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Travel disrupted after power failure at Clapham Junction

Friday, May 11th, 2012

A power failure at Europe’s busiest train station has caused misery for thousands of commuters. Computers and lighting went down at Clapham Junction station in London yesterday afternoon and was not switched on again until a generator was plugged in this morning.

A Network Rail spokesperson said that the power cut was unfortunate and that although trains were still permitted to pass through the station it was considered unsafe to allow them to stop. The cause of the power cut is currently being investigated.

Many angry commuters wondered if London is prepared for the number of visitors expected at this summer’s Olympic Games. Although power is now back on there are still problems with Oyster card readers and ticketing machines. Staff are trying to ease congestion by using portable ticket machines.

UK Power Networks was called out to investigate the problem but said that the fault was to do with equipment which was owned by Network Rail. A spokesman for the company said that the issue had not affected power supplies to the area surrounding the station.

Clapham Junction is the busiest station in the UK. At peak times it sees around 180 trains pass through and deals with 430,000 passengers every day.

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Southwest Airlines sued over policy towards fat people

Friday, May 4th, 2012

An American woman who was told she would not be permitted onto a Southwest Airlines flight last year because of her weight has decided to sue the carrier. Kenlie Tiggeman from New Orleans claims that she is not taking the legal action for monetary gain but rather to force US airlines to come up with a single policy on how they treat passengers who are overweight.

Tiggeman made the headlines after she was called too fat to fly by a Southwest employee and told that if she wanted to board the flight she would have to purchase an extra seat. She said that the gate agent started to ask her questions about how much she weighed and what size clothes she wore in front of a crowd of other passengers.

Tiggeman said that the conversation ended with the official admitting he wasn’t sure about the airline’s policy towards larger passengers and calling a superior who was also confused as to the exact rules.

She said that the experience was humiliating and that carriers needed to come up with a standard policy so that passengers know where they stand.

Brandy King, a Southwest Airlines spokesman, said the best thing to do is notify the airline of special needs when tickets are being booked. He added that if an additional seat is booked and it does not mean another passenger being unable to fly, then the ticket price will be refunded without any additional charge.

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RMT branded irresponsible for Tube collapse claims

Friday, April 27th, 2012

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union has been attacked by Transport for London for saying that a tunnel on the London Underground had collapsed. According to TfL, the incident involved a train clipping a bulging wall between Waterloo and Embankment which caused only minor damage to the train.

The RMT claimed initially that the tunnel had suffered a collapse later saying that there had been a minor collapse. TfL has called the report irresponsible. RMT members working for the maintenance firm Tube Lines are currently on strike, which has complicated the situation.

TfL is saying that the RMT is using the incident on the Bakerloo Line to support its claims that running services during the protest is a threat to passenger safety. Tube Lines workers are responsible for maintaining the Northern, Piccadilly and Jubilee lines. They are also used for emergency repairs on other parts of the network.

General Secretary of the RMT, Bob Crow, said the emergency highlighted how cavalier the transport body was when it came to the safety of the public. TfL claims that the industrial action has not affected the way in which the London Underground runs services and the RMT claims that the body is trying to mask a far more serious situation.

Operations director for London Underground, Nigel Holness, confirmed that there had been no collapse, no flooding and that nobody had been injured.

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Tube strike likely to go ahead next week

Friday, April 20th, 2012

The latest negotiations aimed at averting a strike by maintenance workers on the London Underground have ended without resolution meaning that commuters are likely to have their travel disrupted next week. A strike by Tube Lines employees is scheduled to commence on Tuesday at 16.00 and continue for 72 hours.

A meeting between London Underground and the Rail, Maritime and Transport union took place at Acas earlier to try and resolve the dispute over pensions and travel concessions. However, it ended with neither side agreeing to the others demands. A joint statement has been issued which said that both sides regretted to announce that no deal had been struck.

Tube Lines workers look after maintenance on the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines. They are also responsible for emergency work across the rest of the network. In a ballot, RMT members voted in favour of a walk out by four to one.

Jon Lamonte, chief executive of Tube Lines, said the company had tried to hold constructive discussions with the RMT, but the union had refused to suspend the strike action and continue at the negotiating table. He added that industrial action would achieve nothing and was unnecessary. He urged the leadership of the union to return to the discussions.

Bob Crow, head of the RMT, said the union had come prepared to strike a deal, but management hadn’t been able to offer anything. He confirmed that the strike was still scheduled to commence of Tuesday and that senior management would have to answer for the disruption likely to affect travellers.

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France tops poll of rudest nations

Friday, April 13th, 2012

A new survey has revealed that even though they are our closest neighbours, our allies, and linked to us by a tunnel under the channel, Brits rate the French as the rudest nation on earth. The poll was conducted by Skayscanner, the price comparison site, and found that 19 per cent of respondents considered the inhabitants of France to be the most curt and abrupt.

However, the French were closely followed by the Russians. Their perceived level of rudeness garnered them 17 per cent of the vote. One of the reasons given for the Russians coming so high in the poll is the fact that increasing affluence in the country means that compared to just two decades ago far more Russians are travelling beyond their own border.

This means it has become more likely for Brits to come into contact with Russians while they are travelling. Russian Market Manager for Skyscanner Tatiana Danilover explained that what the British perceive to be rudeness is actually more to do with a difference in language and culture.

She said that, when talking, Russians tend to be more direct and that sometimes this can be misconstrued as rudeness. She added that the Russian language was not quite as polite as English and can sound quite abrupt.

She went on to say that most Russians consider Brits to be extremely polite because of the way they speak. Coming in fourth in the poll were the Germans. Surprisingly, third place went to the Brits with 10 per cent of us feeling that we are often poorly behaved and boorish.

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Fillon calls for airline carbon tax resolution

Friday, April 6th, 2012

The French Prime Minister has asked the European Commission to resolve a global fight over airline carbon emissions. Francois Fillon wants to see a resolution over the Emissions Trading Scheme that has angered countries including China, India and the United State and which has set off threats of a trade war.

In a letter to Jose Manuel Barroso, the European Commission President, Mr Fillon said all efforts are needed to find an acceptable solution. Mr Barroso has since replied by saying that a global deal was being sought which will justify a modification to EU legislation.

He said that the EU was working closely with its international partners to come to an agreement with the International Civil Aviation Organisation. At present the law, which came into effect on 1 January this year, requires that all airlines flying in and out of a European airport pay a tax on their carbon emissions as a way of combating climate change.

However, the international community has been angered over the move and China has already said it has cancelled orders with European planemaker Airbus to the tune of $14 billion. Companies in France have also warned that the situation could cost as many as 2,000 jobs.

The ICAO is now working hard to find a resolution, but environmental groups are doubtful that a viable resolution will be found. There is currently a small window for a solution as no airlines will receive a bill until emissions are calculated next year.

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IAG considers Japan Airlines stake

Friday, March 30th, 2012

International Airlines Group, the owner of British Airways, has said that it would be interested in negotiating the purchase of a stake in Japan Airlines. The Asian carrier was forced to apply for bankruptcy protection in 2010, but is expected to be back on the stock exchange in Tokyo before the end of the year.

An initial public offering is expected to generate between ¥500 billion and ¥1 trillion. JAL is part of the Oneworld alliance along with IAG, and the airline group’s boss, Willie Walsh, has been keen to develop closer ties with JAL for some time. Last month a joint venture was announced between the two on a number of routes between Japan and Europe.

In a statement IAG said that it was impressed at the restructuring work which has gone on at JAL since filing for bankruptcy protection and that there was definitely some interest in investment. Since 2010, the Asian carrier has cut a number of routes and reduced its workforce by around a third. Other members of Oneworld may also be interested in investing in JAL.

Mr Walsh is currently waiting for a decision to be made by the European Union as to whether IAG will be allowed to takeover bmi. According to reports, IAG has agreed to give up more of its landing and take-off slots at Heathrow in order to satisfy the competition regulators.

Virgin Atlantic has challenged the deal saying that there will be a loss of competition on European routes if it is allowed to go ahead.

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London Mayor candidates battle over transport

Friday, March 16th, 2012

A hustings featuring the frontrunners for the position of Mayor of London has focused on the issue of transport. Labour’s candidate Ken Livingstone said that if he takes the office he will slash the price of travel on the buses by 11 per cent and cut Tube fares by seven per cent.

Current mayor Boris Johnson, the Conservative candidate, said it would be cretinous to reduce spending on the Underground while demand continues to rise. Mr Livingstone accused Mr Johnson of sitting on money which could be used to help cash-strapped commuters.

He also said that he would create deep tunnels beneath the city to improve transport links including a line between Waterloo and Euston which would be capable of carrying 25 trains every hour. Mr Johnson said he intended to modernise the Underground system and make trains driverless.

Jenny Jones, candidate for the Green Party, said she wanted to see a congestion zone established around Heathrow Airport and Liberal Democrat Brian Paddick said he wanted to increase capacity at the airport.

On the subject of the Tube unions all of the candidates agreed something needed to be done about the tactics being used by RMT boss Bob Crow. Ms Jones said that he was screwing the system for money, and Mr Paddick said it was high time that London had a mayor capable of standing up to the unions.

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London bike hire scheme expands to Tower Hamlets

Friday, March 9th, 2012

Following its success in much of central London, the capital’s bike hire scheme has been expanded to take up more of the east of the city. Tower Hamlets is being provided with 2,300 bikes for hire by Transport for London and there will also be nearly 3,000 docking points.

London’s mayor, Boris Johnson, praised the scheme for giving residents and visitors another form of transport for getting around the city. More bikes and a further 2,100 docking points are to be introduced in Camden Town, White City, Canary Wharf and Hackney. The bikes being made available in Tower Hamlets will have a new saddle on them and a new bell.

Councillor for the borough, Shahed Ali, said the Barclays Cycle Hire scheme was proving to be very popular. He added that during January around 45,000 trips had started or ended in the area.

Mayoral candidate for the Liberal Democrats, Brian Paddick, said that because the scheme was being funded by bus and London Underground travellers he wanted to make sure that everyone was getting the best use of the bikes. He added that a survey conducted by TfL suggested that many were becoming dissatisfied with the hire scheme.

Candidate for the Green Party, Jenny Jones, said she supported the project but felt the decision to go east was to do with the Olympics.

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Scotland to ask for inclusion in HS2 project

Friday, March 2nd, 2012

Scotland is to ask the government in London to be included in the plans to build a high-speed rail link. Westminster has already approved plans to construct a link from the capital to Birmingham. There are further plans to move the track north to Manchester and Leeds.

Keith Brown, Scotland’s minister for transport, is to meet Transport Secretary Justine Greening to appeal for the project to include Scotland from the very beginning. He said that any city which was connected to the high-speed network would benefit financially. HS2 was given the green light in January.

However, protest groups claim that the financial benefits of building the new route have been exaggerated and the scheme will severely damage the environment. The government claims that the £33 billion which is to be invested in the project will result in £47 billion in benefits.

Mr Brown said he did not understand why HS2 had to focus on London. He added that in order for the scheme to reap the maximum benefits, Scotland would have to be included in any plans from the very beginning. Ms Greening said that it had always been the government’s intention to make sure that HS2 benefited the whole of the UK.

She said that she was looking forward to her discussions with Mr Brown and that she remained committed to working with the government in Scotland to improve the south’s connectivity with the north.

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