Gatwick second runway plan approved by transport secretary



Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has approved plans for a second runway at London Gatwick Airport, as the government looks for economic growth opportunities.

The £2.2bn privately-financed project involves in effect moving the current Northern Runway 12 metres to bring it into regular use, as well as other developments, including extending the size of terminals.

The airport says its plans will bring jobs and boost the local economy. But there has long been opposition from campaigners and groups worried about the impact on the surrounding area.

Gatwick currently handles about 280,000 flights a year. It says the plan would enable that number to rise to around 389,000 by the late 2030s.

A government source has described the plans as a "no-brainer for growth," adding that "it is possible that planes could be taking off from a new full runway at Gatwick before the next general election."

London Gatwick, in West Sussex, is currently Europe's busiest single-runway airport with more than 40 million passengers using it every year.

The plans approved by Ms Alexander would include adding 40,000 more flights before the second runway opens, and 70,000 more - almost 190 a day - once it is fully up and running.

The airport says that passenger numbers could rise to up to 80 million.

Currently, the Northern Runway is currently only used for taxiing or as a back up.

The second runway would be used for short haul flights, with capacity also freed up for more long-haul services from the main runway.

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PBT? Post Brunel Technology. The railway always finds this tricky.

Alterations to services between Great Malvern and Oxford via Worcester Shrub Hill
Following failure of the electricity supply between Oxford and Worcester Shrub Hill all lines have now reopened. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Train services between Great Malvern and Oxford via Worcester Shrub Hill and Moreton-In-Marsh may be delayed by up to 55 minutes or revised. Malvern Link, Great Malvern, Colwall, Ledbury, Hereford, London Paddington and Didcot Parkway will not be served.
Customer Advice
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What has happened?
A power failure affected the signalling resulting in trains have to run a reduced speed on the North Cotswold Line earlier. Trains can now run at full speed but there are residual delays.
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What are we doing about it?
We are having to terminate some trains short of their destination at Reading instead of Paddington and Worcester instead of Great Malvern. This is to ensure the next train runs on time.
[...]
Last Updated:21/09/2025 20:07

... but almost everyone knows there alphabet ...

People forget its not just about pay. Members will want better terms and conditions which I don't blame them given all the stuff drivers have got to put up with something I know from personal experience as a driver myself and having given national express coaches in Bristol.

Another question is why it lists Carmarthen before Swansea. 

There's... is it the 91 Faresaver - from Chippenham - passes within a 15 minute walk or so, though Saturday timings aren't quite ideal and I've not yet quite decoded the route.

Mark

The next train to arrive on platform one is the first train ever

The Orient Express, the Trans-Siberian Railway or even the Hogwarts Express. Every train journey in history can trace its origins back to one humble railway by the seaside.

It may not have felt like much at the time, but when a horse-drawn wagon started trundling down a Welsh tramway in 1807 it was a significant moment in history. The world's first passenger railway service had left the world's first station with a couple of hardy souls making the five-mile trip around Swansea Bay.

"Now there's trains and stations in virtually every corner of the world - but it all started in south Wales," said TV rail historian, Tim Dunn.

This week it will be 200 years since what has often been described as the birth of the modern railway - when the Stockton to Darlington public line in north-east England became the world's first to use steam locomotives.

But by September 1825, the Oystermouth Railway in Swansea had already been running for 18 years, in what the Guinness Book of Records acknowledges as the world's first fee-paying passenger railway line.

"The reason the Stockton and Darlington has become famous - perhaps unjustly - and the reason we're celebrating 200 years of the railway this year is because of a PR exercise by that railway company years ago," added Tim. "But really, it all started in Swansea."


When the Swansea to Oystermouth line first carried passengers in 1807, horses pulled the carriage five miles around Swansea Bay

Horses pulled wagons three times a day between The Mount in Swansea and the seaside village of Oystermouth.

The Mount became the world's first recorded railway station - but forget posh coffee shops or supermarkets, because there wasn't even a ticket office. In fact, historians don't think there was even a platform. It is thought that passengers clambered up onto the wagon from a mound by the side of the track.

Today, what was The Mount station is a patch of grass alongside a nondescript dual carriageway in the middle of Swansea. "It is often underplayed, but there were big railways firsts in Wales that are of huge significance," added Tim.


Steam power first replaced horses on the Swansea to Mumbles line in 1877 when trials were undertaken with one of Henry Hughes's patent tramway locomotives

"They might not have changed the world, but they helped shape the world. Wales needs to own and celebrate that more," Tim said.

The Oystermouth Railway came three years after another railway first in south Wales - when pioneering inventor Richard Trevithick worked out how to move a locomotive using steam for the first time in 1804.

South Wales was a key player in the industrial revolution as Welsh coal was exported around the world and Swansea docks was said to export more than half of the world's copper. "South Wales was where the money was," added Tim. "And where there's money and industry, there's innovation."

The Oystermouth Railway was initially built to carry Mumbles limestone and Clyne coal to Swansea docks, before investors worked out that they could cash in on the line's stunning seafront location.


The development of heavy industry, particularly copper, led to the growth of Swansea into one of the busiest ports in the world

Local entrepreneur Benjamin French, one of the line's original proprietors, paid £20 a year to run passenger trains on the tramway from 25 March 1807, then the only link from Swansea to Oystermouth. Wagons weaved through terraced streets of the old town before making its way along the seafront to the headland on the other side of Swansea Bay.

"A return ticket would cost a shilling, which in those days was a lot of money," added local historian Phil Andrew, who gives talks to Swansea schoolchildren about the role their city played in the birth of the railways. "There were arguments at the time in Swansea about industry or tourism. The population of Swansea in 1801 was about 6,000 people and the train started to take tourists to the seaside to enjoy the sea air, as much of south Wales was heavily industrialised at the time."

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You misunderstood that most customers only know (and frankly care) the time of their train and which station they are travelling to - so need to see the train's destination stations and time in order to see that their train is cancelled.

The Peterborough Arms... has  ***reopened*** after a period of closure brought about in part because it's on one of England's wurst-behaving roads.

Weekday evenings only for the moment, but from noon on Saturdays and 12:30 on Sundays.

It's on a demand-responsive transport route from the people on the following link. Totally unfamiliar with how those work in practice and it may be that it wouldn't be compatible with the desire to spend a couple of hours there on a Saturday, admiring the eponymous lock, the pub, and also a weighbridge that's scaled for another age entirely. (Not necessarilly in that order...)

https://www.connectingwiltshire.co.uk/

Mark

There was a powercut in Moreton overnight which I guess might have affected the signalbox in some way? But don't they have generators on stand-by?

Heathrow warns of second day of disruption after cyber-attack

Air travellers are facing another day of disruption at several European airports including Heathrow, after a cyber-attack knocked out a check-in and baggage system.

There were hundreds of delays on Saturday after the software used by several airlines failed, with affected airports boarding passengers using pen and paper.

Brussels Airport said it had "no indication yet" when the system would be functional again and had asked airlines to cancel half their departing flights for Monday.

RTX, which owns software provider Collins Aerospace, said it was "aware of a cyber-related disruption" to its system in "select airports" and that it hoped to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.

It identified its Muse software - which allows different airlines to use the same check-in desks and boarding gates at an airport, rather than requiring their own - as the system that had been affected. The company has yet to disclose what went wrong or how long it expects the outage to last, but said on Sunday it will "provide details as soon as they are available".

Brussels Airport said only manual check-in and boarding are possible "due to a cyberattack against Collins Aerospace". It added disruption would continue into Monday "because Collins Aerospace is not yet able to deliver a new secure version of the check-in system".

Heathrow said on Sunday that efforts to resolve the issue were ongoing. It declined to say whether or not the issue was a cyber attack. It apologised to those who had faced delays but stressed "the vast majority of flights have continued to operate", urging passengers to check their flight status before travelling to the airport and arrive in good time.

The BBC understands around half airlines flying from Heathrow were back online in some form by Sunday - including British Airways which has been using a back-up system since Saturday.

There have already been more cancellations across Heathrow, Berlin and Brussels so far on Sunday than throughout Saturday, according to flight data firm Cirium, though not all of these are due to the cyber-attack.

There were hours-long queues on Saturday and some 47% of Heathrow's departing flights were delayed, according to flight tracker FlightAware. Additional staff were at hand in check-in areas to help minimise disruption.

By Sunday afternoon, FlightAware data showed the number of delayed flights from Heathrow had fallen from levels seen on Saturday.

Virgin Atlantic, which operates from Heathrow, said it was "aware of a technical issue impacting check-in systems at a number of airports including London Heathrow which may result in some delays to departures". It added that "currently all Virgin Atlantic flights are scheduled to depart as planned".

(BBC article continues)

Cyclists in the City of London could face tougher penalties for repeat offences such as running red lights under proposals being explored by police and the Corporation.

The City of London Police is looking at whether it can use Community Protection Warnings and Notices to issue stronger sanctions than the £50 Fixed Penalty Notices currently allowed for traffic offences. The move is among a series of measures being considered to tackle what officials describe as "dangerous, antisocial and nuisance cycling behaviours".

The Corporation noted that while the City's streets are safer than ever for both cyclists and pedestrians, poor behaviour remains a concern.

A paper presented to the Corporation's Streets and Walkways Sub-Committee this week said complaints were mostly about cyclists running red lights at busy junctions, e-bikes being ridden dangerously, and bikes ridden on pavements and pedestrianised areas such as the Barbican estate walkways.

Investment by Transport for London (TfL) and the Corporation in cycle lanes and bike parking has helped boost cycling, with numbers rising from 8,000 to 52,000 daily between 1999 and 2024. Over the same period, vehicle traffic had fallen sharply and casualties per cyclist were down 45% since 2016-17, the paper said.

National law prevents fines for cycling offences exceeding £50, but the CPWs and CPNs under consideration could lead to more serious action, including prosecution.

The City of London Police and the Corporation said they would continue lobbying government for stronger powers.

At the meeting, common councillor Jacqueline Webster asked whether more could be done to promote a "culture of courteousness" among cyclists, while residents have also raised concerns about poor parking of dockless bikes.

Bruce McVean, the Corporation's assistant director for policy and projects, said work was ongoing with operators and TfL, which is expected to gain licensing powers in the coming years. "Things are getting better, but there's more work to be done," he said.

...  acoustic bike ...

Can't recall if that's the meeting I attended, but it was certainly hosted in your training room.