Portishead Line reopening for passengers - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[mjones]

Here is a BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) article from 2006:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/5034912.stm

They built a test track near Corby.

There were a lot of good objections to the suggestion that it could be used for general traffic. Maybe there are a few locations where something like this could work to get buses into places where there is an abandoned track, but it looks like yet another example of the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) obsession with finding "innovative " bus based alternatives to light rail, when the rest of Europe just gets in with it.

[Red Squirrel]

...it looks like yet another example of the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) obsession with finding "innovative " bus based alternatives to light rail, when the rest of Europe just gets in with it.

Exactly! Not just Europe, either!

I can't help thinking that a lot of these alternative ideas - hydrogen trains, bi-modes, rubber roads, guided busways and so on - are just neoliberal ploys to avoid investing public money. If you can defer investment for a year, it looks rather like you've spent less this year; you could spin this as a efficiency saving. Now just do the same next year... and repeat. This is a brilliant way to proceed if you don't believe these things are investments, but not so good if these things genuinely improve the economy...

[Lee]

Well, in our part of the world, we have the salutary tale of Caen, where a guided bus system that was hailed as "just like Light Rail but cheaper" was opened in 2002 at a cost of €227 million, but due to its unreliability is now having to be replaced by an actual light rail system at a cost of around €250 million...

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caen_Guided_Light_Transit

https://lightrailnow.wordpress.com/2016/02/29/caen-guided-brt-out-real-lrt-tramway-in-by-2019/

[stuving]

Well, in our part of the world, we have the salutary tale of Caen, where a guided bus system that was hailed as "just like Light Rail but cheaper" was opened in 2002 at a cost of €227 million, but due to its unreliability is now having to be replaced by an actual light rail system at a cost of around €250 million...

I went to look at the thing last year, as I was in Caen anyway (but with no time to try it out). Certainly the service wasn't very reliable - even the not-very-exisitent Sunday one, being 30 minutes late.

But it's hard to draw conclusions about such systems generically from the issues at Caen, and at Nancy (though they haven't decided to scrap theirs - yet). Bombardier had so little success selling them they gave up supporting them some time ago, so if some quite feasible design changes would have made a big difference we don't know - they were never tried.

PS: that view is the back end - you can only drive them from the front, so they need a turning loop.

[chuffed]

Commuters face a whole new method of getting to work as plans to reopen the rail link between Portishead and Bristol have moved a step closer.
North Somerset Council leaders say they have every confidence the rail link will reopen despite Government’s refusal to fund it.
The authority’s executive this week allocated another £1.4million - on top of the £14.2million they have spent so far - to advance MetroWest phase 1 by submitting plans to build and operate the proposed new line.
The £116million project is seen as the only way to reduce traffic and give more people direct access to the rail network, but it was dealt a blow in May when the Department for Transport refused to help cover a £47million shortfall.

Council leader Nigel Ashton this week insisted that Transport Secretary Chris Grayling was fully behind the scheme.

He told Tuesday’s executive meeting: "It's only because of the council's efforts over the last 28 years this is still going. It’s important for the whole region.
“It's been quite clear from the present minister for transport Chris Grayling that he is fully supportive and recognises this is an integral part of MetroWest.
“It's the only part that adds new passengers, and it makes a profit from year one. It's a shame it's been bogged down with other issues the government is talking about
“We support it, so does the whole of the West of England.

“It makes the whole scheme viable. It's down to the secretary of state and the civil servants to make a decision, which I'm pretty sure will be positive.”

Papers from the meeting say Mr Grayling wrote to North Somerset MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) Liam Fox in October urging councillors to press ahead with MetroWest phase 1.
He said that additional Government support had not been ruled out but number of outstanding issues needed to be resolved.
Mr Fox wanted assurance that local funding options had been exhausted and that a tram/train study was considered as an alternative technology.

Cllr Bob Garner was pessimistic. He said: “I regret that I cannot share your enthusiasm that it will all be OK. If the money is not forthcoming, do we have a secret plan to deal with the lack of Government funding?”

Deputy leader Councillor Elfan Ap Rees said he had every confidence the project would go ahead
He said: “Funding has been a bit of an issue but we have been advised that additional government support is not ruled out, and there will be £500,000 coming in from Weca towards the project.

“I'm very confident we will get to the buffers at the end of the line.
“It's a high priority. It will produce additional jobs. It will help with reducing traffic, particularly at junction 19.
“It will give 50,000 additional people direct access to the rail network.
“We are fully confident it will wash its face and make a profit for the operator, and therefore will be a benefit.”

The £1.4million will come from a £6million contingency the council approved in November 2017.
The extra money will fund the completion of a development consent order for the works that officers are drawing up.

[Red Squirrel]

"...and it makes a profit from year one."

It's that claim again!

"...the Portishead line could pay for itself in one year..."

Although worded differently, these look like the same claim.

[Red Squirrel]

Incidentally, chuffed should probably have credited the Bristol Post (or affiliate) for the story he quoted. I will certainly credit them for their brilliant choice of pictures to illustrate the piece; here's one:



...is that Snow Hill?

[rogerw]

No. Diesel only

[ellendune]

Council leader Nigel Ashton this week insisted that Transport Secretary Chris Grayling was fully behind the scheme.

He told Tuesday’s executive meeting: "It's only because of the council's efforts over the last 28 years this is still going. It’s important for the whole region.
“It's been quite clear from the present minister for transport Chris Grayling that he is fully supportive and recognises this is an integral part of MetroWest.
“It's the only part that adds new passengers, and it makes a profit from year one. It's a shame it's been bogged down with other issues the government is talking about
“We support it, so does the whole of the West of England.

“It makes the whole scheme viable. It's down to the secretary of state and the civil servants to make a decision, which I'm pretty sure will be positive.”

Papers from the meeting say Mr Grayling wrote to North Somerset MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) Liam Fox in October urging councillors to press ahead with MetroWest phase 1.
He said that additional Government support had not been ruled out but number of outstanding issues needed to be resolved.
Mr Fox wanted assurance that local funding options had been exhausted and that a tram/train study was considered as an alternative technology.

Cllr Bob Garner was pessimistic. He said: “I regret that I cannot share your enthusiasm that it will all be OK. If the money is not forthcoming, do we have a secret plan to deal with the lack of Government funding?”

Deputy leader Councillor Elfan Ap Rees said he had every confidence the project would go ahead
He said: “Funding has been a bit of an issue but we have been advised that additional government support is not ruled out, and there will be £500,000 coming in from Weca towards the project.

“I'm very confident we will get to the buffers at the end of the line.
“It's a high priority. It will produce additional jobs. It will help with reducing traffic, particularly at junction 19.
“It will give 50,000 additional people direct access to the rail network.
“We are fully confident it will wash its face and make a profit for the operator, and therefore will be a benefit.”

The £1.4million will come from a £6million contingency the council approved in November 2017.
The extra money will fund the completion of a development consent order for the works that officers are drawing up.

Who knows what the Government might approve in the next few days to secure some votes next Tuesday?

[grahame]

Who knows what the Government might approve in the next few days to secure some votes next Tuesday?

For an MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) to be an effective opportunist for his or her constituency at this time, it's very useful for them to be able to say "I will support the government if".   The cunning of a Fox, perhaps?   Rather sadly, those of us who live in constituencies where the MP says "I will support the government" with unquestioning loyalty do not have that opportunity they can take.

[Adelante_CCT]

...is that Snow Hill?

Euston

[TonyK]

"...and it makes a profit from year one."

It's that claim again!

"...the Portishead line could pay for itself in one year..."

Although worded differently, these look like the same claim.

There is no reason why it shouldn't operate at a profit. The passengers certainly exist in considerable numbers. But do north somerset council expect to recover their outlay, and how would that work? Dr Fox raised the matter of tram-train again - I don't know why. They are smaller than the 4-carriage trains originally envisaged, although they have the advantage of possible extension through the town one day.

WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about)'s offering of half a million seems a bit miserly, given that it is supposed to be doing transport now.

[Red Squirrel]

I have a slight worry that Dr Fox may have something like this in mind:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sINjk3W-NjU

[TonyK]

 

[johnneyw]

I have a slight worry that Dr Fox may have something like this in mind:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sINjk3W-NjU

Still an improvement on the current situation, maybe he has this in mind though:

https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=837410829632854&ref=content_filter