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TRAMLINES No 6
December 2000

 


Councillors Visit Tramlink

Councillors and Officers of Bath & N.E. Somerset Council have been on a tramway fact-finding trip to the London borough of Croydon.

The visit was arranged at the request of a number of B&NES Councillors. Three Councillors, Gordon Derick, Peter Metcalfe and Caroline Roberts went on the trip accompanied by Steve Howell, Head of Services, Mike Finch and Simon Bell.
They arrived by train and had the opportunity to travel on Tram Route 3 to Addington Village and Route 1 from Croydon to Wimbledon before going to the depôt for a question and answer session with a representative of Tramlink.

FAVOURABLE IMPRESSION
Mike Finch said: "The overall impression was favourable and we all came away impressed with the work that had been done. There had been teething troubles but the system seemed to have been well received by the public."
"During the question and answer session there was some discussion about the background to the Croydon system and the particular circumstances that apply there.

LONDON PUBLIC TRANSPORT
The public transport system in London remains regulated and integration between Tube, bus and tram is much easier. In terms of passengers it was also noted that a great number of people already have pre-paid tickets because of the various discounts/ passes etc that are available in London.

OVERALL CONCLUSION
The overall conclusion was that Trimlink showed the way to enhancing the availability and attractiveness of public transport, objectives that we are seeking for B&NES.

WHAT THE COUNCILLORS THOUGHT
Councillor Gordon Derrick (Lab), said he was really excited by the Croydon project. In particular, the way it pulled in people from socially excluded areas like parts of New Addington was most impressive; it was full of passengers, including lots of mothers with pushchairs.
The high initial cost of a tramway and the viability of such a system in the very different circumstances of Bath was a matter of concern to all the councillors. Councillor Caroline Roberts (L.D.) said: "The visit was extremely useful and the system certainly seemed to run very efficiently, but how they would work here may remain to be seen!"
Councillor David Hawkins (Con), who was prevented from attending by last minute personal circumstances said: " I have since been in touch with a Croydon councillor and hope to visit the system myself in the near future".
Councillor Gitte Dawson (L.D.), who visited Croydon earlier this year said: " They are impressive - clean, quiet and well organised - I can't wait till we get them here".

 

In advance of the councillors' visit, Trams for Bath gave each councillor a booklet outlining the Croydon system and comparing it with Bath. A free download of this booklet is available in PDF format on our website at:
http://www.bathtram.demon.co.uk/Website1/CT-TfB.htm





CROYDON TRAMLINK ­ How it compares with Bath

A Croydon tram in First Group Livery

The first thing about Croydon trams which strikes everyone is the length of the vehicles ­ they follow the continental practice of a pair of tramcars articulated together. Surprisingly, these 30m long 'bendy-trams' glide through the narrow, twisting historic streets of central Croydon without difficulty.

SINGLE OR DOUBLE DECKERS?
There is, however, a pressing reason for preferring a double-decked design for Bath. Croydon tram stops have to be at least as long as the vehicle. This is to give level access at every door along its length - but in Bath, there often isn't room for such long stops. The single wide central doorway of a low-floor double-decker is preferred as the tram stops then need only be about 15 feet long. The loading and unloading may be a bit slower, but the people of Bath are not to be rushed like London commuters.

CORRIDORS AND NETWORKS
Croydon has well-defined patterns of commuter flow, for which their three-corridor system is well suited. Bath, on the other hand has a diffuse mixture of residential and employment areas which are best served by a network of routes. There is no point in having a corridor to the Western Riverside, for instance, if it doesn't run where anyone can catch the tram in the first place.

CENTRAL CIRCLE
Croydon has exactly the same problem as Bath when it comes to route interchange ­ and it solved it in exactly the same way. There is a Central Circle in Croydon, just as we have planned; changing routes is simply a matter of stepping off the tram and catching the one behind.

POPULATION SIZE
Although the population of Bath is only about 90,000 compared to 400,000 in Croydon, there is not as great a difference between the actual number of people who can walk to the tram stop in either place. This is because the Croydon corridors do not serve anything like the whole population whereas the Bath system plans to have about 90% accessibility. Croydon is particularly deficient in Park + Ride facilities, so the passenger catchment is not as well extended to surrounding commuter areas as it would be in Bath. Bath also has a large tourist trade, which Croydon does not; so, all-in-all, the customer base for Bath trams is not very different from of Croydon's.

EXTENSIONS
At present, Croydon is relying on bus routes to feed passengers in from the wider area but there is pressure mounting to extend the tram network as quickly as possible.

The Hyder Report
Your chance to meet the authors and ask questions
­­­­­­­
"Bath Trams : Can they Fly?"
A talk to the Transport Group of the
Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institute
TfB members welcome

19:30 Tuesday 12 December

Alan Wilkins and Tony Young, two of the members of the team that wrote the Hyder Report will review the public transport options that are available to Bath. Is a segregated system technically viable?. Will it stand up financially? Can trams really fly? Are we about to witness the renaissance of the tram or is it yet another pipe dream?
Make a note in your diary, don't miss it!

If you want to 'swot up' beforehand on what the Hyder Report said, look on our website at:

http://www.bathtram.demon.co.uk/Website1/tG20.htm



 NEWSNEWSNEWS NEWSNEWSNEWS NEWSNEWSNEWS N

 

MANCHESTER
23 companies and consortia have formally registered their interest in the contract to construct and operate three new extensions to the Manchester Metrolink systems and take on the existing Metrolink operations.
Source: LRTA Website

CROYDON
A woman was treated for hysteria on the top deck of a Croydon bus after she saw a tram go past with the body of an electrocuted fox on its roof. Source: Unofficial Croydon Tramlink Website


VIDEO REVIEW :

"Around Bath by Bus and Tram"
Peter Davey and 1st-Take Video


53 mins, VHS, £12.95 + £1.50 postage from P.G.Davey or from Wightman's bookshop or Bath Bus Co. tours staff.

Briefly mentioned in last "Tramlines", we have now had an opportunity to savour this delightful item to the full.
The video has been skilfully compiled to cater for two distinct markets : those interested in Bath transport nostalgia, and as a souvenir of Bath's historic buildings and streets for visitors to the city who may have just ridden one of the open-top sightseeing operations.
The Bath tour element is primarily linked to Martin Curtis's recent successes with the Bath Bus Co., and suitably resplendent Bristol VRs in his fleet represent survival of this zenith of local bus manufacture. This leads seamlessly into a video version of Peter Davey's historical talks on tram and early bus operations in Bath, neatly supplemented by Colin Maggs inimitable local lore of many of the lighter and personal incidents from the tramway years. Although the Walcot Street tram depot has been, demonstrably, "an empty tram depot" for the whole of all our lives, it is a sobering thought that even scenes shown in this current video are suddenly no more.
Peter Davey's earlier videos on Bristol were based on still images of the tramways, but not so this video, as a pre-war amateur cine-film of a tram journey from Bathford to Combe Down is presented in unedited entirety, which adds greatly to the charm.
This is supplemented by carefully interspersed shots of some of the better-known surviving prewar Bath street scenes which include moving trams. The early postwar Bath bus history is also briefly sketched out.
As a glorious bonus as far as TfB is concerned, our existence and aims are spelled out by Peter Davey as part of his commentary, looking towards the possible future, with copies of "Tramlines", our network map, and possible vehicle designs, all prominently featured.
Production of the video, the camerawork, sound, commentary and overall editing, is to professional standards. You will already have a copy of Peter Davey's "Bath Tramways" and Martin Curtis's "Bristol VR" on your bookshelves, now supplement them by adding this visual gem to your video cupboard.

Peter Provest


Meetings Past and Future

During the past year, there has been a distinct lack of events for members of TfB. Our committee's energies have been devoted to less visible activities, such as meetings with council officers and drawing up documents in connection with the Hyder Report. Such talks as we have been able to arrange have been given to local Residents' Associations and the TfB members who turned up were probably left with the feeling that the talk was not intended primarily for them.
In the coming year, we hope to able to devote more of our time to organising the talks, walks and meetings which give everyone a chance to join in. If you have 'contacts' whom you think could give us an interesting talk which would further our cause, please let us know by telephone, post, e-mail or by buttonholing any committee member at the A.G.M.

_______________________

T f B Committee
Secretary: Adrian Tuddenham, 88, Mount Road, Southdown, Bath. BA2 1LH Tel: 01225 335974 E-mail: atudd@bathtram.demon.co.uk
Treasurer: Keith Berry, Canon Hold Cottage, Church Walk, Melksham. SN12 6LY
Acting Chairman: Derrick Hunt, 43,Greenland Mills, Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts. BA15 1BL
Admin Officer: Jenny Sutherland, 27, Purlewent Drive, Bath. BA1 4AZ
Minutes Secretary Peter Provest
LRTA Representative Brian Lomas
Helen Cox
Jeff Kenyon
Sue Langdon
Jeremy Paterson-Fox