Uber’s top policy chief in Europe Christopher Burghardt has quit amid London licence row October 17, 2017 One of Uber’s top policy chiefs in Europe has quit amid turmoil for the tech company over its London licence. Christopher Burghardt, Uber’s head of policy and communications for Europe. Middle East and Africa since the end of last year, is departing just weeks after another top executive. Jo Bertram, the woman who established Uber [...]
Amazon’s hunt for HQ2 offers a blueprint for the perfect global city October 16, 2017 The Schroders Global Cities blog aims to identify the most investible cities and has compiled a Global Cities Top 30 Index. Here blogger Ryan Bennett examines Amazon's plans to find the perfect global city. In September Amazon announced plans to open “Amazon HQ2”, a second company headquarters in the US or Canada. Amazon expects to [...]
Transport for London (TfL) Tube repair work delayed due to exodus of agency workers after IR35 tax changes October 16, 2017 Work on a critical London Underground programme repairing Bakerloo Line trains has been delayed due to an exodus of agency workers in the wake of tax changes earlier this year. Transport for London (TfL) has admitted that “a significant number” of vital employees left TfL as a result of IR35 changes, revised tax legislation affecting [...]
Transport for London (TfL) mulls cashing in on open data expertise through new consulting arm October 13, 2017 Transport for London (TfL) has shed more light on the role of its consultancy arm in the works, saying today that it is exploring new commercial avenues through releasing open data. The transport body makes its information, spanning timetables, service status and disruption, publicly accessible. And according to a report out today by Deloitte for [...]
There’s a solution to the airport capacity problem in the UK, and it isn’t Heathrow October 13, 2017 The call for evidence to form a new aviation strategy for the UK closes today. We live in hope, but the UK hasn’t had a proper strategy for 50 years. While the need for more capacity grows, and Heathrow and Gatwick become full to bursting, successive governments have dithered over a decision on a third [...]
Wider Night Tube rollout draws a step closer with upgrade progress of Circle and Hammersmith & City Lines October 13, 2017 The wider rollout of Night Tube services across the London Underground has drawn a step closer, as Transport for London (TfL) said today that upgrade work on the sub-surface Tube lines has progressed. A crackdown on signalling problems across sections of the Circle and Hammersmith & City Lines is expected from next year, after TfL [...]
Heathrow expansion and better broadband: Britain’s key infrastructure priorities from now to 2050, according to the National Infrastructure Commission October 13, 2017 The head of the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) said today that Heathrow expansion is “perhaps the most serious infrastructure failure of all” as he sets out the most pressing needs for Britain from now until 2050. “We’ve spent 13 years talking about a new runway – it’s now time to get on with it and [...]
One in three London car journeys to be driverless by 2025, says consortium led by Addison Lee and Ford October 12, 2017 Driverless ride-sharing could account for a third of all trips in London by private drivers in 2025, according to a government-backed consortium led by Addison Lee. Some 34 per cent of private drivers’ journeys could be replaced, while up to 30 per cent of taxi and private hire journeys could also be served by autonomous [...]
Here’s why mass parcel drone deliveries are unlikely to take off in London October 11, 2017 The likes of Google and Amazon may be plugging investment into developing drone deliveries, but the capital isn't likely to be filled with them anytime soon. Not according to the professor of logistics at Kühne Logistics University, anyway. Alan McKinnon says there are a couple of key reasons why urban drone delivery looks set to [...]
Electric shock – finding the winners and losers of the electric revolution October 11, 2017 The electric car – as a concept – is almost as old as the internal combustion engine (ICE). The first electric vehicle (EV) is credited, somewhat contentiously, to Scottish chemist Robert Anderson as far back as 1837. Thomas Edison is even rumoured to have explored a cheap electric car with Henry Ford as early as [...]