Posted by News Administrator on July 26, 2003
Week to Sunday 27th
News from the Financial Times was:
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21st July John Mason reports “Ministers spend more but fail to deliver on transport pledges.
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22nd July Robert Wright reports “Increase in track access charges will hit the tax payer” Mr Winsor quoted as saying the company plans to cut costs by 20% by 2006 was insufficiently demanding.
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Astrid Wendlandt reports “Eurotunnel warns on interest payments”. Article quotes the cost of the tunnel in 1994 as £10 billion supported by £15 billion of infrastructure each side of the tunnel. Debt now £6.4 billion down (following restructuring in 1997) from £8.7: Share price is 47.75 pence. Transport Watch comments – there are some 2.363 billion shares. That and the share price imply the value of the works, costing £25 billion to build, is now only £1.1 billion..
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23rd July 2nd Richard Milne reports, under the news digest, a survey by the RAC finding that: the average commute time in the UK is 45 minutes over 8.5 miles, up by 20% over a decade: 72% commute by car outside London: almost half of all rail travel is by people in the top 20% of household income: only 10% walk to work (25% in Norwich).
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24th July Rebecca Bream reports, under the news digest, a survey by Lease Plan finding 6 million man hours are lost each week due to congestion. Survey covered 13,000 drivers in 32 countries: finding that, in the UK, 11 hours per week are spent commuting.
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25th July Robert Wright Reports West Coast Line delay angers rail groups” and ”Review finds a route to greater efficiency savings” Little of note except that Tom Winsor wants a delay on the WCML so as to save £1 billion - opposed by others.