Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Alexander takes a punt on Waymo trial

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 6h

Indeed, if you read my piece, a road safety campaign is backing them and I say i am in no position to argue 👍

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 8h

So Waymo aim to have their so-called fully autonomous cars operating in London next year.

What could possibly go wrong?

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/15/a...

As Waymo announces that it will be bringing its “fully autonomous ride-hailing service across the pond” from next year, it’s worth looking at what the benefits and risks might be. The company says …

The government’s desire to be seen to be doing things at pace is already leading to poor and costly decisions. There is also a real risk that the public will be put in danger. Concerns have already be...

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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 8h

Nice product placement. And I don't mean the pie.

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Reposted by Chris Ames

Transport Action Network @transportaction.bsky.social · 12h

The government’s desire to be seen to be doing things at pace is already leading to poor and costly decisions. 👇
transportactionnetwork.org.uk/toxic-concre...

Toxic concrete concerns

transportactionnetwork.org.uk

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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 13h

On my Transport Insights blog I unpick some of the contradictory stories about how much the Lower Thames Crossing will cost taxpayers before construction begins, now set to reach £2bn against "departmentally agreed" benefits of £3bn.

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/15/m...

Ministers bury Thames tunnel bung as sunk costs hit two-thirds of benefits

The Treasury has confirmed that chancellor Rachel Reeves secretly awarded the Lower Thames Crossing a quarter of a billion pounds in last year’s Autumn Budget, as the cost of the scheme are set to …

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 13h

Inaccurate spin about spin.
"*Keir Starmer’s* plan to blame *Nigel Farage* for budget tax rises"
vs
"Ms Reeves told Sky News the economy was still suffering from the impacts of leaving the European Union, austerity policies and Liz Truss’s mini-budget."
Pointless, self-indulgent client journalism

Very junior housing minister Keir Mather has replied to a parliamentary question about electric vehicle chargepoints with a promise to continue to monitor something it is not currently monitoring. …

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 13h

The govt does not have data on the no. of public electric vehicle chargepoints that have been installed but are not operational due to connection delays or other issues.

But it is promising to "continue to monitor" the effectiveness of actions to address it.

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/15/c...

Crunching no numbers

National Highways not stripped of LTC, government says

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 14h

Read for free and sign up for free...

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 1d

I reported yesterday's Guardian story that ministers had stripped National Highways of responsibility for the Lower Thames Crossing with the headline "Ministers keep control of Lower Thames Crossing" and it appears most of it was based on a misunderstanding.

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/14/n...

The government has rubbished yesterday’s Guardian story that ministers had stripped National Highways of responsibility for the Lower Thames Crossing. I reported the story yesterday with the h…

Academic axed from Labour conference panel for criticising energy policy

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 1d

the lobbyist-sponsored panels at party conferences have “become the pay-to-play red-light district of British democracy: sponsors literally rent the rooms by the hour”

www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Sustainability expert was told panellists discussing North Sea oil and gas were meant to ‘agree entirely’ with each other

Stop National Highways’ toxic water pollution!

Reposted by Chris Ames

Transport Action Network @transportaction.bsky.social · 1d

In 2024, National Highways acted on a handful of the 1,236 high-risk outfalls.

Without challenging targets and sufficient funding to clean up these outfalls and soakaways it will only tackle a few, making very little difference to reducing water pollution actionnetwork.org/letters/stop...

We all know our rivers are polluted. However, it’s not just from sewage, or due to the inaction of failing water companies. What is less talked about, but in many ways worse than sewage and even more ...

actionnetwork.org

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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 1d

In fact *the* Prince was 5’2”
www.theguardian.com/stage/2025/o...

‘Under 5ft 5in? Forget about being a prince!’ How the Royal Ballet is kicking out the old rules

What will the ballet dancer of the future look like? We visit the hunting lodge where the next generation are being trained – and find huge changes are under way

National Highways not stripped of LTC, government says

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 1d

I reported yesterday's Guardian story that ministers had stripped National Highways of responsibility for the Lower Thames Crossing with the headline "Ministers keep control of Lower Thames Crossing" and it appears most of it was based on a misunderstanding.

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/14/n...

The government has rubbished yesterday’s Guardian story that ministers had stripped National Highways of responsibility for the Lower Thames Crossing. I reported the story yesterday with the h…

Dartford Crossing delays INCREASE after ministers hiked charges by 40%

Reposted by Chris Ames

The Ranty Highwayman @rantyhighwayman.bsky.social · 1d

There's actually lots of interesting background in this story, but nobody thought to wonder why things got slower moving from August into September.

www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/a...

On 1 September, the one-off Dart Charge payment for car drivers was increased from £2.50 to £3.50 to reduce journey times, according to the DfT.

www.thisismoney.co.uk

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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 1d

And our Labour government is leading the charge
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...

Right to protest is under sustained attack in the west, report finds

Counter-terror laws being ‘weaponised’ against pro-Palestine groups in UK, US, France and Germany, says FIDH

Ministers keep control of Lower Thames Crossing

Reposted by Chris Ames

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

On my Transport Insights blog, I try to unpick the latest on the Lower Thames Crossing, which remains a very confused picture, despite ministers' macho approach.

Read for free and sign up for free...

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/13/m...

I’m not sure how much new news there is in the Guardian’s “exclusive” story today on the Lower Thames Crossing (LTC), which is a bit confused – to say the least – and is probably a bit exaggerated.…

I want to be deputy leader so I can do more

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

Further down Phillipson shows that she really shouldn’t be trusted with a diary slot in the New Statesman:

“A quick stop off at the Mirror party before bed, where I was thankfully not performing.”

🤦‍♀️

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

Gifted a diary slot in the New Statesman, Bridget Phillipson shows why she really shouldn’t be deputy Labour leader:
“I’ve made clear that ending the two-child limit is very much (drum roll) on the table.”

www.newstatesman.com/diary/2025/1...

Also this week: taking the fight to Reform, and ministerial karaoke at Labour conference

www.newstatesman.com

Is Shabana Mahmood the next prime minister?

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

Marr also shows that he doesn’t understand that reviewing an international treaty is beyond the powers of even “Britain’s next prime minister”:
“She intends to have two major reviews of the European Convention on Human Rights”

www.newstatesman.com/politics/202...

Only Keir Starmer can solve Labour’s immigration bind

www.newstatesman.com

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

Andrew Marr demonstrates the old hack adage, never let the word “some” get in the way of a good story:

“ministers express their outrage about the way the visa system has been exploited, so that people on post-Brexit social-work visas have moved straight into the black economy and drug gangs”

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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

On my Transport Insights blog, I try to unpick the latest on the Lower Thames Crossing, which remains a very confused picture, despite ministers' macho approach.

Read for free and sign up for free...

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/13/m...

Ministers keep control of Lower Thames Crossing

I’m not sure how much new news there is in the Guardian’s “exclusive” story today on the Lower Thames Crossing (LTC), which is a bit confused – to say the least – and is probably a bit exaggerated.…

Kent police apologise to protester threatened with arrest for holding Palestine flag

Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

A Kent police spokesperson had initially sought to justify the arrest

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Force agrees to pay damages to Laura Murton, 43, who also had sign saying ‘Israel is committing genocide’

Heathrow “struggling” with record passenger numbers

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Chris Ames @christoframes.bsky.social · 2d

If passenger numbers at Heathrow have "only" gone up a little bit in a climate emergency, is that a bad thing or a good thing?

The Standard thinks passenger numbers should keep going up and it's a bad thing if they don't go up quickly enough.

transportinsights.blog/2025/10/13/h...

Heathrow airport reported record September passenger numbers, which some might think is a bad thing in a climate emergency, but the (London) Standard thinks is inadequate. The airport announced tha…

UK ministers take control of £10bn Lower Thames Crossing

Reposted by Chris Ames

Transport Action Network @transportaction.bsky.social · 2d

“Taking it outside of National Highways’ roads programme and treating it as a stand-alone project, with a DfT-signed blank cheque, risks going the same way as HS2 with ballooning budgets and no accountability.” - @ecochris.bsky.social in @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Exclusive: National Highways Agency stripped of oversight with project handed to DfT amid Labour government drive for growth