Re: Re: Adelaide
  prescottt

Thank you Mal. I think they are very professional observations from one who incorrectly describes himself as "amateur"!

The Glenelg line is a lady in waiting - it's time will come. Meanwhile they should practice beefing up the performance. Re Colley Terrace, that's just the link. You need to go a little further north to around the mouth of the creek to see the development both sides. I think these people would all be using the bus at the moment (or driving!).

The plans for the new extensions show that AdMet has learnt the lesson about the need to put platforms on the side rather than in the centre. However they don't seem to have gone as far as your suggestion (staggered platforms, each on the far side of the intersection), which, furthermore, is also the better solution to the lateral space (occupying road width) problem that they incorrectly used centre-island platforms to "solve" (to the detriment of the operation). Hong Kong uses some staggered platforms on street, to enable preservation of road lanes, on the Tuen Men, you might have a look next time you're there.

Tony P
---InTramsDownUnder@..., <mal.rowe@...> wrote : Hi Tony,

That's fair comment on the Citadis - I didn't see how they handled loading.
However, the Flexities are certainly slow loaders with a large crowd.

My feeling, as I've said, is that the Glenelg line is a relatively stagnant performer, not fully tapping into the big development at the western end of the Anzac Highway just a couple of blocks away, where people are making use of the faster bus. I think the line needs to be rejigged to tap into this and take over the role of the bus a bit more proactively, as well as putting serious effort into hauling ass in order to attract more people. T


The Colley Terrace development is very close to the tram line - and there are already bus stops there. As others have said, I don't see any justification for taking the trams out of Jetty Rd and putting them in Anzac Pde.

As you said (somewhere else) the current reserved track line serves an area with little new development and that means a lack of growth in patronage. When and if Adelaide has some economic renewal and starts to grow it's possible that we will see the higher density housing that has driven some of Melbourne's growth. However, Colley Terrace is not that sort of development and it is already close to the tram line.

In terms of 'easy improvements' I would nominate moving all the city stops to the side of the road after the traffic lights. At the moment, when a tram does eventually load and get the doors closed it has to then wait for the next light cycle. Moving the stops to after the lights would allow immediate departure.
It would also mean that the island platforms would only have passengers on them going in one direction. They are quite congested now in peak periods.

Meanwhile, here's a pic for Greg S - grassed track in a city with limited water.
http://tdu.to/205_VictoriaSquare_14Mar2017.jpg http://tdu.to/205_VictoriaSquare_14Mar2017.jpg

Mal Rowe - amateur observer