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The Government’s 10-year plan has, as a key feature, the transfer of people from cars to public transport. The targets for passengers were to increase bus use by 10% and passenger rail use by 50%. What effect can that have? The figures are as follows:
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Very much against public and political sentiment roads managed to avoid congestion would offer 3 to 4 times the capacity to move freight and people at one quarter the cost of rail while using 20% to 25% less energy and reducing casualty costs suffered by rail passengers by a factor of 2.
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A Transport-Watch note
Essential reading for decision makers and transport correspondents
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The maps below show the extent of the main road network in Great Britain along with the rail network pre-Beeching. The road network was 28,000 miles long and the rail network 19,000 miles. Now the rail network is a mere 10,000 miles long.
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Transport Watch prints adverts in several prominent magazines - see the advert and the reaction.
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Transport Watch shows the holes in the argument for Rail by Railfuture.
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Produced by the Railway Conversion League in 1974, is as apt today as it was 30 years ago.
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This page summarises and adds to data from Transport Statistics Great Britain. The data shows that in highway terms rail rapid transport systems are so lightly loaded as to be substantially disused.
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Fashions for road junction design differ greatly across the country. In some towns such as Milton Keynes the roundabout is king with scarcely a traffic signal in sight. In others such as Northampton Traffic signals appear at very opportunity. Are the designs sensible?
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The notion that scarce road space should be allocated by price, rather then by the expensive alternative of queuing, is scarcely new. The advantages were first formally identified by the late professor Smeed nearly 40 years ago. Has his time arrived at last?
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The Government’s intention of improving public transport could never have more than a trivial effect on congestion. In contrast, a 20% increase in car occupancy would have a very substantial effect indeed. So, should car sharing, coupled with congestion charging, be the focus of the Government’s effort, rather than traditional public transport?
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The Government and official bodies such as the TRL and DTLR have put it about that some 30% of road accidents are attributable to "excessive speed". That turns out to be a misrepresentation by a factor of up to 10.
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Transport Watch canvasses for three areas of research: 1. The land take per passenger-km. E.g., (a) the areas of the airports themselves plus (b) other areas affected by noise (suitably weighted).....
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Transport Watch will sponsor and encourage research into transport issues at a range of universities.
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London - A map and a few words
Picture Courtesy of National News & Picture
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Conversions - Options and Illustrations
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Railway people are lobbying for a High Speed Rail link from London to Scotland. Here we comment on some of the recent offerings.
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Transport Watch has submitted memoranda to the following Transport Committee inquiries.
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Completely off the rails? The man who would turn railway lines into a coach network
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Reports on train delays statistics.
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General Discussion on Global Warming and the man made effect on the environment
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This topic is devoted to giving air space to those who prefer mud pies to reasoned debate.
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The following in reverse date order are a sample of letters sent to The Times by Transport-watch. Most of those were not published.
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(Nata is the DfT’s “New Approach to Transport Appraisal”)
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Letters to Local Transport Today and the New Civil Engineer
Picture Courtesy of National News & Picture
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The following in reverse date order are a sample of letters sent to MP's by Transport-watch.
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