Tuesday, August 5, 2014

South Australia Transport says airport to CBD tram will be operating within 20 years

THOMAS CONLIN. THE WEEKLY TIMES. JULY 17, 2014 4:50PM.

A tram service between the airport and CBD has been described as “medium term priority”,

A TRAM linking Adelaide Airport to the CBD will be built within 20 years to cater for extra passengers, the State Government says.

Annual passengers numbers will increase to 2.81 million in 2034, up from 807,000 last year, according to the airport’s draft master plan released this week.
A light rail corridor to the city was first flagged last year as part of a State Government 30-year transport and infrastructure plan.

Yesterday, a Transport Department spokesman who would not be named, said the new line was a “medium term priority ... placing it within the 20-year time frame of the Adelaide Airport master plan.”

The government was discussing funding with the Federal Government, Adelaide Airport and West Torrens Council, which neighbours the airport, the spokesman said.

“The timing and funding responsibility for any potential future upgrades that are required will be subject to further discussion and agreement between these parties,” he said.

A dual-lane flyover for traffic turning right on to Sir Donald Bradman Drive from the airport and doubling the capacity of the airport’s multistorey carpark were among other proposals in the master plan.

Existing bus services would be sufficient to cater for the increase in passengers in the medium term, but new forms of public transport were needed within 20 years, the report said.

The airport has earmarked a new entry point via Richmond Rd for taxis and buses to reduce congestion on Sir Donald Bradman Drive within the next five years.

Upgrades to the Sir Donald Bradman Drive intersections with Airport Rd and Sir Hubert Wilkins Ave are planned.

Airport managing director Mark Young said the airport was working with the State Government on new transport options.

“As Adelaide Airport grows, it’s important that we continue to review ground transport demands and implement measures to manage traffic and enable easy access for people travelling to and from the airport precinct,” Mr Young said.

“We believe there is great potential for innovative public transport links to connect the Adelaide CBD and the broader metropolitan area with the airport.”

Nearly 10,000 new jobs are forecast for the airport precinct over the next 20 years, while a further 9800 jobs associated with airport activity are projected across the state.

Nottingham’s Citadis trams enter service

4 AUG, 2014

Bendigo Australia tram study to look at bringing back commuter services

Date: August 5, 2014 - 5:04PM

Darren Gray, Rural Affairs Reporter

More than 40 years after the State Electricity Commission of Victoria stopped running a commuter public tram service in Bendigo - a move that saw about 10 kilometres of tram lines covered in bitumen or ripped up - a $120,000 study will examine whether passenger trams could be returned to the Victoria Australia city.

Consultants will investigate whether Bendigo's 4.1 kilometre tourist tramway could serve tourists and local commuters in the same way that cable cars and other trams do in cities such as New Orleans and San Francisco.

In recent years locals have pushed for a commuter tram service, with some arguing for a new line that would run from the Bendigo Railway Station, across the CBD and to the local hospital, a distance of about three kilometres, citing the increased traffic the hospital redevelopment will bring to the city. Month-long trials of a commuter service running at 20-minute intervals have also been undertaken in recent years.

The study will also investigate whether the tramway’s tourism appeal would be enhanced if it was extended with extra track in order to reach more tourism destinations. The tourist tramway runs along Bendigo’s main street and links a range of Bendigo's most popular attractions such as the Central Deborah Gold Mine and Charing Cross.

The study, funded by the state government, Bendigo Trust and City of Greater Bendigo, will assess whether the current track should be duplicated and given extra stops. And it will also assess whether there could be a role for modern light rail vehicles to operate commuter services.

Bendigo’s trams are a popular tourist attraction, visited by tens of thousands of people each year who ride the trams, tour the tramways depot and visit other landmarks.

But the manager of the tramways, Jos Duivenvoorden, said patronage was fading slightly each year and the study was needed to help improve the tramways' sustainability and its tourism offering. ''We absolutely want to improve the quality of the product,'' he said.

''For a long time now we've been concerned about the lack of change and further development of our tramway system. It's pretty much operating like it did 30 years ago,'' he said.

Craig Niemann, CEO of the City of Greater Bendigo, said that discussion about the possibility of reintroducing a commuter service was ‘‘a conversation that’s happening around Bendigo all the time, about bringing back the trams ... Well, let’s do some research, get someone to concentrate on what could or could not happen and give us some facts around it so we can make some decisions,’’ he said.

‘‘It’s a feature of our tourism offer, it’s a feature of the city with the tram line running down the main street. From that perspective it’s a big important part of the heritage of the place. The study needs to be done to either provide the data and the information to progress this [commuter service idea], or to say ‘this isn’t feasible’ and we need to put it away,’’ he said.

Mick McGowan, a member of the Bendigo Trust board and a voluntary tramways inspector, said the tramway was a key part of Bendigo's history and the new study was a necessity. ''It's a highly visible part of our heritage because the infrastructure tends to give a sense of permanence and longevity as well as a sense of history,'' he said.

''To be sustainable we've probably got to relook at the product that we're offering, we've probably got to look at being more than just a tourist attraction,'' he said.

Mr McGowan said he believed a commuter tram on ''a high density route'' in Bendigo could work, such as between the hospital and railway station.

Monday, August 4, 2014

Bremen, Germany tram extension opens

Monday, August 04, 2014

Written by Keith Fender

inShare

Keith Fender

THE 5.5km northern extension of Bremen's tram network from Bremen-Borgfeld to Lilienthal and Falkenberg, which crosses over the state border into neighbouring Lower Saxony opened to passengers on August 1.

Construction started on the 10-station line in February 2011 and it was originally due to open in September 2013, but completion was delayed by the insolvency of one of the civil engineering contractors.

The new line has cost around €64m, with 36.5% of the funds coming from the German federal government, 34.5% from the state of Lower Saxony, 8% from the state of Bremen, and 16.5% from the municipal government in Lilienthal. The existing tram fleet is used to operate the additional services.

Line 4 (Bremen-Arsten – Domsheide – Main Station – Borgfeld – Falkenberg) services will operate a 15-minute frequency off peak (more at peak times) and journey times of 37-40 minutes are planned between Falkenberg and Bremen Main Station.

The new line is the culmination of network expansion to the north of Bremen which has resulted in the Line 4 route being built in three stages, the previous two being Kirchbachstrasse – Horner Mühle, which opened in 1998 and Horner Mühle – Borgfeld which was completed in 2002.

The dark warning of ‘inconvenience’ on Premier Mike Baird’s Sydney Australia light rail

EXCLUSIVE ANDREW CLENNELL STATE POLITICAL EDITOR. THE DAILY TELEGRAPH

JULY 28, 2014 12:00AM

NSW PREMIER Mike Baird admits ripping up George Street to build the light rail project will cause “inconvenience”.

However, he says his government is studying mistakes made in similar projects in Edinburgh and Boston to keep the disruption to a minimum.

Significantly, the government has delayed the start of the project to the month after the state election in April next year.

“The expectation is that there will be inconvenience,” Mr Baird conceded. “But there’s also a lot of lessons you can learn from other projects around the world.

“A big part of that preparation which I’ve asked for, particularly in Edinburgh and Boston, is what are the lessons, the things that went wrong, and what do we learn from them?”

According to overseas reports, Edinburgh’s light rail project blew out by 40 per cent, or $1.2 billion. It has been delayed for three years, and the track was shortened because of the massive cost overruns. Edinburgh businesses have reported that their earnings fell dramatically throughout the construction phase.

The premier’s comments come after one of the three consortia bidding for the project pulled out this month amid reports that its British construction firm, Balfour Beatty, had withdrawn because of concerns about cost overruns from moving utilities under George Street.

The Baird government claimed the withdrawal was because the company was reviewing operations worldwide.

Fears over possible congestion caused by the project bring back memories of the Cross City Tunnel fiasco under the previous Labor government, when streets were shut to funnel traffic through the tunnel.

In the end, after a shellacking from the media and public, the government was forced to re-open the roads.

“It will be a challenge for Sydney,” Mr Baird said.

“There will be the inconvenience, but we are looking to minimise that and take the long-term view.”

The government has put a finish date of 2019 or 2020 on the project, which it hopes to build with the private sector at a cost of $1.6 billion.

The project will link Circular Quay and Central, then move up through Surry Hills and Moore Park to Kingsford and Randwick.

Opposition transport spokeswoman Penny Sharpe said Labor had concerns about the project but would not oppose it.

Fix missing links in Melbourne tram network: Greens

Date: July 15, 2014

Adam Carey. Transport Reporter for The Age

Follow Adam on Twitter Follow Adam on Google+ Email Adam

Melbourne’s tram network would be extended by 56 kilometres, linking up tram routes that currently end at quiet suburban locations with nearby shopping centres and railway stations, under a policy the Victorian Greens will take to November’s state election.

Mr Barber said Melbourne’s hub and spoke tram network would be more effective as a connected grid, because it would let more people use trams for cross-town travel. ''These small but important connections will help public transport users go where they want to go, when they want to go there,'' he said. ''They will revitalise local shopping centres, cut the number of people relying on a car and make for better cross-town links, not just radial trips towards the city centres.''''For a range of odd reasons, many of Melbourne’s historical tram routes stop short of connecting to major destinations and other transport routes,'' Greens leader Greg Barber said.

Seventeen ''missing links'' in Melbourne’s tram network would be connected at a cost of up to $840 million, or $15 million per kilometre of tram track.

''Trams are a better investment of public money than the polluting East West toll road, which will cost $1 billion per kilometre,'' a Greens policy document states.

Extensions on the list include linking route 3 to East Malvern station and on to Chadstone shopping centre, route 48 from North Balwyn to Doncaster Hill, route 82 from Footscray to Docklands along Footscray Road and route 86 from Bundoora to South Morang.

Sydney light rail boss vows the city will not repeat the mistakes made by the Gold Coast during a problem-plagued construction

JAMES GORMAN

CENTRAL
JULY 17, 2014 12:00AM

The Gold Coast light rail in famous Surfers Paradise.

The State Government has sought advice from operators of the problem-plagued Gold Coast light rail in a bid to ensure a smoother construction process in Sydney.

From major disruptions to pedestrian traffic to the loss of almost 13 per cent of businesses surrounding the route, the GoldLinQ light rail endured its fair share of burdens during a lengthy construction period.

Project Director, CBD and South East Light Rail, Jeff Goodling said the Gold Coast light rail project has provided invaluable information vital to the Sydney counterpart.

How the Sydney light rail will look in Martin Place.

And at the Central Station hub.

“I have only been in Australia for two and half years and I was only here for about a week and half before I was at the Gold Coast talking to them about the project and creating a dialogue working out what they did well and how we can do it better,” he said.

“I think one of the most significant initiatives is we are trying to create a framework that minimises the impact on the properties along the alignment because there are a lot of people who believe the Gold Coast could done a better job than they did.”

The GoldLinQ service, which cost $1 billion and extends for 13km, compares to Sydney’s $1.6 billion, 12km route. GoldLinQ is now in operation, while construction of the Sydney light rail infrastructure is scheduled to begin next year.

Sydney light rail project director Jedf Goodling.

Gold Coast Chamber of Commerce president Peter Yared.

Gold Coast Central Chamber of Commerce president Peter Yared confirmed the Gold Coast light rail significantly damaged businesses surrounding the line.

“At least 13 per cent or more of the businesses have shut down and gone out of business due to the length of the construction,” Mr Yared told Central in April.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Will Sydney cope with the construction of the light rail? Tell us your thoughts below

“It has had a huge impact on foot traffic and it is criminal to think we are now left in this position because of a State Government initiative.”

Mr Goodling said the State Government would work with businesses along the route to help minimise the impact.

Light rail construction caused major disruptions on the Gold Coast.

Swathes of trees were removed along sections of the Gold Coast route.

“We are setting up as part of our government structure a business reference group and a community reference group,” he said.

“In addition to that we have set up a number of business forums as well and we will arrange for places on the reference groups to represent all businesses.”

For more information about the NSW State Government’s light rail project visit transport.nsw.gov.au/lightrail