The government is off track with its uneconomic transport policy July 16, 2012 IS ELECTRIFYING branch lines in Wales a top priority for transport investment? It seems unlikely. But then again the government’s plans to invest £9.4bn in rail infrastructure show scant regard for economics. Cynical political calculation seems to be the driving force. Regional interests have long complained that London receives a disproportionate share of transport spending. [...]
Does London need designated Games lanes to manage road traffic during the Olympics? July 16, 2012 YES Gareth Emmerson The Olympic Road Network (ORN) is a requirement of the Host City contract and is vital in ensuring all athletes, officials and the world’s media get to their London 2012 Games events on time. In total, the ORN covers 109 miles across London, although Games lanes will only be used on 30 [...]
Government to announce £9bn railway scheme July 15, 2012 LONDON will gain an electrified railway service to Sheffield and plans to reopen the line between Oxford and Cambridge will take a step forward as part of a £9bn rail funding package that the government is expected to announce today. Transport secretary Justine Greening will unveil a UK rail investment plan for 2014-2019 that includes [...]
Goldman Sachs: A host of medals might make up for Olympic costs July 11, 2012 HISTORICALLY, the financial reward of hosting the Olympics has been mixed: the 1972 Munich Olympics and the 1976 Montreal Olympics made significant losses, while the Games held in Los Angeles (1984), Barcelona (1992) and Atlanta (1996) each made a profit. Moreover, if you fully account for all of the costs related to the hosting of [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 9, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Morgan Stanley sheds staff as transactions fall Morgan Stanley will this week complete a round of job cuts that will ultimately see the company shed 100 sales and trading staff, underscoring what is expected to prove a dismal second quarter for Wall Street banks. The cuts are across Europe, the Middle East and [...]
Stagecoach to launch luxury sleeper buses July 8, 2012 TRAVEL company Stagecoach is eyeing a move into upmarket transport through its budget bus brand Megabus. It has commissioned a 52ft double-decker bus, designed to carry passengers on inter-city journeys. It is understood that the buses, which will operate under the firm’s Megabus brand, will have luxury leather seats by day, and give way to [...]
Unite calls off London bus strike July 4, 2012 The Unite union yesterday called off today’s bus strike, pledging to continue negotiations over bonuses for drivers over the Olympic period. Transport for London intervened in the dispute between the union and bus firms yesterday, offering to give a 50 per cent share of any extra revenues made during the Games to bus staff, on [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 1, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Esma probes agencies’ views on banks The pan-European markets regulator has launched a probe into the way the big three credit rating agencies evaluate banks to determine if the process is sufficiently rigorous and transparent, its chairman Steven Maijoor told the Financial Times. The European Securities and Markets Authority has begun inspecting Standard [...]
NEED TO KNOW | AREA INSIGHT June 28, 2012 TRANSPORT Guildford is located within easy commuting distance of London but sits next to the rolling countryside so many City workers crave at the weekend. Guildford mainline station offers a frequent train service to London Waterloo taking approximately 35 minutes. A season ticket will cost £890 for three months or just over £3,000 for a [...]
Niall Ferguson warns on London’s possible fall June 27, 2012 The historian who wrote a book entitled The Ascent of Money yesterday warned that London faces a fairly rapid descent from its platform as the world’s leading financial centre unless it quickly improves its infrastructure. Niall Ferguson, the well-known history professor at Harvard University, said that infrastructure improvements, such as public transport, and in particular [...]