The Independent Garage Association is calling for greater control of the apprenticeship levy to help reduce the shortage of skilled technicians, following statistics that suggest half of levy-funded apprenticeships are ‘fake’. The analysis by education think tank Education and Skills suggests that the majority of the levy is being put towards existing adult workers, instead of promoting the … [Read more...]
News
Potholes are biggest shock for drivers, says survey
A survey of 2,000 road users found the craggy gaps in the road surface were more irritating than tailgaters, drivers failing to use their indicators, and even breaking down. Eight in 10 drivers, cyclists or motorcycle riders even say they have to navigate potholes every time they use the roads. Glasgow is the worst city in the UK for potholes according to residents - as nine in 10 locals claim … [Read more...]
Tradelines 15 January
Jaguar Land Rover sales slowly recovered in December after a 6% dip overall in 2019, according to financial reports. Annual sales of 557,706 were down mostly due to a 13.5% slump in China but it’s reorganised its outlets and marketing there and has seen them picking up again as it moves towards an electric programme with BMW. In 2019, Bridgestone remained the number one choice for BMW, Audi, … [Read more...]
Diesels’ unseen pollution danger
New diesels are bringing new problems, say environmentalists. New diesel cars’ pollution is peaking at more than 1,000 times their normal levels, tests of two top-selling vehicles show. The dangerous spikes in particles can instantly stress the heart and are a result of the cars cleaning their filters, which may occur in urban areas, last for up to 15km, and are effectively ignored by official … [Read more...]
Newslines 14 January
Click4Reg.co.uk conducted a survey yielding 1,023 responses from licensed UK drivers to find out what habit most infuriates. Some of the key findings were: Not indicating is the most annoying driving habit; Women are more guilty of bad parking; Males admit to speeding more than women; Elderly drivers are ranked the most annoying on the roads and people find young male drivers more annoying than … [Read more...]
New station arriving in Mid-Wales
A new railway station is arriving in Wales this year. The £8M scheme will see a new stop on the Aberystwyth to Shrewsbury line at Bow Street. The first station was axed in the 1965 cull of the network but after an extensive local campaign to improve rail links and the decision by Welsh Government to invest in public transport, the new halt will seen construction work begin this week with … [Read more...]
Call for clarity on “auto-renewed” policies
The Financial Conduct Authority has provided a further update on the work it is undertaking to tackle the ‘loyalty penalty’ faced by millions of financial services customers and other issues raised by the Citizens Advice super-complaint to the Competition and Markets Authority in 2018. GoCompare has been involved in the consultation and Lee Griffin, the CEO and one of the founders of … [Read more...]
Newslines 13 January
Transport for Wales trains services' partner, KeolisAmey, has been fined £2.3m by the Welsh Government for poor performance. The company took over the £5bn franchise in October 2018 and the fines covered various periods of poor service. Over 78,000 passengers used National Express coaches on 27 December, the highest-ever daily total in the company’s history. Over 35,000 seats were added to … [Read more...]
15-times more chargers needed
Some 3 million public charging points will be needed for 44 million electric vehicles in 2030 if the EU is to become climate neutral by 2050, shows new research by green campaign and research group Transport & Environment. That’s over 15 times the 185,000 public chargers currently available in the EU – which are enough for the current electric fleet but not to keep pace with the growing … [Read more...]
Greener cars are rapidly rising in Wales, says comparison site
Green vehicles are growing in popularity with Welsh drivers, according to new figures showing a significant increase in the number of low-emission vehicles. The Department for Transport figures show that the number of low-emission vehicles in the region rose by 32 per cent in the year to the end of September, while the total number of vehicles increased by just two per cent. There are now over … [Read more...]