What Is The Collective Noun For Cement Mixer Trucks?
I took these pictures on Eldon Street and Moorgate this morning.
Note.
- There was obviously a big pour going on in the rebuilding of Broadgate.
- I suspect those outside the hotel in the street restaurant, we’re too amused by the cabaret.
- Cemex were providing the concrete.
Perhaps in view of the location, the collective noun is a pollution of cement mixer trucks.
In Cummins Agrees To Integrate Its Hydrogen ICE Technology Into Terex® Advance Trucks, I describe the latest design of cement mixer trucks from the United States.
This is the European-sized member of the range.
Note.
- Front is to the right.
- The engine is in the pod at the other end.
- The engine can be one of Cummins’s hydrogen internal combustion engines.
These trucks would be much more city-friendly.
Heart Aerospace Relocates Corporate Headquarters To Los Angeles, California
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Heart Aerospace.
This is the sub-heading.
Hybrid-electric airplane manufacturer Heart Aerospace has announced the relocation of its corporate headquarters from Gothenburg, Sweden to Los Angeles, California. This strategic move aims to bolster the company’s product development in the United States, supporting the upcoming experimental flights of its Heart X1 prototype and the future Heart X2 prototype.
These two introductory paragraphs add ,ore detail.
Scheduled for its maiden flight in 2025, the X1 marks a major milestone in Heart’s innovation journey, setting the stage for X2.
“Our move to Los Angeles marks a new chapter in Heart Aerospace’s journey—one that prioritizes iterative development and deeper vertical integration,” said Anders Forslund, co-founder and CEO of Heart Aerospace. “For the X2, we’re developing key technologies like batteries, actuation systems, software, and hybrid-electric hardware in-house. This approach allows us to refine and enhance our systems continuously, just as we’ve done with the X1 prototype, which has seen extensive testing and major design updates since its initial rollout in 2024.”
In some ways, I find this move to California slightly sad, as I suspect most of those associated with the airliner, would have liked to see the development stay in Sweden.
This paragraph gives more details on the reasons for the move.
“We are deeply grateful to our team in Sweden for being part of this chapter of Heart’s journey, and for all the support we have received in Sweden,” said Anders Forslund. “However, as our customers, partners, and investors are increasingly based in the U.S, we see greater opportunity in focusing our resources here. By consolidating our operations in Los Angeles, we can accelerate development, strengthen collaboration, and better position Heart Aerospace for the future.”
They are not mentioned, but I do hope, Trump’s tariffs have nothing to do with it.
Hyundai Unveils Upgraded Xcient Hydrogen Fuel Cell Truck
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Automotive Powertrain International.
This is the sub-heading.
Hyundai Motor Company has unveiled the upgraded Xcient fuel cell class-8 heavy-duty truck, which features advanced hydrogen technologies and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) tailored for the North American market.
The article is worth a full read, as it shows how the largest American trucks, can be replaced with zero-carbon hydrogen fuel cell trucks.
This is the Hyundai Xcient truck web site.
Wrightbus Delivers More Hydrogen Buses To Germany Bringing Total To 43 – Around 130 Are Due To Be On The Roads By The End Of 2025
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Belfast Newsletter.
This is the sub-heading.
The Ballymena bus manufacturer has also opened a European service centre and spare parts warehouse in Brühl, near Cologne
These three paragraphs add detail to the story.
Northern Ireland zero-emission bus manufacturer Wrightbus has delivered 12 new hydrogen vehicles to German operator WestVerkehr GmbH.
The latest order completion of Kite Hydroliner single decks means there are now 43 hydrogen-powered buses on the streets of Germany – with around 130 due to be on the roads by the end of 2025.
WestVerkehr GmbH is based in the westernmost district of Germany, on the border with the Netherlands, and will operate the Kite Hydroliners between Heinsberg, Hückelhoven, and Erkelenz.
I always think, that if you can sell anything vehicles to the Germans, there can’t be much wrong with them.
This picture shows one of the new Wrightbus electric buses, that I ride regularly around Finsbury in London.
I was on a Chinese electric bus yesterday and there’s no doubt, that the ride in the Wrightbus product is smoother, than that of the Chinese one. Especially, when standing. The Chinese bus doesn’t even come close for ride with a New Routemaster.
London would do better, if it converted the thousand New Routemaster to zero-carbon power, rather than import a thousand Chinese buses.
In Equipmake Hybrid To Battery Powered LT11, I describe how one New Routemaster had a transmission transplant in Norfolk.
As it is possible, are Wrightbus NewPower working on it?
Mayors Head To Parliament With Plan For Northern Arc To Deliver Green Growth
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Liverpool City Region.
These four bullet points act as sub-headings.
- Steve Rotheram and Andy Burnham take case for backing Northern Arc to Treasury – as new data shows North can drive green growth and unlock £90bn for UK economy
- Liverpool City Region and Greater Manchester Mayors will meet with ministers and MPs today, and Andy Burnham will give evidence at Business and Trade Select Committee on the UK’s industrial strategy
- Economic analysis shows that investing in transport infrastructure and a pipeline of projects across the North would benefit the whole UK economy, improving living standards and closing the North-South productivity gap
- Mayors will also address Innovation Zero World Congress in London, showing how city-regions can create high quality jobs by pioneering low-carbon innovation
These two paragraphs add a bit more detail.
The right investment would create a growth corridor, stretching from the Mersey to the Pennines and connecting into West and South Yorkshire, underpinned by transport networks that would include a new railway linking Liverpool and Manchester.
The Northern Arc area spans regions with close economic ties to Lancashire, North Wales, Hull and the North East. With international connections through the Port of Liverpool and Manchester Airport, it’s well positioned for global trade.
If I have a problem with the mayors’ thoughts, the plan outlined in the news item is rather Liverpool/Manchester-based with Hull being the only city outside that area getting a mention. Do Blackburn, Blackpool, Bradford, Burnley, Doncaster, Huddersfield, Leeds, Preston, Rotherham, Scunthorpe, Stockport, Wigan and York exist?
For instance you would expert a report from Liverpool and Manchester’s Mayors to call for a new railway between their two cities. And of course they do!
The current TransPennine Lines has two main routes across the Pennines between East and West.
If ever there was a rail route, designed by Topsy, it is the North TransPennine Route.
- There are six separate services, if you ignore Newcastle and Edinburgh Waverley, which is a shuttle to fill a gap in rail services.
- In the West trains terminate at Huddersfield, Liverpool Lime Street, Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria
- In the East trains terminate at Edinburgh Waverley, Hull, Leeds, Newcastle, Redcar Central, Scarborough and York.
- Terminals like Huddersfield, Hull, Liverpool Lime Street, Newcastle and York are some of the best terminal stations in the UK, but others are very second rate.
I suspect, this North TransPennine Route structure brought about the demise of TransPennine Express.
The South TransPennine Route on the other hand, although it was built by several different railway companies, they were all intent on the same thing. An East-West route across the Pennines through Doncaster, Manchester and Sheffield.
- The Western terminal is Liverpool Lime Street, which in my view is the finest grand terminus in the UK, in terms of architecture, onward connections and operation. It is also the oldest still-operating grand terminus mainline station in the world, in that it dates from 1836.
- The Eastern terminal is Cleethorpes, which is an efficient four-platform recently-refurbished station, that is within a hundred metres of some of the best gluten-free fish and chips, I’ve ever tasted on the pier.
- Intermediate stations include Liverpool South Parkway, Warrington Central, Birchwood, Irlam, Urmston, Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield, Meadowhall, Doncaster, Scunthorpe, Barnetby, Habrough and Grimsby Town.
- Liverpool South Parkway has a bus connection to Liverpool Airport
- Liverpool Lime Street, Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield and Doncaster are stations with comprehensive onward connections.
- The route is electrified between Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Piccadilly and at Doncaster.Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes is 148.2 miles
- Hazel Grove and Doncaster is without electrification and is 52.3 miles long.
- Cleethorpes and Doncaster is without electrification and is 52.1 miles long.
- I believe that Hitachi, Siemens and Stadler could supply battery-electric trains, that would be able to work the route, with the addition of a short length of overhead wires at Cleethorpes, so that trains could return to Doncaster.
- Trains go straight through all the intermediate stations, so there are no time-wasting reverses.
- Journey time is just over three and a half hours.
I believe that a mouse-quiet battery-electric train would pack in the punters, if only for the novelty.
But.
A battery-electric train would probably knock perhaps thirty minutes off the journey.
The timetable would be an hourly train at all stations.
The service would pass the mother’s birthday test, in that you could easily visit any station from any other and buy your mother lunch before returning on a convenient train.
There are connections to and from London at Liverpool Lime Street, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield and Doncaster.
It could be a very useful East-West train service.
Critical Mass London: Hundreds Of Protesting Cyclists Ride Through Silvertown Tunnel In ‘Mass Trespass’
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Yahoo News in Canada.
These paragraphs describe the mass trespass.
Around 1,000 cyclists descended on the newly opened Silvertown Tunnel in a protest calling for greater road safety amid anger it has no bike lane.
Riders from Critical Mass London swarmed the northbound entrance near the O2 Arena in “a mass trespass” on Friday night.
Entering from the Old Kent Road, they took over both lanes near North Greenwich and blocked incoming motorists.
The ride through the tunnel took about 10 minutes before the cyclists moved off towards Poplar.
But on X, formerly Twitter, people reported that the road was closed for over an hour after they had left.
The £2.2bn Silvertown tunnel – opened by London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan earlier this month – has faced criticism from transport pressure groups for its lack of provisions for cyclists and pedestrians.
I suppose, at lease they weren’t riding on the pavement, as they do all the time near me.
I was even hit by one, on a zebra crossing, as he passed a bus on the wrong side, that had stopped to let me cross.
There is not one law for cyclists and one law for everybody else!
A Day Trip To Leven From London
On Thursday, the 15th of May, I shall be taking a day trip by train from London King’s Cross to Leven in Fife.
I shall be doing it for the following reasons.
- To see the new Levenmouth Rail Link and its two new stations : Cameron Bridge and Leven.
- To prove that it is possible to do trips like these.
- To prove that it is still possible for me to do trips like these.
- To see a couple of old friends, who live North of the Border.
- I shall probably also ride the new section of the Edinburgh Tram.
I shall be leaving London on the Lumo service at 05:48 and returning on the 16:13, which gives me around six hours in Scotland.
More Trains For Fife As ScotRail Enhance Leven Services In May 2025 Timetable
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from ScotRail.
This is the sub-heading.
ScotRail is set to introduce significant timetable improvements from Sunday, 18 May 2025, with a major focus on enhancing rail connections for Fife.
This first paragraph gives more details of the improvements to services.
The new timetable will include more frequent services to and from Leven, improving access to and from Edinburgh, and better connecting communities throughout Fife. Additional carriages are also being added to some trains at the busiest times to provide more seats for customers.
It sounds to me, that services to Leven have got a bad case of London Overground Syndrome, which I define in this post, which unsurprisingly is called London Overground Syndrome. I define it like this.
This benign disease, which is probably a modern version of the Victorian railway mania, was first identified in East London in 2011, when it was found that the newly-refurbished East London Line and North London Line were inadequate due to high passenger satisfaction and much increased usage. It has now spread across other parts of the capital, despite various eradication programs.
It keeps appearing across the UK and I suspect it happens in other countries too!
As ScotRail had a severe dose of London Overground Syndrome, when they reopened the Borders Railway, you’d have think that they’d have been prepared this time.
Gatwick To Accept ‘Stricter Limits’ On Plane Noise
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub heading.
Gatwick Airport has said it will accept stricter limits on aircraft noise and has put forward what it called improved plans in response to the government’s approval for a second runway.
These two introductory paragraphs give a bit of detail about the deal that seems possible.
Last month Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said that she was “minded” to give consent for the airport to bring its second runway into use.
Gatwick has now responded to the Secretary of State’s letter with what it called an “improved noise scheme for local residents.”
This certainly appears to be a fruitful start to negotiations.
The airport also seems to have put forward a package of proposals.
- The airport said it accepts a requirement to have 54% of passengers using public transport before it brings the Northern Runway into operation. – but it needs support.
- Gatwick said it needs help from others, including the Department for Transport, to meet the target.
- The full Gatwick Express train service should be reinstated.
- If the 54% public transport target is not achieved then an alternative cars-on-the-road limit should be met instead.
- If neither the public transport mode share or the cars-on-the-road limit are met, then the second runway would be delayed until £350m of road improvements have been completed.
- The airport also responded on sustainable design and reducing emissions.
I also think, we should note, that Heidi Alexander was seen at Newton Aycliffe, at the launch of Grand Central’s new trains, which I wrote about in Arriva Group Invests In New Battery Hybrid Train Fleet In Boost To UK Rail Industry.
It does seem, that after one trip to Hitachi’s factory in the North-East and she has softened her attitude on open access operators.
Perhaps, the sushi was excellent?
Since that trip to the North-East, Arriva Group have put in another application for an open access service, which I wrote about in Arriva Group Submits Open Access Rail Application To Connect Newcastle And Brighton, Via London Gatwick.
This proposal could mean the following.
- Lots of neglected places between Newcastle and Brighton get an improved and better connected rail service.
- Gatwick gets extra trains, which will increase the proportion of passengers going to Gatwick by train.
- Arriva Group’s owner ; I_Squared meet one of their corporate objectives of improving transport links.
- This could help the airport meet the conditions for a new runway.
- Hitachi get an order for a few more trains.
- An optimist, might even think, that this deal could result in some exports of Hitachi trains.
Being a politician, Heidi will claim the credit, if it all works out well.
Milestone Reached As 250,000th Passenger Journey Made On Northumberland Line
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Northumberland County Council.
These three introductory paragraphs add detail?
Passengers who have made more than 250,000 journeys on Northumberland Line services are being reminded they can beat the queues for tickets by buying online.
Northern said the major milestone was reached this week, after it began running passenger trains on the line in December, for the first time in 60 years.
Services call at Newcastle, Manors and new stations in Seaton Delaval, Newsham and Ashington, with a journey along the entire route taking around 35 minutes and a single fare costing no more than £3.
This is a good leveling-up story, so why hasn’t the government got a pipeline of shovel-ready new rail projects?
These projects could be for starters.
The West London Orbital
This page on the Transport for London web site gives the current progress and starts with this paragraph.
We’re making plans for a new rail service on existing, underused rail lines in west London that would become part of the London Overground network. The West London Orbital rail service would run from Hounslow towards Hendon and West Hampstead in the north.
The Mayor and Transport for London are probably spending most of their time, thinking of a silly woke name, that no-one will remember and just cause confusion.
The Ivanhoe Line
This article on the BBC is entitled Disappointment As Reopening Of Railway Line Halted.
This is the sub-heading.
The restoration of a passenger rail link through the Midlands has been stopped in its tracks.
These three paragraphs give more detail.
A business case for reopening the Ivanhoe Line rail link from Burton-upon-Trent to Leicester had been submitted before the election, with campaigners hopeful that work could begin in 2024.
But on Monday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the Treasury needed to find £5.5bn of savings in 2024 and a further £8.1bn in 2025.
Speaking in the House of Commons, the Chancellor said that the previous government’s entire Restoring Your Railway programme would be scrapped, saving £85m.
Note.
- I don’t believe this government believes in improving the rail infrastructure in the UK.
- But how do they expect people to get around, given their preferred transport mode of electric cars are ridiculously overpriced?
- The article on the BBC is a must-read.
- Last week Arriva Group announced a new Newcastle and Brighton open access service, that will call at Burton-on-Trent, which is planned to be the Western terminus of the Ivanhoe Line. See Arriva Group Submits Open Access Rail Application To Connect Newcastle And Brighton, Via London Gatwick for more details.
For more on the Ivanhoe Line, read the Campaign to Reopen the Ivanhoe Line web site.
The Anonymous Widower 