Record revenues for Channel Tunnel as freight delivers gains January 23, 2013 EUROTUNNEL hopes that Britons will continue to use the Channel Tunnel while the UK reassesses its relationship with the Continent, after the firm posted record revenues for 2012. “I would recommend that Great Britain remains in Europe,” said chief executive Jacques Gounon, who thinks the vast majority of his customers support Britain’s place in the [...]
Crack down on the high cost of living or growth suffers January 22, 2013 THE emergence of competitive economies in the East is a well-known phenomenon. But less understood is the challenge this poses to the West. First, the rising East will squeeze traditional markets (albeit while creating new ones). Secondly, it will turn the terms of trade for primary products against us. We are not powerless, however. Emerging [...]
Cold snap travel chaos prompts bosses to call for a rethink January 21, 2013 PARTS of the capital’s transport network were left in disarray by snow and ice yesterday, prompting businesses to call for more concerted planning for cold weather. Heathrow cancelled one in ten flights yesterday, hoping to avoid a repeat of the weekend’s frustrations when passengers waited hours for flights that were eventually axed. Gatwick Airport has [...]
Bursting bond bubble will destroy wealth on a giant scale January 21, 2013 ONE of the greatest risks facing the world economy is a wholesale crash in government bonds markets. Yields on UK gilts, US Treasury bonds and others are still much too low – and that means that capital values are too high (the price of fixed income securities move inversely to their yield). Given the extraordinarily [...]
Transport bosses invite buskers with the X Factor to auditions January 21, 2013 THE DIZZYING career arc of a reality TV music star often takes in a spot of busking along the way. But Transport for London has decided to turn the format on its head, inviting prospective London buskers to take part in a terrifying round of X Factor-style auditions to win a coveted spot serenading droves [...]
Action, culture, and food on the Cornish coastline January 20, 2013 THERE ARE some things that, on visiting Cornwall, just have to be done. Eat a Cornish pasty? It would be rude not to. Wolf down a calorie-laden afternoon tea of scones with jam and clotted cream? Why, yes. Stand gazing at the sky from a golden beach and say: “The light is so amazing here?” [...]
Helicopter tragedy: Why disasters are so thankfully rare January 16, 2013 AFTER a helicopter clipped a crane and crashed into a busy Vauxhall road yesterday, killing two in tragic circumstances and injuring a further 12, it’s only right that we pause our busy lives for a moment, pay tribute to the superb work of London’s emergency services, and be thankful for the miracle that there weren’t [...]
Colas wins London road deal January 15, 2013 A British-based subsidiary of Parisian firm Colas has won a £420m contract to upgrade and maintain roads, pavements, traffic signs, street lighting and road markings among others in central London. The contract, awarded by Transport for London, is for eight years and will start on 1 April. Colas is working with a consortium alongside Volker [...]
More snow on the way as cold snap hits London’s transport system January 14, 2013 LONDON woke up to the first snow flurries of the year yesterday, and more is forecast for today and later this week. The icy conditions caused delays on several roads into the city and speed restrictions on some rail routes. The Met Office has forecast more snow heading east across England today, expected to skirt [...]
City braces for snow and deep freeze January 13, 2013 LONDON has been put on alert for snow disruption as bitterly cold weather sweeps through the country this week. More than 100,000 tonnes of salt are ready to grit roads and pavements in the city, and Transport for London said it is working with Network Rail to brace the capital’s train system for snow and [...]