By John Baron
A Calverley & Farsley councillor has labelled one of the proposed tram routes through West Leeds as ‘illogical and unnecessary’.
Councillor Andrew Carter (Calverley and Farsley Ward) said a mass transit system route following the A647 would simply duplicate the already effective number 72 bus route and the Leeds to Bradford railway line.
He was speaking after Chancellor and Leeds West and Pudsey Rachel Reeves last week announced £2.1 billion funding to get spades in the ground on a mass transit system in West Yorkshire by 2028.
- Leeds city centre via Armley, Stanningley, Thornbury and Laisterdyke to Bradford city centre
- Leeds city centre via via Laisterdyke, Pudsey and Wortley to Bradford city centre
- Leeds city centre via Laisterdyke, Pudsey and Armley to Bradford city centre.
Results of a recent public consultation showed public opinion narrowly favoured the Armley, Stanningley, Thornbury and Laisterdyke route, with 55% of respondents supporting or tending to support it.
Speaking to WLD, Cllr Carter said: “I listened intently to the announcements on funding for the tram linking Leeds and Bradford. Pardon me for being cynical, but I have heard these announcements from governments of all political complexions for 25 years.
“A route following the A647 is illogical and unnecessary; it merely duplicates one of the few good bus services we have, the number 72, and the railway connection between Leeds and Bradford, which has a 15-minute service.”
Cllr Carter said it would also involve extensive additional works to the junction at Dawson’s Corner, which has recently seen work start on a £44 million package of improvements.
He added: “The logical route would be the one going into Pudsey, but anyone who physically looks at that corridor realises that is easier said than done.
“Compulsory purchase and property demolition would be inevitable, with all the associated disruption. West Yorkshire Combined Authority should not try and minimise the issues that exist in constructing this tram line, nor the timescale that would be involved.”
West Yorkshire Combined Authority is undertaking environmental and technical assessments on the proposed routes ahead of selecting its preferred scheme later this year. A public consultation on a detailed version of the preferred route is due to be launched early next year.
The first phase of West Yorkshire’s Mass Transit network will create two tram lines – a Leeds Line, running from St James’s University Hospital through the city centre to the White Rose Centre, and a Bradford Line connecting Bradford and Leeds city centres, via West Leeds.
Earlier this week WLD reported on Rachel Reeves’ visit to the Greenside Greenway in Pudsey, where she discussed mass transit with a local campaign group.
- Follow WLD‘s ongoing coverage on the mass transit system here.
Don’t really see any benefits to this transit system. Just more misery for drivers digging up more roads. Plus the poor people who will have to comply with compulsory purchase orders. Altogether another fantastic example of wasting tax payers money surely that money could be better spent on amenities for the thousands of flats being built in leeds at the moment!!!
The councilor should have more concerns over affordable housing than a ridiculous tram, they need to think of our British citizens living on the streets and in poverty rather than wasting public money on tram lines
Not a fan of Carter but many many people have been saying this for years. Sadly the WYCA has hijacked the “Leeds must have trams” campaigners to have a tram to Bradford! Pathetically it’s a purely political decision. A reopened train line from Swinnow to Green side would be brilliant but would cost 100s of millions in compulsory purchases and demolition.
Anyroad. . . whatever happened to the desperately needed tram through Headingley?
The routes are already there with the rail , buses cycle lanes
What is really needed is more stations and rolling stock on rail routes.
But the so called experts need to keep their jobs safe by saying we need this really badly.
Waiting money on Dawsons corner and then putting a separate travel system in place
Total waste of TAX PAYERS MONEY.
Tram system in Sheffield was and still is being paid for by other towns Like Barnsley, Rotherham, and all south Yorkshire rate payers but it is not available from their towns
So other towns are now going to assist in paying for this as I suspect full costs not covered by Government
WYCA don’t give out the full costings stating it is not for public viewing due to commercial issues
We pay so they need to to be transparent about all areas of where OUR Money is going.
The clowns are typically high on the power trips when a project is announced.
I believe the Very Light Rail .. VLR.. system is being looked at? Battery driven and only around £10 million per KM apparently. Way less disruption during installation as it runs off a power line situated just 30cms below existing road level. Currently being developed in Coventry so a boost for GB industry too.
If a mass transit system could be built between Leeds and Bradford for a cost of just £10 million per KM that would put the total cost at roughly £160 million. The stated budget of just the initial 2 lines of the proposed West Yorkshire mass transit system is £2.5 billion. You only have to look at the history of HS2 to realise that these figures are not worth the paper they are written on.
The tram could still come through Pudsey, either minimal compulsory purchase of property. If it came into through center of Pudsey using shared roads, then down Robin Lane and onto the Greenway at Crawshaw school. Only a few properties need to be demolished.
The tram could still come through Pudsey, either minimal compulsory purchase of property. If it came into through center of Pudsey using shared roads, then down Robin Lane and onto the Greenway at Crawshaw school. Only a few properties need to be demolished.
The tram could still come through Pudsey, either minimal compulsory purchase of property. If it came into through center of Pudsey using shared roads, then down Robin Lane and onto the Greenway at Crawshaw school. Only a few properties need to be demolished.
The route through Wortley and Pudsey makes the most sense.
Surely it would be better to connect the airport to the city centre rather than a tram to Bradford which already has a train route.
£487 million down the drain in 2004 and £1 billion in 2001, so we’ve already had £1½ billion spent on the trams without a single piece of track ever being laid. How can a government spend £1½ billion on NOTHING? And now they want to spend another £2½ billion, bringing the grand total to £4 billion.
The tram system would be better served joining all the areas of Leeds together. Keep it within Leeds. That would do much more for the local economy and for mental health than a pointless new route to Bradford, which services far fewer people for the amount of track that would need to be laid. Once you’ve got that, you then have the supporting infrastructure that would make outreach routes to Bradford and Wakefield more sensible.
The current plan stinks and it will fail, too. Personally, i don’t mind, provided that the £4 billion ongoing price tag is paid by the mindless idiots who put this plan forward, not the people of Yorkshire, who are being painfully and abhorrently squeezed already.
Totally waste of money. Once this is all done up and running poor leeds people text will go up. If there is any tram then make it like old times including Seacroft Roundhay CrossGates. Looks like plenty money will go in pockets of Labour councillors £2.1 billion. Either give whole Leeds tram or just call it off.
1 word Boycott Labour future elections.xx
I agree with Councillor Carter 100 percent. Why can’t we have a regular, reliable public transport service that connects Calverley to Farsley, Pudsey and Horsforth? And what about Calverley to Bradford?
It’s unbelievable that Leeds city council has opted for a tram system they have wasted millions on cycle lanes that nobody uses they could have used the same space for tram lines , it’s taken years to do the work to the armley gyratery and it’s still not completed, how long will it take to complete a tram network, we will be into the next millennium before anything is finished