CBTG's national news round up ...
Here's a round up of a few items seen recently...
BBC feature on the Hope Valley Mini Switzerland project
We have often highlighted the Hope Valley Climate Action Group's projects on this website ( see recent post here), so it's good to note that the BBC are paying attention to the Mini Switzerland project
Looking forward to better weather - how about a rail pass for Spain !
In recent years the imaginatively priced rail passes available in Germany have become popular (here). Now there are similar options available in Spain on their national network, the RENFE. More details here...
Testing times for the new East Midlands Travel App
In early February 2026 BBC journalists Matt Barlow and Matt Weigold new £4m transport app which had been hailed as "a first of its kind" and a "big step forward" at its launch by East Midlands Mayor Claire Ward, together with Nottingham and Derby city councils. The app had also received government funding. Read their report (here) on a journey from BBC Radio Derby to the BBC offices in Nottingham, pitting the new Ride app against a more established app....
Travelling to the South West in bad weather?
Yours truly was living in Teignmouth, the wrong side of Dawlish, when most of Devon and the whole of Cornwall were cut off from the rest of the railway network for eight weeks in early 2014, causing travel chaos. The sea wall at Dawlish has now caused problems again in early 2026....
Are smart motorways safe?
Transport Action Network has long campaigned for transparency on the safety or otherwise of 'smart motorways'. Read their latest Press Release (February 2026) here