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Funding for drains, embankments and other measures is part £45.4bn five-year investment planBusiness live – latest updatesNetwork Rail is to spend nearly £3bn to protect the railway from the effects of the climate crisis and extreme weather, as it warned that the country’s network was having to contend with hotter summers and increased winter floods.As part of its new £45.4bn five-year investment plan, the...

Bank holiday weekend and start of school holidays take place at same time, with high traffic volumes expectedDrivers are being warned to expect long delays over Easter as millions of getaway trips lead to soaring traffic volumes and congested motorways.The RAC said that more than 14m journeys on some popular routes could take twice as long as normal, as the first bank holiday weekend...

Five-mile stretch in Surrey of UK’s busiest motorway is shut all weekend while a bridge is demolishedThousands of drivers face being stuck in gridlocked traffic this weekend due to an unprecedented closure of the M25, Britain’s busiest motorway.A five-mile stretch of the motorway between junctions 10 and 11 in Surrey was closed in both directions at 9pm on Friday while a bridge is demolished...

Research looked at three London boroughs to value overall health benefits of active travel over 20 years at up to £4,800 per headPolicies to help people walk and cycle such as low-traffic neighbourhoods can create public health benefits as much as 100 times greater than the cost of the schemes, a long-term study of active travel measures has concluded.The research, based on six years...

In London, Tube and bus fares are being frozen and prices reduced during rush hour and on FridaysRail fares in England and Wales will rise by 4.9% on Sunday, adding hundreds of pounds to annual travel costs for many commuters.Campaigners said passengers would be “rightly angry” at the latest increase, above the current inflation rate of 4%, despite the government arguing that it had...

Aslef train drivers’ set of strikes and work to rule is latest action in long-running pay disputeRail passengers face another weekend of cancelled and disrupted trains as services across the Midlands and intercity trains from London are halted by drivers’ strikes.The latest in a week of rolling 24-hour strikes called by the Aslef union will stop all trains throughout Saturday on Avanti West Coast,...

Disruption expected on Monday as cancellations and delays issued for rail, sea and air with heavy rain and high winds forecastTrain services in Scotland are expected to be suspended until around noon after “a wild night”, Network Rail says.The railway has recovered quickly this morning following Storm Isha with trees and debris cleared across routes in England and Wales, and route proving trains reporting...

Exclusive: Documents show shift in transport policy influenced by unfounded fears about loss of freedom of movement in ‘15-minute cities’Ministers decided to prioritise driving over active travel because of worries among ministers about “15-minute cities”, documents seen by the Guardian show.They indicate that a significant shift in transport policy was guided at least in part by conspiracy theories. Continue reading...

Government had rejected campaigners’ demands for new safety measures on basis of outdated researchThe government is reviewing quad bike safety regulation in what campaigners described as “an embarrassing climbdown” after ministers repeatedly claimed that the introduction of roll bars could do more harm than good.Ministers had previously said that research by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) showed that roll bars could increase the...

Train operators say services face delays and cancellations after rain and strong winds batter UKMore than 300 flood warnings are in place across England as travellers face transport delays, with train services struggling to get back on track after rain and strong winds from Storm Henk lashed large parts of the UK.The Environment Agency said on Wednesday there were 368 active alerts in England...

Tunnel under Thames near Ebbsfleet was closed not by weather but burst pipe, with Southeastern railway also affectedEurostar said services through the Channel tunnel would resume on Sunday but there were warnings of further delays and busy stations.“Unprecedented” flooding was brought under control on Saturday, meaning at least one of the affected tunnels – under the Thames near Ebbsfleet, not under the Channel itself...

Dismay at St Pancras International in London as services cancelled due to flooding of Thames tunnelUK weather: Eurostar services from London cancelled for day due to floodingWhen Ilse Deurloo arrived at St Pancras station after a festive holiday with her boyfriend in London, she was shocked by the scenes of chaos and disruption as thousands of travellers were left stranded.“This is not what I...