Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast

On the eve of the next round of Rail strikes, could hitchhiking provide an alternative transport solution? I’m on the road in Wales, where I search (in vain, I might add) for a lift and tell you about my experiences of hitchhiking and how its changed in my time thumbing for a lift.Of course this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter that arrives in your inbox every Friday. To subscribe, you can find it here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

Saturday 1 October will see the biggest shutdown of the Great Britain rail network by industrial action for 40 years. Only one train in nine will run. And there will be further disruption right through to 10 October.Of course this podcast is free, much like my newsletter that you can get delivered to your inbox every Friday. Subscribe here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

I'm currently near Stuttgart, and I'll be spending the day travelling around the city and ending up at its airport, all through the use of trains.So let me share with you what it is like to travel using Germany's rail network.Of course this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter, which you can find by subscribing here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

The extra passport checks the UK requested after leaving the EU are “not sustainable”: that is the damning view of Jacques Damas, outgoing chief executive of Eurostar.The boss of the cross-Channel train operator revealed that post-Brexit border arrangements have reduced capacity on links from London to Brussels and Paris by one-third – forcing Eurostar “to charge higher prices to our customers”.Of course this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter, which you can find by subscribing here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

After Friday's "mini" budget, Britain has found itself in the midst of a financial storm with markets spooked by the government's plans for tax cuts and borrowing. It has sent the pound crashing to historic lows against other currencies, which is causing all manner of headaches - not least making our holidays all the more expensive. But there is some things you can do to make that holiday money stretch as far as possible - I'll tell you how.Of course this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter, which you can find by subscribing here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

I’m at Kintan, a Japanese barbeque joint in London’s west end, to celebrate Japan reopening its borders to international travellers.Hong Kong has also today opened its doors to foreign tourists for the first time since the Covid pandemic broke out.Of course this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter, that you can subscribe to here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

"Shutting down the railway network" – that is what the RMT union has vowed to do on 8 October, with its latest strike. The rail union made the announcement on World Car Free Day, and said: "Our industrial campaign will continue for as long as it takes." I am not sure that is a great message for the long-term health of the rail industry.Of course this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter, that you can subscribe to here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

When rail services between London and Yorkshire were disrupted due to overhead wire problems, a Labour MP took to Twitter to say: "Just another reminder that we need to bring rail into public ownership and make it fit for the future." But she was aboard a state-run LNER train, on tracks owned and operated by Network Rail. Both organisations are offshoots of the Department for Transport (DfT), which means they are ultimately owned by us. Fixing the railways takes more than slogans.This podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter. You can get it delivered every Friday by subscribing here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters

Today’s podcast comes to you from the 10:17 Elizabeth line service from London Paddington to Heathrow airport - the first train to leave the terminus in 28 hours.At around 6am on Monday 19 September, nearly two miles of overhead wires in the Hayes & Harlington area came down on the tracks and six passenger trains became tangled in them. Nobody was hurt but it meant that, on the morning of the Queen’s state funeral, there were no trains on one of the main lines in and out of the capital. They’re still trying to figure out what exactly went wrong but for now, trains are now getting back to normal - if a little behind schedule.Of course this podcast is free, much like my weekly newsletter. Subscribe here: https://www.independent.co.uk/newsletters