"Dave Arquati" wrote in message
...

"tim" wrote in message
...

"Dave Arquati" wrote in message
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Just seen this story online:
http://makeashorterlink.com/?N5BE22DA5

When did this project surface and why haven't we heard anything
about it
before?

Because you haven't been reading in the right place.

These ideas for 'south to central london' trams have been around for a
few
(6 or more) months, though this particular route to the city looks
new. I
guess that something Ken has done is encouraging them.

Well Cross River Transit from Peckham and Brixton to Camden and King's
Cross
I knew about since it's been around for ages and is well advanced. South
*west* London to the centre is all new to me.

A tram good idea?

IMHO it's a stupid idea. If the routes are overground then they will
get stuck in the traffic just like the buses and if they are
underground
the'll be prohibitively expensive. If a dedicated route is the
solution
then why not just build one for buses, it will be cheaper and much
more flexible

Tim

See the Croydon tram. Dedicate the route to *trams* not buses and you
have a
high capacity, less polluting, more attractive route.

90% of this is on segregated, previously under-utilised, railway
alignments.
I don't see how it can be comparable?

True... but isn't the principle of segregation the same whether its on old
railway alignments or not? Segregate an on-road tram and its route still
doesn't have any cars in it. The disadvantage on road is that there are more
crossings and access problems; the advantage is that you can use the
segregated portion for other public transport too, i.e. buses.

We already have bus lanes so by a "dedicated route" I assume you mean
something more than just a lane on the road. If you have a dedicated,
generally traffic-free route for buses, and the buses are full up, it's an
obvious next step to introduce trams since they are more attractive and
higher capacity - you cater for the overcrowding as well as allowing for
further growth, and even creating it since people are more likely to make a
journey by tram than bus.

Dave Arquati
Imperial College, SW7