Saturday 14 November 2009

OFFICES OR TRAM SYSTEM

Conwy County Borough Council and some of it’s more clever Councillors believe that Colwyn Bay is finished as a tourist town; in their eyes they see fit to take advantage of the downturn by turning the Town into an Administration Centre. Using the Regeneration Grant to feather the Council’s nest is such an easy way out; but what about the people of Colwyn Bay?, what about the businesses and what about the future?.
With a little bit of thought and some practical ideas Colwyn Bay can be put back on the map. If we used the Regeneration Grant, in association with other grants and private funding that is available and waiting, we could implement the proposal to run a Tram System from Old Colwyn all the way through to Llandudno and beyond. There are now enough influential parties who agree with me and have expressed their interest in the project that it concerns me why the Regeneration Board are not amongst them. If people like David Jones MP, Arriva Buses and Trains, Mostyn Estates, Colwyn Bay Civic Society and a host of other individuals are keen on this idea why, in heavens name, aren’t the Council and the Regeneration Board?.
Of course we would have to regenerate the Town itself, I put that in under a different proposal, the Town would need an attraction such as a week-end market and we have all the activities with watersports and jet-skiers, join them all together and we will have a thriving town again. The Tram System will not only be a Tourist Magnet in itself it will ferry them up and down between here and Llandudno, a saviour for both places.
We have to stop CCBC and it’s inept County Councillors from selling Colwyn Bay down the river, they need to look at this Tram System with new eyes, their old and antiquated ways of doing things are in the past, we have to look to the future and that includes sustainable modes of transport that are emission free, cheap to run and environmentally friendly.
The Council and Councillors, for once, need to look at what is best for the people and not for themselves.

9 comments:

councillor Blog said...

Whilst I agree that regeneration is the prime requirement I do not think that the tram system would be practical. The main question would be what route, road or land would it run on? It could not be mixed with traffic on the narrow roads that we have inherited from the Victorians and to prepare another route would be totally impossible, or at the very least expensive and uneconomic.

John Oddy said...

Councillor Blog,
Mostyn Estates have already drawn up plans for Llandudno, they were agreed just over 10 years ago, from Llandudno to Colwyn Bay Mostyn Estates have agreed the best route would be through Bodafon fields to the top of the Little Orme and then down the old cart track on the right hand side next to the Garden Centre. There would be minor road works at the bottom, by the roundabout, and the route would continue from there on to the promenade where it would run all the way to Rhos Point, at this point it would, for a very short distance, join the main road and run to the information centre then back onto the promenade to Victoria Pier; up into Town and then back on the prom to the park.
The route itself is simple, what we have to remember that this system uses Kinetic Energy and therefore requires stopping points (stations) to recharge the magnets, a 30 second charge is adequate but 60 seconds is better and this is done through low level connectors below platforms.
A train company in the midlands already uses this system for it’s off-peak services between Stourbridge and Stourbridge Junction, they are considering expanding it to other lines. The system can be adapted to run on existing train tracks but the independent track it runs on requires very little construction work and could easily run on the surface but, for safety, it is obviously better run at ground level.
Costing, for the entire system is in the region of £150m but with private investment and grants we, Llandudno AND Colwyn Bay would be looking at putting in just 10% of that figure, the link below shows you the funding available.....
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/ltp/major/majorschemeguide/majorguidemain?page=1#a1001

Anonymous said...

Well you know my views but you dont see fit to print on your comment board theres more to Colwyn Bay than an out dated Tram system.
Lucinda Crimp.(Mrs)

councillor Blog said...

Mostyn Estates may well have agreed a route. They did so with the proposed Park and Ride from Bodafon Fields into Llandudno. The whole idea was,however,flawed from the outset as they failed to take account of peak times, possible traffic problems and a multitude of other matters. One major problem was the physical number of people to be moved in a limited time frame with low passenger trams. This would have required one tram every 40 seconds at such times!

As an "attraction" running similar to a bus route the financial viability would have to be very carefully calculated. Its effect on other transport services would also have to be seriously considered. What appears a good idea initially can often turn out to be a potential white elephant. Good idea but I think a non-starter.

Carneades said...

The return of any sort of tram system to Llandudno and Colwyn Bay is exactly what we need for a whole host of reasons, not least being the advantages of a cleaner transport system, the immense pulling power of a tram system (wherever a new system is created they become heavily used). their potential to run on rail track on little-used lines, such as the Conwy valley route, the tourist attraction potential (they do wonderfully in places like Blackpool and the Isle of Man) and their significant advantages over buses.

It's true that a different route to the original would have to be planned, but there is scope for change and one has to wonder why there's been no word from the committee in front of whom this has been sitting for almost a year.

Anonymous said...

Off topic/ Whats your thoughts on the BNP becoming the new UKIP.
Mr Oddy.

John Oddy said...

Councillor Blog,
I apologise if I misled you, no route has been agreed; Mostyn Estates put in a proposed route for Llandudno over 10 years ago that ran the length of Mostyn Street but that was 10 years ago, no new route has yet been finalised.
The tram system would not be instead of buses but as well as; it may mean there is a lesser need of buses on certain routes but that would be all. The cost of running a tram from Colwyn Bay to Llandudno would be approx 47p, this would rise to 67p with full occupancy, I do not know what it would cost in fuel for a bus but I would think it is considerably more than that. If you also take into consideration the emissions of each mode of transport the tram has zero, in an age where sustainable transport is hugely important we have to start looking at alternatives.
It appears the MD and Regional MD of Arriva view the system differently from you, instead of affecting other forms of transport they think it will enhance them and have asked for a demonstration, both running on independent track and, with the wheelbase widened, running on train tracks.
I admit this system may seem “futuristic” to some people but that is where we have to look for the solutions to our problems; this system is sustainable, is energy efficient, has zero emissions and is inexpensive to run. At full capacity a tram carries 60 passengers, just over 1p per person travelling from Colwyn Bay to Llandudno, how many other forms of transport gives you that sort of economy?.

John Oddy said...

Anon 21.20,
You are off topic.
I don't have one.

Anonymous said...

More support from people of the right direction then I shall pick up the batton to lead from the front.
Lucinda Crimp. (Mrs)