Re: Trams vs pedestrians in Syd

["Ted Gay" <tedgay@bigpond.com>]

"geoff dawson" <geoffrey.dawson@aph.gov.au> wrote in message
qHZQ6.68$3A6.13921@nsw.nnrp.telstra.net">news:qHZQ6.68$3A6.13921@nsw.nnrp.telstra.net...
> I recently suggested that a reasonable goal for congestion-free street
> public transport in Sydney CBD, after building the cross city tunnel,
would
> be Circular Quay to Central Railway in 8-9 minutes. Someone answered that
> this is unrealistic as even with PT priority traffic management there is
too
> much pedestrian activity.
> Out of curiosity I reran my calculation supposing a maximum line speed of
a
> modest 36kph - surely slow enough for the safety of jaywalkers. Circular
> Quay to Central comes out at 7mins 55 secs. [2400m, accelerate/ brake at
> 1m/sec/sec to 36kph, 9 stops with 15 sec dwell time.]
> With an absurdly low max line speed of 30kph it comes out at 8 mins 25
secs.

The following is a quote from the 1997 EIS for the Light Rail extensions
(page 54):

"Proposed Operating Times in the CBD

The tram would operate at the same speed as other vehicles on the road,
expect [sic] in the Mall, Customs House Square and Farrer Place, where it
would be restriced to 20 kilometres per hour.  A circuit from Central to
Circular Quay and return to Central would take around 27 minutes in the off
peak period and around 31 minutes in the peak period.

Service headway (waiting time between services) would be 2.5 to 3.5 minutes
during peak times, and from 2.5 to 6 minutes at other times.

Proposed Operating Times in the Inner West

The tram would have a maximum speed in the Inner West  of 80 kilometres per
hour and a trip from Catherine Street to Wattle Street would take 5 minutes.
A returm trip from Catherine Street to Central Station would take about 50
minutes.

Frequency of service at peak hour would (be) about every 6 minutes, and
off-peak would be about every 11 minutes."

(End of quote)

>From a table in David Keenan's book 'City Lines' running times are given for
Circular Quay to Railway Colonnade (Central Station) as:

1906    11 minutes
1929    10 minutes on Sundays
1939    12 minutes
1948    13 minutes

Assuming a loop based on the 1948 time would be 13x2 = 26 minutes, this
compares with the proposed light rail times of 27 to 31 minutes.

A conclusion could be drawn that traffic lights slow down the traffic, but
of course there is much more motor traffic on Sydney's streets now than
there was early last century.

After the opening of the WestEx last August, 6 trams were used in service
with headway of 8/9 minutes.  There was a operating rule that trams had to
wait at Wentworth Park and Exhibition Centre for the up/down tram to arrive.
This at times added many minutes to a loop time.  Last month the number of
trams in usual service was reduced to 5, drivers were encouraged to do 45
minute loops for a 9 minute headway.  After a couple of days the controller
announced over the radio that (drum roll) Ted had set a new record for a
loop at 41 minutes (tish boom boom).  Haven't been on day shift for about 10
days and it is rumoured that drivers are being slowed by the controllers to
50 minute loops.

> This tends to confirm my view that today's slower bus travel is mainly
> caused by red lights and traffic congestion, not by the need for low
speeds
> to avoid jaywalkers. The red lights and traffic congestion could be
removed
> by PT priority traffic management.
> Note I am assuming streets much like the present ones, in which
pedestrians
> are meant to walk on footpaths and cross on the WALK sign. I am not
> suggesting a fully shared zone like Melbourne's Bourke St mall in which
> trams crawl through at a walking pace and it is rather unclear who has
right
> of way. I don't think this is very sensible. I suggest that trams in malls
> should be fenced off with frequent breaks in the fence for people to cross
> the line. The fence is not to limit pedestrian mobility, but simply to
> replace the function of the kerb and gutter as a physical warning to
people
> that they should look out and give way when crossing.

Some where (EIS ?) I saw a cross section of Pitt Street Mall where either
side of the tram track tactile tiles would be laid humped to mark the area
of the swept path.  Just before for the Games, through Haymarket a white
line was marked outside of the twin tracks and stenciled trams were marked
in the four-foot.  These lines have been of some help.  But I like the idea
used in Manchester, where the trams run through a pedestrian area paved in
red/brown pavers. Those in the swept path of the tram were changed to grey
as an indication to pedestrians (the trams are also painted grey).

Ted