Off the rails
IRRESPECTIVE of the Government’s political colour, the result is the same – Ministers in denial about the scale of congestion in Leeds and the need for urgent action to help keep people on the move. After Labour abandoned the much-vaunted Supertram scheme, it appears that the coalition now has little intention of giving the green light to the cheaper Trolleybus project, even though the costs have been significantly reduced.
While the Department for Transport suggests that other projects will yield far greater value for money, this fails to take account of the fact that the Trolleybus venture would not require upfront funding – and that its successful introduction would help preserve Leeds’s status as an important financial centre.
Given that Leeds is one of the largest cities in Europe without a rapid transit system, the question to Transport Secretary Philip Hammond is a simple one: what is your message, Minister, to those Leeds commuters delayed every-lengthening traffic jams each day, or those railway commuters forced to stand on dangerously overcrowded trains? His response is awaited with interest.