"u n d e r a c h i e v e r"
wrote in message
news:slrnd42cma.1256.takeme2yourNOMORESPAMPLEASE@n ewred.gradwell.net...

Although it's a nice idea, TfL have already looked at
this and concluded that it would require far too much
subsidy to run - it would need the biggest subsidy per
passenger of any mode of transport in London. I

and it is more reliable and more comfortable than bus, nr or
tube. So it might be more expensive? It is much better,
perhaps that's why.

The problem with the river is that any pier will by its
nature only have half the catchment area of an inland
rail/Tube station.

true, but a high capacity boat service from the east end to
westminster would have cost a minute fraction of the cost of
the J L E. And journey times would not be appreciably
longer. I frequently use the boat instead of the jubilee,
even though the pier is a longer walk than the tube. This is
because the boat offers a vastly better service for a very
small premium.

How many passengers (seated and standing) does a high capacity boat
take compared to a JLE tube train ?


A cheaper (or fully integrated) system, with 10 min
frequencies, would probably pull in more people ... and in
doing so would reduce overcrowding on other modes. Perhaps
the biggest boon would be to put the current approx. 20min
at peak frequency services from Thames Clippers on the
tube/London connections map. It's a great service and most
people simply don't know about it and hence don't consider
it when planning journeys.


On this very last point, however, I think potential passengers might
show interest initially, but then be put off when they realise their
travelcard only gives them 1/3 off the fare, rather than fully
inclusive on their travelcard (like the tube and buses are).
Not only that, but the increased wait times, having to wait up to 19
minutes for a boat, and in the time they've waited for the boat, they
could have reached their destination already by tube or bus. Even on a
10 minute frequency, you could be waiting up to 9 minutes, and still
got to your destination quicker by tube or bus.