The trams are attracting people out of their cars and onto public transport.
For the last 70 years of tram and train destruction, there is only evidence that it is that policy that has made public transport worse, less attractive, caused road congestion, crammed trains and worsened the climate emergency.
They also make public transport users feel like they are not second-class citizens.
First class citizens like lawyers and other VIPs all use public transport. It was 10th rate work by our councillors and transport planners who are responsible for the complete wipe out of the trams in the 1950s followed by the double tragedy of urban commuter railway lines being turned into trading/housing estates, roads, innovation centres and test tracks that is STILL going on in this decade in Dudley.
They beat buses for speed and comfort.
In fact, 95% of bus stops are request stops but the tram MUST STOP at every tram stop.
Trams beat buses for speed only when you have the former mainline railway turned into a tramline running parallel to the traffic choked A41 between Wolverhampton and Brum. Even then, the average speed is only 15.5 mph for the trams and 12 mph for the vehicles.
Comfort is also a misnomer when my posterior comes to a sudden juddering halt as I sit on a tram seat with only a thin piece of cotton between my bum and the very hard plastic seat!
I think it is a good investment in local infrastructure.
Such a good investment that in over 40 years of rebuilding the tram network on the railway network, we still have only ONE tramline between Brum and Wolverhampton St Georges Sq, not even to the bus station, let alone the railway station. 200 Kms was promised by 23 years ago. What a truly pathetic performance for the hundreds of millions spent and £15 BILLION MORE by 2040!
Such a good investment that the 2nd Brum mainline, after 40 years, is no longer to get trams but is still awaiting its commuter trains and the 3 stations (Kings Heath, Moseley and Stirchley) - now delayed 12 months!!
Such a good investment that all work on current Metro extensions (£1.3 billion) have had to be suspended or curtailed, since 12 mths ago.
FROM Nick:
The original trams ran in the roads. The new trams mostly reuse disused railway lines, keeping them apart from the buses, cars and bikes. SELF: A right ol' mix up, in fact. If they had maintained the old tram network then the roads would have had to be changed. Buses were a better alternative at the time. SELF: All other European nations modernised their tram networks over the years. Eccentric England, once again. England always has to be the odd one out in Europe.
The train network was cut as it was uneconomic. If it had not been cut then the rail network would probably not exist at all today. SELF: Beeching was right but he did not expect his closed railway lines to be wiped off the face of the earth. How very foolish! What idiocy!
As for the seats, I'm sure Linda or Jayne can design you a very comfortable, personalised, reusable, maybe even recycled cushion.
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