TfL to spend £3.8bn on road upgrade work December 4, 2012 TRANSPORT for London hopes to double spending on the capital’s roads over the next decade, it said yesterday in a 10-year business plan. A “roads task force” will set out priorities for the £3.8bn funding pot in the spring, Mayor of London Boris Johnson said yesterday. Safety for cyclists will feature prominently in the plans, [...]
British Airways boss thinks MPs will fail to sort out air capacity December 4, 2012 THE HEAD of British Airways’ parent company does not think the government’s latest attempt to tackle airport expansion in Britain will come up with a concrete plan. “I think the decision of the government to establish the Davies Commission has been seen by some, maybe seen by many, as a step in the right direction. [...]
The Treasury will gain nothing from property tax hikes December 4, 2012 A S THEY consider a “back-door” mansion tax and another increase in stamp duty in today’s Autumn Statement, George Osborne and Vince Cable should take a quick look at a dramatic drop in tax receipts after the last Budget. In March, stamp duty was hiked to 7 per cent for people buying property over £2m [...]
HS2 critics tell court coalition’s decision to build was flawed December 3, 2012 OPPONENTS of the controversial High Speed 2 (HS2) rail link yesterday kicked off a major legal challenge, in an attempt to force the government to think again about the £34bn project. Lawyers for a group of local authorities, called 51m, told the High Court that the government has not properly consulted on the benefits and [...]
Focus on: Kentish Town November 29, 2012 The area has become a popular choice for buyers wanting to be within close proximity of the Heath in Hampstead but whose budgets do not extend to the prices that properties in Hampstead command. There’s a lot to do in the area. Kentish Town has a buzzing nightlife and music scene thanks, in part, to [...]
Train pain for season ticket commuters November 28, 2012 COMMUTERS should brace themselves for season ticket price hikes of up to six per cent in January, despite the government’s intervention to stem inflation-linked fare rises. Passengers from Canterbury will be worst hit in percentage terms, with the price of an annual season ticket to London rising 5.9 per cent to £4,860 in the new [...]
TfL hopes to push Overground onto key suburban rail routes November 28, 2012 TRANSPORT for London (TfL) remains optimistic that it will get the go-ahead to take control of key suburban rail routes early next year. Howard Smith, chief operating officer for TfL’s rail operations, told City A.M. that he is “hopeful of coming to some conclusions in the next few months” following discussions with the Department for [...]
Gatwick looks to grow through single runway as traffic rises November 28, 2012 GATWICK executives talked up the airport’s chances of competing with London’s biggest hubs yesterday as the firm posted rising revenues and traffic. Britain’s second-biggest airport said passengers rose 1.2 per cent on last year to 19.9m in the half-year to the end of September. Turnover jumped 3.6 per cent to £325.8m, helped in part by [...]
Telford quadruples profit on the back of Olympics success November 28, 2012 EAST London developer Telford Homes yesterday reported a fourfold increase in pre-tax profits driven by a step up in demand for its properties on the back of the Olympics. The group has sold £60m of new homes at its Stratford Plaza development near Westfield shopping centre which is due to be completed in 2015. Some [...]
Who’s switching jobs November 28, 2012 Aviva Phil Pavitt has been appointed to the role of IT transformation director at the insurance group. He joins from HMRC, where he was general director of change. Pavitt has also held chief information officer positions at Centrica, Virgin Media and BT. MasterCard Will Judge has been appointed vice president for travel and transit. He [...]