Edinburgh to use Luas as model

Navan Junction

Irish Times
By Marie O'Halloran
26/07/2006

Dublin's Luas transport system is a very successful light-rail model for Edinburgh to follow, according to Scotland's minister for transport Tavish Scott.


Mr Scott is in Dublin on a two-day visit to meet transport agencies and to see how the Luas is operating in advance of the construction of a similar tramline in the Scottish capital.

After meeting the chief executive of the Railway Procurement Agency (RPA), Frank Allen, Mr Scott described the Luas as an "exemplar for us to follow", with two million passengers a year and operating at a surplus financially.

A major investment is under way in Scottish rail transport in the wake of devolution, including the construction of its first tramline at a cost of £375 million (€548.9 million).

It will run from Edinburgh's port area of Leith right across the city centre to the airport.

Work starts next year after legislation was passed in June. Tenders are being sought for basic infrastructure, including tracks and trains, and the line is expected to go into operation in 2011.

Mr Scott, a member of the Scottish Liberal Democrats who represents the Shetland Islands, will today meet Department of Transport general secretary Julie O'Neill and Iarnród Éireann management to discuss Irish rail development plans.

Scottish rail plans also include the re-opening by 2010 of the Edinburgh train line to the Scottish borders, which has been closed since the 1960s. A rail line between Glasgow city and airport is scheduled for completion in 2009 and a rail link between Edinburgh city and its airport is expected in 2011.

Mr Scott said the RPA was "keen to show us the integration between Luas, bus services and mainline rail".

© The Irish Times

Diaspora

Dublin's Luas transport system is a very successful light-rail model for Edinburgh to follow, according to Scotland's minister for transport Tavish Scott.

Operationally yes it is a good model but one must feel that given the way that they delivered the parliment buildings at 3 times the original budget Luas construction cost overruns and cigerette box mathematics will be no difficulty to them.

Hopefully the lines in Edinburgh will actually meet in the middle.

Zebra3

Navan Junction wrote:

Mr Scott said the RPA was "keen to show us the integration between Luas, bus services and mainline rail".

Pity they couldn't show them the integration between Luas and Luas.

bryanw

Diaspora wrote:

Hopefully the lines in Edinburgh will actually meet in the middle.

Looks like the lines will be connected. I don't know, it doesn't seem like 2 separate lines like LUAS though - more of a loop..., so maybe that's how they are getting around it.

Maybe they could even use the name "LUAS".

silverharp

Diaspora wrote:

Hopefully the lines in Edinburgh will actually meet in the middle.

Is that such a big fault with the Luas, given that they are both southside routes into town, I don't see that them meeting in the middle is such a big deal.

Diaspora

It is under two situations

1 When as a southside resident the Luas in naff all use to you because you want to go to the shopping core around Henry St and live in Ranelagh

2 When you buy a ticket from Tallaght to Charlemont and get dragged off it by an inspector who doesn't understand how the Luas ticketing system actually works.

I was in London this day last week and started at 9am in Gravesend in Kent with two further superficial site visits in SE6 and SE4 with a 1200 made in Westminster before a 1415 in Clapham followed by a 1545 in Islington and finally a 1730 in Heathrow.

Compare that type of system of integration to an administation that had not the balls to put a tram line down Dawson St

greyed

Zebra3 wrote:

Pity they couldn't show them the integration between Luas and Luas.

lol, brilliant:D

Hagar

Navan Junction wrote:

It will run from Edinburgh's port area of Leith right across the city centre to the airport.

Imagine that, it's going to run to the airport, why didn't we think of that? :mad:

Red Alert

i hope they don't use the ticketing machines as a model, because they are terrible.

A Dub in Glasgo

Hagar wrote:

Imagine that, it's going to run to the airport, why didn't we think of that? :mad:

and the Scottish Executive are funding a £600m scheme to totally integrate Edinburgh Airport into the Scottish rail network.

Victor

Mr Scott said the RPA was "keen to show us the integration between Luas, bus services and mainline rail".

hahahhahahahahahhahahahha

Red Alert

the RPA would write great children's fairytales.

Zebra3

Hagar wrote:

Imagine that, it's going to run to the airport, why didn't we think of that? :mad:

Eh, 'we' did. And 'we' dropped it.

I wonder would it have been dropped if the airport had been on the southside? :rolleyes: The perfect time to build a Luas or metro to the airport would have been during Ballymun's redevelopment. Big opportunity missed. :mad: