Leeds trolley buses set to get the go ahead!

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Fri 26 Mar, 2010 12:30 am

raveydavey wrote: People will not drive to the fringes of Leeds in their cars, then pay to park and pay again to go on an electric bus to somewhere near where they work in the city centre.The proposed city centre route seems to be going around City Square, so will be of very limited appeal to anyone who works in the eastern half of the city centre.This is the fact that Metro and LCC seem unable to get their heads round.It's the same with saving 4-6 minutes on a bus journey down Kirkstall Road - all the Mis-Guided bus Lane will do is perpetuate Worst's monopoly on buses in Leeds, and you'll have the ludicrous situation that already exists on Harrogate Road and on York Road / Selby Road where some Worst buses use the very expensively constructed guided section, whilst all the buses from other companies, plus the Worst services without guide wheels, use the ordinary carriageway. whoops wrong answer

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Fri 26 Mar, 2010 12:32 am

chameleon wrote: Trojan wrote: Keg wrote: Trojan, we have just as many and a far higher class of pothole

in north Leeds. I run a Landrover Defender, and have had smoother off road jaunts than driving on our current roads.I believe that the supertram was due to run up to the left of the A660 as you were coming out of Leeds and it was due to run behind the Arndale centre.Lets face it, most ( and i do stress most, not all ) will like their own car.Simple as that But I'd like to bet the bins in North Leeds were emptied more regularly than ours in the recent strike, and I bet your roads were gritted, and if not gritted there was grit in the bins. Our road was gritted once, on the 19th December, and once the bin had been emptied it was never refilled (still hasn't been) we live on what must be one of the steepest roads in the city. But when North Leeds says jump the supine council say "how high please?" As for tranpsort. I travel to Bramley every day by car (not a Chelsea tractor either) for the simple reason that there's no bus. However, when I go into the city I go by bus - it's free for me. So you could probably go by bus - one into the centre - and another one out. Rather time consuming and that is a major factor in most folk's lives. It would take hours as opposed to 15/20 minutes, and I couldnt travel for nowt before 9-30 either

Post by **chameleon** » Fri 26 Mar, 2010 9:53 am

And we all thought Supertram and transport was the Council's bug-bear for only the last 30 -40 years!(taken from Illustrated History of Roundhay Park)

Post by **chameleon** » Fri 26 Mar, 2010 11:49 am

chameleon wrote: chameleon wrote: Phill_dvsn wrote: Cardiarms wrote: The buses were 5p anywhere until about 1983 I think. It was dirt cheap your right. It cost us 2p to go to Tinsley from the station in 1982.We thought the conductor was having a laugh, yes they still had conductors too lol and 3d half fare to town from Cross Gates on the tram. The Transport Minister has seemingly given aan undertaking that funding will be ringfenced against spending cuts - if a Labour government is returned. Almost a little bit of bating there perhaps - but does give an opportunity to help decide the transport fate - one way or the other according to one's feelings for the scheme And in Todays YEP:THE Tories have refused to commit to delivering the £250m Leeds trolleybus plan should David Cameron win the forthcoming election.A Conservative source said the party would not follow Labour's lead and protect the scheme from future spending cuts by effectively ring-fencing its funding.Cnlr., Carter then goes on to seemingly support this statement (rather than the Leeds comittment?) -Coun Andrew Carter, the Tory joint leader of Leeds Council, said: "I am not surprised they want to keep their options open. What everyone seems to have forgotten is that the rider from DfT says this doesn't commit government to giving us the money. All it does is give the scheme programme entry."Which is not quite the way it was reported earlier.Bye - Bye bus. Wonder what the next 'best option yet' will be. Hard to give anything credit really.

Cardiarms · Post by **Cardiarms** » Fri 26 Mar, 2010 11:58 am

I suspect some dedicated bus lanes may be the result in about 5 years. In terms of cost benefit their probably best. Now getting a quality bus service in them is the next step.On the whole I find the buses are Ok but get slightly infuriated wating for a purple slug on Tong Road, text the time of the next one, am told it's four minutes. Great. Wait 10 minutes. Text again. The next bus will be 28 mins. For a 30 mins service that's quite remarkable. Taxi!

Post by **cnosni** » Fri 26 Mar, 2010 6:09 pm

raveydavey wrote: People will not drive to the fringes of Leeds in their cars, then pay to park and pay again to go on an electric bus to somewhere near where they work in the city centre.The proposed city centre route seems to be going around City Square, so will be of very limited appeal to anyone who works in the eastern half of the city centre.This is the fact that Metro and LCC seem unable to get their heads round.It's the same with saving 4-6 minutes on a bus journey down Kirkstall Road - all the Mis-Guided bus Lane will do is perpetuate Worst's monopoly on buses in Leeds, and you'll have the ludicrous situation that already exists on Harrogate Road and on York Road / Selby Road where some Worst buses use the very expensively constructed guided section, whilst all the buses from other companies, plus the Worst services without guide wheels, use the ordinary carriageway. I dislike the guided bus corridors,you hardly see any buses actually going down them.What is suspect the real reason for LCC actually going ahead with them is that they recieved a wedge of EU money,to go towards the traffic lights,kerbs,rroad resurfacingetc etc at junctions where the guided bus lanes are located and run.Thus monies the council should have used from their own coffers for road/traffic management inmprovements was instead supplied by the EU as it is a "green" initiative,saving the council money.

pyramar · Post by **pyramar** » Wed 09 Jun, 2010 1:54 pm

Like everyone else here, i cannot see the logic in blowing £235m on a purple slug with overhead wires running on one route from Lawnswood to Stourton. This whole fixation with tram tracks stems from jealously that Manchester has a train set so we want one. However, what most forget is that Manchester's tram is simply two British Rail tracks cobbled together with some tramline in the middle so was a reasonably cheap start.I'd so something similar with the £235m. First I'd axe the Leeds -Harrogate rail line beyond Horsforth and turn this into a tram roue extended to the Airport. So as not to leave Harrogate out of the rail network, i'd reopen the Leeds-Wetherby-Harrogate rail line for the purpose. A far more revenue-rich route. OK i know youd have to knock some houses down but Supertram envisaged that too.And while I am on my soapbox, why oh why when Bradford CityCentre has been vaporised does someone not have the foresight to connect up the two railway stations and create the start of a Newcastle-type circular metro operating Leeds-Kirkstall Forge- Apperley Bridge-Shipley-Manningham-Bradford-Pudsey/Brighouse-Leeds. i know the two lines are not on the same level but that's no great problem with electric trains.

Post by **cnosni** » Wed 09 Jun, 2010 4:24 pm

pyramar wrote: Like everyone else here, i cannot see the logic in blowing £235m on a purple slug with overhead wires running on one route from Lawnswood to Stourton. This whole fixation with tram tracks stems from jealously that Manchester has a train set so we want one. However, what most forget is that Manchester's tram is simply two British Rail tracks cobbled together with some tramline in the middle so was a reasonably cheap start.I'd so something similar with the £235m. First I'd axe the Leeds -Harrogate rail line beyond Horsforth and turn this into a tram roue extended to the Airport. So as not to leave Harrogate out of the rail network, i'd reopen the Leeds-Wetherby-Harrogate rail line for the purpose. A far more revenue-rich route. OK i know youd have to knock some houses down but Supertram envisaged that too.And while I am on my soapbox, why oh why when Bradford CityCentre has been vaporised does someone not have the foresight to connect up the two railway stations and create the start of a Newcastle-type circular metro operating Leeds-Kirkstall Forge- Apperley Bridge-Shipley-Manningham-Bradford-Pudsey/Brighouse-Leeds. i know the two lines are not on the same level but that's no great problem with electric trains. There are plans to link the two stations in Bradfordhttp://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/817 ... ss_city/As for closing the Harrogate Leds line i think you would find an awful lot of annoyed people who use Horsforth Station.In an ideal world they would also open the old wetherby line,but as they cant even afford to upgrade the signalling system between Horsforth and Harrogate from the 19th century to the 2oth (dont even think about 21st century) so i wouldnt hold my breath.A stop based at Barnbow,park and ride,with a link to the M1 would be a sound idea.

pyramar · Post by **pyramar** » Wed 09 Jun, 2010 4:36 pm

I am indebted to cnosni for the link to the T&A website which says Bradford businessmen want to link the two rail stations and have a plan they are seeking support for. Notice no mention of Bradford Council taking a lead. The article suggests calling any new combined station Bradford International. (No Bradford, dont set yourselves up for more humiliation, Bradford Central will do nicely).

raveydavey · Post by **raveydavey** » Wed 09 Jun, 2010 7:34 pm

cnosni wrote: A stop based at Barnbow,park and ride,with a link to the M1 would be a sound idea. GNER promised that very thing when they re-bid for their franchise a few years ago (well, it was at Thorpe Park but the same overall idea and even closer to the motorway). However GNER then ran out of money and had to stop playing trains.The idea has quietly been shelved, although I'm sure it forms part of some area transport wish list. (I'm not sure that particular route could accommodate any more passengers on the existing stock anyway, but never mind).