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Expansions for Scotland's rail network proposed

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najaB

najaB

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Story in today's Press and Journal proposing a link to Aberdeen airport. On my phone at the moment so not sure how well the quotes will work.
City council chiefs have unveiled ambitious £70million plans for a rail link to the airport and new exhibition and conference centre.

This artist’s impression shows the route the new line would take and potential locations for stations.

The heart of the city could be connected to Aberdeen International Airport by a light or heavy railway
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https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/f...sion-of-airport-to-city-centre-link-revealed/
 
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me123

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What utter nonsense. The proposed AECC station (on the image that was made in Microsoft Paint - as professional as I'd expect from Aberdeen City Council) is right next to the main line - surely any sensible person building a station there would build it on the mainline so that people from the Inverness direction could use it? Then again, anyone sensible wouldn't live in Aberdeen...

Instead of throwing £70M at this pipe dream (connecting a declining city to an airport that is losing more than 10% of its passengers year on year), why not just subsidise Stagecoach to run a regular bus service all day and at weekends that links Dyce Station to Aberdeen Airport? This is a multimillion pound replacement for the 727 bus service, and nothing more.
 
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route:oxford

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me123 said:
What utter nonsense. The proposed AECC station (on the image that was made in Microsoft Paint - as professional as I'd expect from Aberdeen City Council) is right next to the main line - surely any sensible person building a station there would build it on the mainline so that people from the Inverness direction could use it? Then again, anyone sensible wouldn't live in Aberdeen...

Instead of throwing £70M at this pipe dream (connecting a declining city to an airport that is losing more than 10% of its passengers year on year), why not just subsidise Stagecoach to run a regular bus service all day and at weekends that links Dyce Station to Aberdeen Airport? This is a multimillion pound replacement for the 727 bus service, and nothing more.
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"Ambitious" would be to dig a T5 style remote-terminal underground shuttle between the Airport and Dyce station as part of the same funding package as re-opening the route to Fraserburgh.

We know from history that refusing funding for infrastructure at a temporary turn-down is a long-term error.
 
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me123

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route:oxford said:
We know from history that refusing funding for infrastructure at a temporary turn-down is a long-term error.
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Surely the infrastructure has to add something, though. This doesn't add anything worthwhile. It doesn't solve the problems with Airport access - e.g. limited access from the West End of the city, it will merely duplicate the existing options. By contrast, a line towards Peterhead and Fraserburgh would be adding something worthwhile.

There are already two (viable - I'll exclude the 27 bus that runs four times a day) public transport options to the airport - the 727 bus (high frequency, low cost, good service to many areas in the city) and the train to Dyce (low frequency, only available on weekdays, only viable from the city centre). Both of these could be improved for a fraction of the cost of this £70M spur. For example, let's fund the 80 bus to run throughout the day and into the weekend. And run the 727 as a more limited stop service to speed up journey times.

Aberdeen Airport does not need a rail spur.
 
47271

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It'll never happen. This is from a council which shows precious little interest in developing public transport normally. A wealthy city of a quarter of a million people with only two railway stations within its boundaries and a wretched bus service run to suit the commercial interests of its operator, hilariously the former local municipal bus company turned rubbish.

Reading between the lines the logic here seems to be: 'Glasgow has a Labour council and wants an airport rail link in defiance of the Scottish Government. We have a Labour council that's even more defiant of the SNP so we want one too.' If the passenger figures don't stack up for a Glasgow link, what hope is there for one at Aberdeen?

As me123 says above, spend the money on getting a railway to Ellon and that might be some use to start to regenerate their faltering economy. They may as well move the airport terminal to its original site by Dyce station as go ahead with this crackpot scheme.
 
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JohnR

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While I agree that its a waste of money that could be better used elsewhere, its not something new thats suddenly been thought up. Previous administrations (including the SNP/LD one) have argued for not a branch line to servce the airport - but completely diverting the Inverness line via the airport!

I think the solution would better be a Bus Rapid Transit system rather than improvements to the existing bus network.
 
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snakeeyes

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A link to Aberdeen airport, complete nonsense, a couple of bendy buses running on a dedicated road inside the airport perimeter from Dyce station to the terminal, if the council own the land, this could be done within a few months, and use the 70M to reopen the line north to Ellon.
 
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och aye

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Speaking of Ellon:

Buchan line can’t suffer from trend of pessimistic figures

Campaigners in favour of re-opening the Buchan rail line say that figures for forecasted passenger numbers can’t be overly pessimistic.
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http://www.ellontimes.co.uk/news/bu...r-from-trend-of-pessimistic-figures-1-4228986
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Edinburgh's new tram-train interchange days away from completion

The Capital’s long-delayed tram-train interchange was revealed today as transport minister Humza Yousaf visited Edinburgh Gateway Station days before its completion.
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http://www.scotsman.com/news/transport/edinburgh-s-new-tram-train-interchange-days-away-from-completion-1-4243104

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me123

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Thrilled to hear it, a worthwhile project that will provide an airport link as well as a valuable park and ride for Inverness. Here's hoping that someone has the common sense to provide a bus link between the station and the airport - I know that sounds obvious, but Aberdeen Airport still hasn't quite worked that one out yet.
 
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route:oxford

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och aye said:
Plans lodged for new Inverness Airport rail station

https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/f...erness-airport-rail-station-have-been-lodged/
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That will be very good.

Will make a very big difference to people of Elgin and all stations to Inverness.

Perhaps it's time to re-open to Lossiemouth?

The platform will be capable of accommodating high-speed trains with five carriages and two engine cars, as proposed by operators Abellio.
Click to expand...

And also capable of accommodating a 442 hauled by a Class 73! (ducks and runs)
 
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route:oxford

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47271 said:
I don't think that one's ever come up on here before! Do you have any particular reason for making the suggestion?
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It pops up from time to time.

"Local" services on the route between Inverness and Aberdeen hasn't really been practical for quite some time due to the single tracking, but with double tracking the opportunities improve considerably.

Lossiemouth is a rather pleasant Morayshire seaside town.

Re-linking it to the national rail network would be a significant offset to any dissapointment over LISH losing out to rail-connected proposed PISH.
 
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me123

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Lossiemouth is a lovely little town with nice ice cream and a beautiful beach. There's a good restaurant (1629) and I'd highly recommend visiting. Sadly, it's not exactly a bustling metropolis. It feels a bit like a ghost town actually; there's very little activity and there's not many other significant settlements nearby.

Whilst my heart would like to see an Inverness-Lossie train service as an extension of the proposed Elgin terminators, my heart knows that it would be nonsensical. The town has a population of 6,800. Moray has an older population than the Scottish average, and Lossie in particular feels like it has a large number of elderly residents. The closure of the RAF base since I left the area probably hasn't helped much.

Very local travellers will continue to use the bus because
1) It's more frequent (20 mins vs hourly)
2) It's probably going to be cheaper (particularly for the bus pass brigade - a high proportion of the population).
3) It takes you into the city centre of Elgin, not just to the rail station which is ten minute walk away

I'm not hugely convinced that there's a huge market for travel to Inverness from Lossie that can't be met with the existing infrastructure.

I don't think the construction costs can really be justified, even though we're just looking at a single track unnelectrified branch line that could probably even use a token signalling system. Aside from that, I don't think the route would be viable unless the Elgin terminator was spending enough
 
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Wookiee

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me123 said:
The closure of the RAF base since I left the area probably hasn't helped much.
Click to expand...

I hope someone's told the servicemen (and their Typhoons) that are still based there that they can wrap up and go home!
 
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jopsuk

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you'd have to take a bulldozer to quite a lot of buildings through Elgin and built a station in the middle of what's now a park in Lossie.
 
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route:oxford

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jopsuk said:
you'd have to take a bulldozer to quite a lot of buildings through Elgin and built a station in the middle of what's now a park in Lossie.
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Mostly industrial buildings that essentially rely on occupancy to remain standing following the revision of business rates in Scotland.

A park with a slim station alongside - makes me think of Henley.
 
47271

47271

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route:oxford said:
It pops up from time to time.

"Local" services on the route between Inverness and Aberdeen hasn't really been practical for quite some time due to the single tracking, but with double tracking the opportunities improve considerably.

Lossiemouth is a rather pleasant Morayshire seaside town.

Re-linking it to the national rail network would be a significant offset to any dissapointment over LISH losing out to rail-connected proposed PISH.
Click to expand...
Granted we read an awful lot of it on this forum so I should know, but what is rail connected pish?
 
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380101

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me123 said:
D'Oh, of course :oops:

But I understand that the numbers have nevertheless reduced at Lossie.
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incorrect. they have increased as the typhoons moved in from Leuchars and the new maritime patrol planes will be there in a few years time aswell
 
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route:oxford

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47271 said:
Granted we read an awful lot of it on this forum so I should know, but what is rail connected pish?
Click to expand...

PISH

Prestwick International Space Hub

Not to be confused with "pish" - which is Scots slang for micturition, being inebriated "pished", or something such as an idea or concept that is not very good.
 
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47271

47271

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route:oxford said:
PISH

Prestwick International Space Hub

Not to be confused with "pish" - which is Scots slang for micturition, or something that is not very good.
Click to expand...
Ha, having used the 'hub' once or twice myself - it's great if you want an insight into what a major UK airport looked like in 1973 - I'm not sure that there's a great deal of difference between the two definitions. :)
 
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