1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164 
Rail grant boost
Page 10
Page 11
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
by Miles Brignall
Hauliers running bulk tippers look set for a big increase in work following the government's decision to stop giving grants to companies hoping to move goods by rail.
Last month the Strategic Rail Authority angered the railfreight industry by announcing it was freezing grants to rail freight projects (CM 23-29 January)—and it looks as though road hauliers are going to be the main beneficiary.
One of the biggest movers of cement and other construction materials Aggregate Industries has already written to Transport Secretary Alistair Darling pointing out the company will be forced to start carrying its goods by road—and others are bound to follow.
Aggregate Industries says it has prepared facilities in Harlow, Essex to receive 300,000 tonnes of stone from its Leicestershire quarry but the announcement means the freight transfer facilities will not be built and the load will have to go by road instead. Over the past 18 months the company has already been forced to shift the movement of 60,000 tonnes of concrete products to road because of unreliable rail services.
Meanwhile the Freight Transport Association has added its weight to calls for the grants structure to be reinstated. FTA chief executive Richard Turner has also called on Darling to re-examine the decision, which he says has dire consequences for road congestion.
"The FTA has already identified over five million tonnes of freight which will now have to be moved by road ," he says.
• The Hul-based Independent fuel supplier JR Rix & Sons has added a fifth barge to its fleet of craft delivering fuel around the eastern coast of the UK. The Rix Owl Is capable of carrying 600 tonnes of petroleum and will deliver out of the Total Lindsey oil refinery. It will replace thousands of truck movements says Rix, which is best known for supplying biodlesel that is partially made from recycled cooking olls.