Saturday, November 01, 2008
First published : Leicester Mercury
A multi-million-pound tram system could take passengers from a new eco-town into the city centre in 15 minutes, new plans show.
A map produced by the Co-op, which wants to build a 15,000-home town south-east of Leicester, shows the route a tram could follow.
There are seven stops in the proposed eco-town, known as Pennbury.
These are followed by stops at Oadby university campus, Stoneygate, Knighton Park Road, Leicester University, Leicester Railway Station and Charles Street.
The plans also show how the tram network could be extended in the future, to serve Oadby and Wigston.
Another extension could be built to the north, along the A6 towards Loughborough.
The Co-op has estimated that the basic tram network would cost about £300 million, with another £100 million needed for the extension to Wigston.
A segregated tram line would run parallel to Gartree Road, then would share with bus lanes on the A6.
The Co-op estimates there would be between 10 and 12 trams an hour, each carrying a maximum of about 190 passengers, as in Nottingham.
It would take just over nine minutes to travel through the eco-town, and then just over 15 minutes to travel to Charles Street.
Trams would be given priority at the junction of the A6 with the A563 at Oadby racecourse.
London Road, outside Leicester`s railway station, would need to be redesigned to provide a tram stop and an interchange. The bridge across the railway tracks at the front of the railway station might need to be replaced to make it strong enough to carry a tram.
Councillors have raised concerns that the cost estimates are not realistic.
Coun Nicholas Rushton, county council cabinet member for transport, said: "I would have thought that £300 million would be the absolute minimum.
"The thing about the tram system is it is essential if the town is passed out there, but how you get it into Leicester I don`t know.
"How do you get it into the city centre without demolishing the whole of London Road?"
Coun Peter Coley, city council Liberal Democrat group leader, said: "How realistic is this figure? A tram system in Nottingham cost much more than this."
Coun John Boyce, leader of Oadby and Wigston Borough Council, said a link to the borough would be "important".
Ruairidh Jackson, head of planning and property strategy for The Co-operative Group, said: "The calculations we`ve done, we think, are fair and accurate.
"The Nottingham tram route was wholly in the urban area and when you are laying a tram onto an existing road system it is very expensive per square metre.
"The difference for us is that more than a third of the total route from the town to the city will be on our own land."
City council bosses have said that the project could be feasible with cash from the Government and the Co-op.
The Co-op says it could contribute about £40 million towards the tram project, plus £5 million for its development.
Leicester City Council says it would expect a contribution of about £225 million to come from the Government.
This would leave the council needing to find just £35 million for the project, which bosses say is within reach.