Energy firm Eon losing customers at ‘alarming rate’, report says March 14, 2019 The number of energy customers abandoning Eon is growing at an “alarming” rate, experts have warned, as the Big Six continues to lose out. Figures from Compare the Market show that nearly 22 per cent of customers who switched suppliers on the site came from Eon. Meanwhile only seven per cent of customers are switching [...]
Police discover unexploded Second World War bomb in no-deal Brexit lorry car park March 14, 2019 An unexploded bomb from World War Two has been found in the abandoned airport that is to be used as a lorry car park in a no-deal Brexit. Read more: ‘Wrecking ball’: Grayling refuses to resign over £33m Eurotunnel fiasco Police and army bomb disposal experts arrived at Kent’s Manston Airport this morning to investigate [...]
TfL boss Mike Brown ‘hid Crossrail testing issues’ from Sadiq Khan in weekly email update March 14, 2019 Transport for London (TfL) boss Mike Brown ordered references to the difficulties Crossrail was experiencing with dynamic testing to be removed from email updates sent to Sadiq Khan, it was revealed today. At a grilling by the London Assembly's transport committee, Howard Smith, operations director for TfL Rail and the Elizabeth Line, admitted he felt Crossrail ought [...]
Ports owner DP World increases revenue growth amid global expansion March 14, 2019 DP World’s shares rose six per cent today on the Nasdaq Dubai exchange on the back of the strong revenue growth revealed in its full year results. The ports operator's revenues were boosted by its 2018 global expansion which saw it spend $2.5bn on acquisitions in India, Peru and Denmark. Read more: DP World pays £322m for P&O Ferries [...]
Balfour Beatty wins preferred bidder status in decade-long £1.5bn Network Rail contract March 14, 2019 Construction firm Balfour Beatty is set to be tasked with overseeing a wide-ranging program of railway track renewals and crossings for Network Rail for the next decade, in a £1.5bn contract. The UK’s biggest constructor, which carries out key public infrastructure projects such as Hinkley Point and Crossrail, has been selected as “preferred bidder” for [...]
Govia Thameslink Railway hit with £5m fine over May’s timetable chaos March 14, 2019 Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) faces a £5m fine over its role in last May’s timetable chaos, the rail regulator announced this morning. The Office for Rail and Road (ORR) accused the train operator of failing to provide “appropriate, accurate and timely” information to passengers about the timetable change. Read more: Rail review head Keith Williams [...]
Government must change policy on rail electrification or risk missing climate change targets, industry body warns March 14, 2019 The national body for Britain’s railways has warned the government could miss its targets of decarbonising train travel by 2040 unless it changes its policy on electrification. The Railway Industry Association (RIA) called on the government to collaborate with the rail industry and commit to electrification after several projects were cancelled in 2017. The association [...]
Trump says Federal Aviation Administration will ground Boeing 737-Max 8 planes over safety concerns March 13, 2019 US President Donald Trump has pushed through an "emergency order" to the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) "to ground all 737 Max 8 and the 737 Max 9, and planes associated with that line," after an Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed and killed 157 people. The FAA – and Trump by association – had both come under pressure [...]
HS2 chairman says stopping the railway at Birmingham would be a ‘complete betrayal’ March 13, 2019 HS2 chairman Allan Cook has said not completing the £56bn railway to the north of England would be a "complete betrayal". Cook, who was appointed as chairman following the departure of former Crossrail head Terry Morgan, told MPs on the Transport Select Committee that HS2 was looking at "all options" to keep the project within budget but rejected suggestions [...]
No gas boilers in new British homes after 2025, chancellor pledges March 13, 2019 New British homes will soon be built without gas boilers as the government tries to tackle emissions. The new future homes standard will ban fossil fuel heating systems in all new houses from 2025, the chancellor said today. Read more: Spring Statement: UK slashes 2019 growth forecast The measure will help homes reach “world-leading levels [...]