been accused of repeating the mistakes of the Garden Bridge after it agreed to loan nearly £22m towards the development of a controversial housing site in south London. The Greater London Authority (GLA) has agreed to loan American property developer Anthology £21.8m to build homes at Woodlands and Masters house in Lambeth, despite [...]