Jet Airways pilots call for Indian PM to intervene as airline grounds all international flights April 15, 2019 Pilots at the troubled airline Jet Airways are protesting outside their company headquarters as the carrier announced it was grounding all international flights. Employees of the Indian carrier, which is straddling a debt pile of more than £900m, gathered outside its headquarters and demanded that the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, intervene. One pilot told the BBC: [...]
Network Rail to spend £42bn on railway improvements after year of chaos March 28, 2019 Network Rail is to spend £42bn on the railways over the next five years after passengers endured a torrid year of delays and cancellations. Network Rail, which owns Britain's rail infrastructure, has said the funds will increase reliability and improve performance for the benefit of passengers during its next control period, CP6, which starts on 1 April this [...]
Network Rail bosses could be fined out of their own pockets to pay for delays March 27, 2019 Top bosses at Network Rail could be forced to fund fines for poor performance through their bonuses under tough new measures proposed by the rail regulator. From 1 April, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) will push through a new policy to hold Network Rail, which owns the UK's rail infrastructure, to account. The [...]
Rail review head Keith Williams says government role in industry ‘has to change’ March 19, 2019 The government's role in the UK railways will "have to change" if the industry is to become more customer-focused, the former boss of British Airways has said. Keith Williams, who was appointed to lead a "root and branch" review of the railways following last year's May timetable chaos, hinted that the Department for Transport (DfT) could take [...]
Rail review head Keith Williams hints at compensation role for regulator March 12, 2019 The former British Airways chief executive tasked with a full-scale review of the railways has hinted that the industry regulator could be tasked with handling compensation claims. Keith Williams, who was appointed by the government to carry out the review in the wake of last year's May timetable chaos, suggested the rail industry could learn from the [...]
Government told to publish Govia’s profit cap amid concerns over taxpayers’ money February 26, 2019 The public spending watchdog has urged the government to publish details of Govia's profit cap, citing fears taxpayers' money is not being "adequately protected" after last year's rail chaos. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), chaired by MP Meg Hillier, said there was a lack of transparency around the profit rate that Govia earns from its [...]
MPs hit out at Department for Transport over delayed response to May timetable chaos review February 18, 2019 MPs have hit out at the government for its delay in responding to a report into last year's May timetable chaos, which found that transport secretary Chris Grayling could have done more to avert the troubles. The Transport Select Committee said it was "disappointing" that the Department for Transport (DfT) had decided to delay its response [...]
Commuter chaos: Black cabs hold up Tottenham Court Road during rush hour for a third day January 23, 2019 Black cab drivers have launched a third day of protests during London's evening rush hour, gathering on Tottenham Court Road and halting traffic. The week-long demonstration, organised by the Independent Taxi Alliance (ITA), is in protest over plans to restrict access to the route as part of a £35m transformation project. The blockade is scheduled to [...]
Consumer group calls on Ryanair to refund passengers hit by name change “glitch” January 14, 2019 Ryanair came under renewed criticism today from a leading consumer rights activist for refusing to refund customers who were allegedly charged fees in error. Hundreds of customers were required to pay a £115 name change surcharge due to a "glitch" on Ryanair's website which caused incorrect surnames to be recorded on passenger bookings, according to [...]
These are the world’s coldest jobs – here’s how much you could get paid to work at minus 39 degrees celsius January 11, 2019 Now that it’s January, you may be thinking about switching up your CV and getting a new job to kick off the new year. If you’re a big fan of winter and the accompanying freezing weather conditions, then one of the world’s coolest careers might be your next step to chasing the snow. Even in [...]