Big squishy tyres
Leeds City Council seem determined to shoehorn some sort of super-guided-trolley-tram-bus solution into our city. It seems an attractive proposition doesn't it - provide a modern, efficient, clean & quiet public transport system. Obviously if it is sexy enough then a miracle will occur - Leeds will abandon motorcars to exclusively use the swanky super-guided-trolley-tram-bus.
I'm not anti-public transport, I use public transport pretty much exclusively in London. In order to get people out of their cars you must have an extensive public transport network which enables a person to get from any place in the city to any other location in 45 minutes with no more than 2 changes, 10 minutes waiting, and 10 minutes walk at either end. The system must be cheap, cashless, with clear signage and backed with an excellent website where you can easily work out your route. I give you :
Transport for London
The hugely expensive proposal for the 3 legged super-guided-trolley-tram-bus route to link Stourton, Lawnswood and St James with the University and City Centre will not get people to abandon their cars.
Millions can be found to construct the super-guided-trolley-tram-bus, but only a measly £500,000 has been earmarked for repairing roads after this chilly winter. Navigating through Leeds one could be forgiven for thinking the city had been shelled in some kind of Shock&Awe directed solely at the roads. We have so many potholes that in many places they've joined together. I'm tempted to sell my Fiesta and buy a Mars Rover with big squishy tyres.
True Costs of Road Neglect
Leeds City Council to repair damaged pot hole roads
Pothole Reports - Leeds
Leeds doesn't have a good record with respect to super-guided-trolley-tram-bus schemes.
Leeds Supertram
Work on Leeds Supertram started in 2003 where preparation was done at Leeds City Square, and the junction of South Accommodation Road and Hunslet Road. £40 million was spent on the project before spiralling costs caused the government to withdraw support and funding, forcing Leeds City Council to completely abandon the scheme.
Leeds Trolleybus
In order to be quite fair, I have pulled the following info together on the current proposal:
Trolleybuses run on rubber tyres like a regular bus but they are powered by electricity from overhead wires. They have fast, smooth acceleration and are quiet.
Each tBus has capacity to carry two hundred people. A tBus is a 24-metre vehicle composed of three articulated sections.
It is expected that the service will run between 6am and midnight, 7 days a week. In peak times it is forecast that there will be 10 trolleybuses per hour in each direction on each route i.e. a service every six minutes.
The total cost of the scheme is approximately £280 million.
The scheme has secured £235 million of Central Government funding through the Regional Funding Allocation process. Metro and Leeds City Council (LCC) will be required to make a local contribution.
It is proposed that the scheme will include two park and ride sites. One will be situated on the North Route, at the Bodington Hall site in Lawnswood and the other will be situated on the South Route at Junction 7 of the M621 at Stourton.
It is currently proposed that 550 spaces will be built at the Bodington Park and Ride site (North Route) and 1,700 spaces will be built at the Stourton Park and Ride site (South Route).
If there is sufficient demand, there is the potential to increase the number of spaces at the park and ride sites to 800 spaces at the Bodington Park and Ride Site and 2,200 at Stourton Park and Ride.
A key method to reduce congestion in Leeds is to provide a new system which offers car drivers with an attractive alternative to car travel. Obviously fast, safe and reliable journeys will be essential when passengers use NGT, but the appearance of the trolleybus will also play an important role in capturing car drivers' attention and demonstrating that NGT is something different. By demonstrating a clear step change in the transport offer, car drivers would be encouraged out of their cars and onto NGT.
I'm not anti-public transport, I use public transport pretty much exclusively in London. In order to get people out of their cars you must have an extensive public transport network which enables a person to get from any place in the city to any other location in 45 minutes with no more than 2 changes, 10 minutes waiting, and 10 minutes walk at either end. The system must be cheap, cashless, with clear signage and backed with an excellent website where you can easily work out your route. I give you :
Transport for London
The hugely expensive proposal for the 3 legged super-guided-trolley-tram-bus route to link Stourton, Lawnswood and St James with the University and City Centre will not get people to abandon their cars.
Millions can be found to construct the super-guided-trolley-tram-bus, but only a measly £500,000 has been earmarked for repairing roads after this chilly winter. Navigating through Leeds one could be forgiven for thinking the city had been shelled in some kind of Shock&Awe directed solely at the roads. We have so many potholes that in many places they've joined together. I'm tempted to sell my Fiesta and buy a Mars Rover with big squishy tyres.
True Costs of Road Neglect
Leeds City Council to repair damaged pot hole roads
Pothole Reports - Leeds
Leeds doesn't have a good record with respect to super-guided-trolley-tram-bus schemes.
Leeds Supertram
Work on Leeds Supertram started in 2003 where preparation was done at Leeds City Square, and the junction of South Accommodation Road and Hunslet Road. £40 million was spent on the project before spiralling costs caused the government to withdraw support and funding, forcing Leeds City Council to completely abandon the scheme.
Leeds Trolleybus
In order to be quite fair, I have pulled the following info together on the current proposal:
Trolleybuses run on rubber tyres like a regular bus but they are powered by electricity from overhead wires. They have fast, smooth acceleration and are quiet.
Each tBus has capacity to carry two hundred people. A tBus is a 24-metre vehicle composed of three articulated sections.
It is expected that the service will run between 6am and midnight, 7 days a week. In peak times it is forecast that there will be 10 trolleybuses per hour in each direction on each route i.e. a service every six minutes.
The total cost of the scheme is approximately £280 million.
The scheme has secured £235 million of Central Government funding through the Regional Funding Allocation process. Metro and Leeds City Council (LCC) will be required to make a local contribution.
It is proposed that the scheme will include two park and ride sites. One will be situated on the North Route, at the Bodington Hall site in Lawnswood and the other will be situated on the South Route at Junction 7 of the M621 at Stourton.
It is currently proposed that 550 spaces will be built at the Bodington Park and Ride site (North Route) and 1,700 spaces will be built at the Stourton Park and Ride site (South Route).
If there is sufficient demand, there is the potential to increase the number of spaces at the park and ride sites to 800 spaces at the Bodington Park and Ride Site and 2,200 at Stourton Park and Ride.
A key method to reduce congestion in Leeds is to provide a new system which offers car drivers with an attractive alternative to car travel. Obviously fast, safe and reliable journeys will be essential when passengers use NGT, but the appearance of the trolleybus will also play an important role in capturing car drivers' attention and demonstrating that NGT is something different. By demonstrating a clear step change in the transport offer, car drivers would be encouraged out of their cars and onto NGT.
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