Luxury rental property platform The Plum Guide to use £14m fundraise for rapid expansion March 21, 2019 High-end property rental platform The Plum Guide, which aims to eliminate disappointment from holiday bookings, has raised £14m in a Series B funding round led by Talis Capital as it prepares to launch in six more cities. The Plum Guide, which was set up in London in 2015, will be available in Barcelona, Berlin, Copenhagen, [...]
Sadiq Khan confirms TfL will remove controversial Michael Jackson bus adverts March 21, 2019 Controversial adverts that express support for Michael Jackson are to be removed from the side of Transport for London's (TfL) buses, Sadiq Khan has confirmed. The adverts, which bear the tagline "Innocent", were pushed by a Jackson fan group in response to a two-part Netflix documentary, Leaving Neverland, in which the late singer is accused of abusing young boys [...]
City Moves for 21 March – who’s switching jobs at Orchard Street, Dechert and Lloyds Bank? March 21, 2019 Who’s on the move today? Orchard Street Investment Management Orchard Street Investment Management, the specialist commercial property investment manager, has appointed Dawn Marie La Monica head of compliance and risk. She will be responsible for ensuring compliance with the relevant regulations and laws impacting the firm, guiding the shape of corporate governance and culture, and [...]
TfL slashes £1bn deficit in ‘relentless’ cost-cutting drive but warns of continued economic woes March 20, 2019 Transport for London (TfL) has halved its near £1bn budget deficit thanks to an aggressive cost-cutting drive. The transport body said a "relentless focus on efficiency" and "tight financial management" will help it to get the £968m deficit – partially caused by the loss of the government grant and Sadiq Khan's fare freeze for single journeys – [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]