Friday 20 September 2013

Six out of 10 passengers say Metrolink does not offer value for money


More than 60 per cent of Metrolink passengers feel the tram service doesn't offer value for money, says a new poll. And generally, satisfaction with Manchester's tram service has gone down over the last two years, the survey shows. Read more: Manchester Evening News

It is interesting that this article is published today because as I was driving through Droylsden on the way to Manchester this lunchtime I was counting the numbers of people on the trams and at tram stops compared to those on buses and bus stops and there was no denying that at that time more people were using buses than trams, however in the morning and evening rush hour I would imagine more people would opt for the tram - I certainly would if given the choice! 

I find it bizarre how the Metrolink line from Didsbury, Withington and Chorlton is very popular whereas the Droylsden, Clayton line seems underused, but hopefully things will change and the line will reach its true potential when trams start running regularly from Ashton under Lyne. Tameside Citizen 

22 comments:

Tramageddon said...

The tram's expensive. In Didsbury, Chorlton etc people have generally got more money, so its relative affordability is one of the reasons it's more popular. The cost also keeps down the number of plebs on board, not the case on the buses.
The tram's like the wind farms, a virtually useless subsidised white elephant that can only exist at all because it's backed up and propped up by other forms of transport/energy that do all the donkey work.

Anonymous said...

For certain journeys at certain times the tram is a invaluable option. But as I said when they planned it years ago the bus will be cheaper if you use it every day. There is very little between Ashton and Manchester worth stopping for at most times of day. We already have a good train service. People in Droylsden have two main options travel to Ashton or travel to Manchester. Which one has more going on? It don't take that long on the bus. But in rush hour that can be a journey I wouldn't wish on anyone.

If you want to get from Ashton to places like Media city perhaps for work as things are now the train and tram is a great way to do it.

Non-Muslim teachers ‘forced to wear veil’ at faith school said...

This is of course an absolute disgrace, complete insane. YOUR MONEY is subsidizing this loathsome practice.

How I detest the PC establishment which has not had the GUTS to confront this massive problem which if not solved will cause enormous trouble.

The veil - and indeed Shariah Law, if not Islam itself - is TOTALLY alien to British traditions and values (and the Human Spirit), and of course spits on any pretence at "integrating" with the welcoming natives. If this is "multiculturalism", you can stick it, and WE NEVER VOTED FOR IT.

What a wonderful twisted logic it is turning Marxist Feminism on its head in that fanatical Muslim women claim that the Niqab "liberates" them from the need to worry about their appearance to please men!

This has the dumb Marxists stumped into a tacit agreement with the suppression of women by Islamic convention- the chop logic is just wonderful to behold !

"Slavery is Freedom" as Orwell might have said.

But Could Orwell possibly, in his wildest imagination, have imagined the situation we are now in?

Anonymous said...

@ Non-Muslim teachers ‘forced to wear veil’ at faith school

...

All they need to do is refuse to sign the new contract. If they loose their job then take it to a tribunal. There is no legal standing in this country for sharia law and never will be. You cannot force people to wear religious items of clothing. Its a breach of basic human rights and principles and at the very least would lead to constructive dismissal.

Faith of any kind schools should be made illegal. They are places to be educated not indoctrinated.

Anonymous said...

Ban The Burka Petition

http://www.britainfirst.org/ban-the-burka/

4 Stages of Islamic Conquest said...

To hell with banning the burka. Leave them to it and encourage them to wear Burkas. The more burka's around the more obvious the problem becomes to those from our own community who are living in denial with regards to the Islamic conquest of the West. The more they see veiled faces the more they will understand that the vanguard of the army of conquest is constantly growing. The colonisers have no reason to resort to the traditional method of the sword as they know the maternity ward is where the new battle of Britain is being fought and won.

SerpentSlayer said...

I've never liked the tram, in poor places like tameside its an unnecessary frivolity and a complete waste of money. Could the money not have been spent on a food bank for the poor, a heating subsidy for the elderly or a job scheme for young people?
Instead we have a useless train set for people who think they are better than others the aspiring middle classes who I wouldn't waste spittle on in the event of a fire.
Whenever an elderly person does of cold, a young persons life is put on hold to massive psychological detriment or children go hungry or abused, I blame the so-called elected representatives who see fit to shirk their duties in favour of obscene obsolete ideologies.

Anonymous said...

42 minutes of common sense rhetoric on immigration, Europe, welfare, unemployment and the immigration crimewave in the UK.

http://youtu.be/BlhaLnYmIYY

working class, not pretentious, dislikes buses said...

That's a pretty damning analysis there Serpent Slayer. What about people who prefer railed vehicles because they are faster and more comfortable than other forms of public transport?

Motorist said...

What about the 95% who'll never use it but were forced to pay for its construction and who have to suffer its obstructive, noisy presence every day.
The only reason it's sometimes faster is because everything in its path is forced to wait while it trundles past.
As for trains, 40% of the transport budget is wasted on them to move a pthetic 6% of the moving public.

bud bud ding ding move along the bus please said...

As a motorist I have similar feelings about buses. Why should buses have the right to stop at random intervals and disrupt traffic flow behind? Why is road space halved in many places to facilitate bus lanes, bus lanes which are often empty while we motorists sit in endless queues of traffic created by buses and bus lanes. Unlike lumbering and slow buses, trams cause virtually no traffic congestion and I wholeheartedly support a massive expansion of the network, especially if it means fewer buses on main arterial routes.

Relative capacities said...

Trams cause significant traffic congestion whenever they cross or trespass onto existing roadspace (something trains don't do apart from level crossings) as they are given absolute priotity. You're right, there are too many bus lanbes and many bus drivers would agree with you. Buses of course generally flow WITH the traffic without obstructing it.
The 2000 plus buses in Greater Manchester transport massively more than the 120 expensive, low capacity, outdated, inflexible unnecessary trams. All those bus passengers reduce the number of cars.
If the trams were disposed of traffic flow would improve, if the buses were removed there would be gridlock.

SerpentSlayer said...

They maybe faster and comfort but they also cost far more than normal folk can afford on a frequent bases. The buses are a mess near here, the 168 and 231s are routinely late and they are all overpriced, but they are affordable for now.

Anonymous said...

@Motorist

As a motorist (non motorists too) you probably pay for 99.99% of roads which you will never or extremely rarely use.

Its rather selfish to say why should you pay for it and also very typical of many motorists attitudes. We all pay for things we don't personally benefit from but who pays for the things that you benefit. You should try getting out of that bubble on wheels and see how other people live.

Anonymous said...

Trains are also a very important part of our infrastructure. They may only be used by a small percentage of people at 40% of the overall budget (if that figure is fact). The people who use them are often people traveling into towns to spend money or earn it. Many of them are motorists too so there must be a good reason to use them.

Anonymous said...

And that figure of 6% is very misleading. What would the figures be for people traveling in and out of Manchester City centre in peak times for bus, tram and train. And what would happen if they all tried to make that same journey by car. Assuming there would be somewhere to park. Its time motorists were driven out of built up town centres.

Alf Garnett said...

Send all them new comers home that will sort the congestion out and we can all have cars ? scrap all menace public transport and if we send all the foreigner home there.ll be no drivers anyway ? simple ?

Don't worry said...

you could be one of these

Criminals, Traitors and Professional Liars = Labour Politicians said...

Just watching the odious creep Milliband on the news. Talk about a staged photo opportunity. He's stood on a box giving a speech about scrapping the bedroom tax, increasing the minimum wage and creating more child care places. Will anyone actually believe his bullshit or will they remember that all the current problems regarding poverty in this country were created by his party of genuine traitors and criminals?

Breaking news ticker on the bottom of the screen: Gunmen storm shopping centre in Kenya attacking people and actively seeking "European looking people ' in other words white people. Almost certainly Islamists (Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance) but what ever the outcome, and it looks serious, you can get your bottom dollar the race industry lobby will have no comment when poor old whiteys are the targeted victims.

'All Muslims leave... we only want to kill non-Muslims': said...

Gunmen who opened fire at a shopping centre killing at least 25 and injuring dozens more today let Muslims go free if they could prove they were Islamic.


Motorist said...

@ Anonymous 08:13, I want the transport budget spent in reasonable proportion to relative financial input.
The reason the roads are in such an appalling state is because, despite the massive amount of money paid by road users in road tax, fuel tax, insurance tax etc they get a measly 6% of it spent on the road network. Why should the rail infrastructure which does so little of the work and which contributes so little get such a grossly disproportionate amount of the money THEY don't contribute. The last group who could accurately be described as 'selfish' are the motorists, who give so much and get so little in return.
6% isn't misleading it's the overall amount.
More people travel in the rush hour on EVERY form of transport.
AS for driving motorists out of town centres, seeing as 80% of journeys are made by car, town centres would be empty. A theoretical 50% increase in rail usage (a financial, geographical and logistical impossibility) would only result in a 5% fall in car usage such is the massive part of the load taken by the latter. Whatever the transport solution to our vast and exploding population, expensive, rigidly railbound, low capacity rail isn't it, as it can never do more than a tiny part of the work due to its cripplingly expensive infrastructure and inherent inflexibility.

Get OUT said...

A few lunatic savages. The REAL Muslim threat lies in their breeding rate which could give cockroaches and rats lessons.