Wrong kind of concrete brings Victoria line to a rush hour halt January 23, 2014 THE LONDON Underground’s Victoria line was plunged into disarray yesterday, after a bizarre incident in which a signal room was flooded with wet concrete. Services were completely stalled between Warren Street and Brixton during one of the busiest times of the day, putting nearly half of the line out of action, with severe delays on [...]
Crossrail is hailed for being on track even with funding setbacks January 23, 2014 CROSSRAIL has been praised for sticking to its budget and overall schedule by the National Audit Office, despite a smaller-than-expected contribution from the private sector. With the £14.8bn railway across London now half-built, the spending watchdog said Crossrail was set to provide good value for money. “The sponsors and Crossrail Limited have so far done [...]
TfL staff volunteering as Tube ambassadors during strikes January 23, 2014 TRANSPORT for London (TfL) is drafting in trained volunteers from its back offices to man the stations as “ambassadors” during next month’s strikes. Around 1,000 TfL staff, from accountants to former drivers, have offered to lend a hand to passengers during the RMT walkouts on 4-5 and 11-12 February. Volunteers working beyond the ticket barriers, [...]
Victoria Line concrete clean up “nearly done”, says TfL January 23, 2014 After the Victoria Line has suffered from some concrete related problems with its signalling equipment (it's not cement, that's just an ingredient in concrete) – the fun is nearly over. Transport for London have said that cleaning of the fast-setting stuff is nearly done, with testing and fixing of equipment to follow. For now the [...]
TfL to use its own Olympic volunteers to staff stations during strikes January 23, 2014 Transport for London has found a new benefit to the Olympic legacy – it is drafting in trained volunteers from its back offices to man the stations as “ambassadors” during next month’s strikes. Around 1,000 TfL staff, from accountants to former drivers, have offered to lend a hand to passengers during the RMT walkouts on [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 23 January 2014 January 22, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Microsoft to shield users’ data Microsoft will allow foreign customers to have their personal data stored on servers outside the US, breaking ranks with other big technology groups that until now have shown a united front in response to the American surveillance scandal. Just Eat gears up for £900m IPO London’s start-up cluster [...]
Highest court throws out legal challenge to High Speed Two January 22, 2014 CAMPAIGNERS against High Speed Two have lost their final legal appeal in the UK after two years of fighting the rail project in the courts – though one group pledged to appeal to the European authorities. Transport minister Baroness Kramer said the unanimous decision in the Supreme Court yesterday “fully vindicated” the government’s work on [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 21 January 2014 January 20, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Retailers join IPO shopping list Bankers are preparing to list a swelling number of high street retailers on the London Stock Exchange as their private equity backers rush to cash in on a recovery in the IPO market. Discount retailer Poundland and Pets at Home are poised to kick off the slew of [...]
Plans to rethink West End ahead of Crossrail rush January 20, 2014 WEST End leaders have hired consultants to come up with a plan for improving the busy shopping district to cope with a surge in visitors when Crossrail opens in 2018. Westminster City council, Transport for London and the New West End Company – the group that represents businesses in the area – have commissioned Arup [...]
Sir Howard Davies promises to rise above Boris Johnson’s “vulgar abuse” over London airport analysis January 20, 2014 Sir Howard Davies plans to "rise above this vulgar abuse" from Boris Johnson as he works to pick a site for a new runway or airport. "I completely dismiss what the mayor has said about our report. It’s completely at variance with anyone else … As far as the mayor's concerned we don’t seem to [...]