Birmingham Transport

[blahblahv2]

Originally Posted by daj

The unit was built with a cafe/restaurant in mind.

I thought I'd seen that too, but wasn't sure if I'd dreamt it or something.

With the increased footfall on Moor Street, it's got to be starting to look a little more attractive to someone now, surely?

[morestoreysplease]

As Druckers lost their Pallasades unit, maybe here? And Druckers would suit an Edwardian station?

[DBadger]

More new buses for NX:WM:

http://wmbusphotos.com/NXWM/0501-0718/804.html

[SimonTheSoundMan]

Druckers are almost bankrupt. I don't think they want to experiment right now with unknown locations.

[nigeman]

Could be wrong but I thought they had lined up Weatherspoons when they first built it, I still think a pub could work, there is an excellent one in Sheffield station.
With regard to footfall, I have always found the area pretty busy till mid evening, not just the station, but car parking beyond and students back and forth to Aston and B'ham Metropolitan, nearby Travelodge and Hotel la Tour and now Eastside park.
As been mentioned must be sky high rent, because for me this is an increasingly attractive site.

[Typhoon2000]

3 overcrowded services in the top ten, and you tell me that HS2 isn't justified....

1) 07:44 First Great Western Henley-on-Thames to London Paddington - load factor 180%

2) 07:32 South West Trains Woking to London Waterloo - load factor 164%

3) 18:13 London Midland London Euston to Birmingham New Street - load factor 162%

4) 16:48 London Midland London Euston to Birmingham New Street - load factor 160%

5) 06:30 First Great Western Banbury to London Paddington - load factor 158%

6) 07:55 London Midland Stourbridge Junction to Stratford-upon-Avon - load factor 157%

7) 06:23 First TransPennine Express Manchester Airport to Middlesbrough - load factor 155%

8) 18:17 National Express East Anglia London Liverpool Street to Shenfield - load factor 154%

9) 07:14 South West Trains Alton to London Waterloo - load factor 152%

10) 17:46 London Midland London Euston to Birmingham New Street - load factor 152%

Source: Department for Transport, autumn 2011

[SimonTheSoundMan]

Full report: https://www.gov.uk/government/public...land-and-wales

[SimonTheSoundMan]

The overcrowding figures for the ‘top ten’ services are often derived from one-off measurements of the passengers on each train on a particular weekday. They may not be an average representation of overcrowding on the service over a period of time. Furthermore, some of the passenger load numbers are obtained by manual counting and so there is a significant risk of human error. Hence the figures should be treated with extreme caution.

They never learn, even after Beeching.

Just how Dudley railway station was forced to close. The count was conducted on the last train of the day on a late Sunday evening. Numbers were low so Beeching axed the whole entire line.

[hoody]

Shit journey to work.

Car died.

Caught 28 to Erdington Station, despite Network WM saying that N One Day tickets are available on bus they are not. Driver clueless about options.

Erdington station ticket office closed at 8.50am no ticket machine in operation. No indication of what to do in that event.

Got on train
Conductor tried to fine me.

Got off train onto Arriva Wales to Smethwick Galton Bridge to change for Rowley Regis. suddenly told there are no trains running.

Walked to Kenrick Park Metro caught metro - nice journey and pleasant conductor with common sense. Got off at West Bromwich and caught 4 to Blackheath. Any town that prides itself on its bus station is dead to me.

I HATE public transport!!!!!!!!

[i_like_concrete]

It is rather hysterical that for a city that has quite extensive cross city rail links, in reality getting from one side of the city to the other without a car isn't particularly fast or easy.

[Spread]

From Business Desk:

Network Rail schedules £3m of improvements to Hobbit Tunnel



Hobbit Tunnel - home to Bilbo?


NETWORK Rail is to carry out £3m of track improvements to a railway tunnel rumoured to have been Birmingham author JRR Tolkien’s inspiration for the home of favourite hobbit, Bilbo Baggins.

The rail infrastructure company said Tolkien was known to have stayed in the village of Great Haywood, on the edge of the Shugborough estate, near Stafford and there was a possibility the railway tunnel there could have inspired the author to pen the words "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit”.

“There won’t be any hobbits or dwarves deep inside the tunnel this Christmas – but there will be dozens of Network Rail engineers and contractors in their full orange protective clothing,” said Network Rail.

“From late on Christmas Eve to the early hours of January 2 they will be completely renewing all the railway tracks through the tunnel at a cost of about £3m.”

The work is needed to realign the tracks, which naturally move as trains pass over them. Network Rail said the work was particularly important in a tunnel like Shugborough, which is on the busy West Coast Main Line between Rugeley and Stafford.

As well as passenger services, the tunnel is used by freight trains carrying box-shaped containers which are a tight fit through the arch-shaped tunnel.

When the old tracks have been taken away, Network Rail will completely renew the drainage through the tunnel before the new tracks are laid.

The old tracks and the sleepers they are fixed to will not be scrapped. They will be reused elsewhere by Network Rail as part of its commitment to the environment.

“While not suitable for use on a high speed line, they are perfectly good enough on lines with a lower speed, so will be reused in its routine 2013/14 track renewals programme,” it said.

While the work is taking place, the railway line between Lichfield Trent Valley, Rugeley Trent Valley and Stafford stations will be closed from 9 pm on Christmas Eve until 7.30 am on Wednesday January 2.

Train services will be diverted where possible or replaced by road transport so passengers have been are advised to check travel plans with their train operator or online at www.nationalrail.co.uk

[Ashtonian]

Anyone remember the Birmingham Heartlands plan?

Back in the early 90s the Birmingham planners came up with a radical proposal to improve rail capacity in Birmingham. The plan was to construct a brand new station with connecting lines on the Birmingham side of and close to the M6 called Birmingham Heartlands.

BH would have been connected to lines from Wolverhampton and Birmingham International as well as the lines from Burton and also to the SW. All the Inter City and Express trains would have called in at Heartlands. There would have also been high frequency local trains to New Street which would have been renamed as Birmingham Central.

The idea of Birmingham Heartlands was to release capacity at Birmingham Central for more local commuter services as well as appeal to business travellers accessing Birmingham Heartlands from the motorway network.

Anyone of you remember this? if so what became of the idea? 20 years on it doesn't appear to have manifested. Instead there's a HS2 station being planned in the city centre. Amazing how things have changed.

[Brums'grove]

Looks like we have some movement on the new Bromsgrove station and extension of the electrified cross city line.

Transformation of Bromsgrove Railway Station gathers pace
THE multi-million pound transformation of Bromsgrove Railway Station is gathering pace following the launch of a new public consultation on the ambitious proposals.

And new artists’ impressions have been released, showing how the long-awaited new Aston Fields-based station could look.

Last spring the Advertiser reported an agreement on funding for the station, estimated to be around £13 million, had been reached between Worcestershire County Council, Centro, and the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive and Authority.

Finding the funds had previously been the major stumbling block delaying the scheme.

The county council say planning approval will be sought next autumn and, if given the green-light, construction work could begin in 2014 in time for a summer 2015 opening.

The current plan is for the station to be built 200 yards south of the existing one on the site of the old Goods Yard, allowing Network Rail to electrify the line.

Electrification is crucial as this would increase the number of trains to and from Bromsgrove and Birmingham - potential to an extra three per hour.

The plans are for a four platform station connected by a covered footbridge and lifts.

The station could include a ticket desk, toilets, a retail facility and a taxi rank and drop off point.

A 350-space car park is proposed, as well as cycle storage, motorbike parking, and electric car parking with charging points.

The local road network around the station would also be revamped under the scheme.

Station Approach, in New Road, would continue to be the main access road to the station but an existing road off Stoke Road would be improved, becoming a second road entrance, while additional access for pedestrians and cyclists would be available off Garrington Road.

http://www.bromsgroveadvertiser.co.u..._gathers_pace/

[morestoreysplease]

Good stuff This will really improve Bromsgrove's transport connections.

[brumwill]

This would be a great addition to the local rail network. Fingers crossed it gets the go ahead next year.

[sefton66]

2013/2014 will also see a new platform at alvechurch and new tracks from barnt green to redditch to increase capacity

1 20 April 2012: Consultation starts
2 28 May 2012: Deadline for consultation responses
3 Summer 2012: Application submitted
4 Autumn/winter 2013: Application determined
5 Winter 2013: Construction starts
6 Summer 2014: Major works complete
7 Winter 2014: Landscaping work complete

http://www.networkrail.co.uk/Birming..._timeline.aspx

[NewTroll]

Originally Posted by SimonTheSoundMan

They never learn, even after Beeching.

Just how Dudley railway station was forced to close. The count was conducted on the last train of the day on a late Sunday evening. Numbers were low so Beeching axed the whole entire line.

Are you trying to say that politicians will massage figures to justify their (Usually terrible) projects?

They did it when they knocked down so-called 'slums' by sending round people to condemn houses who did not have a clue about buildings, and they did it to justify closing down large chunks of the railway network.

Didn't they replace Dudley Station with a large cargo hub that was never really used as cargo had moved onto the roads?

[NewTroll]

Originally Posted by hoody

Erdington station ticket office closed at 8.50am no ticket machine in operation. No indication of what to do in that event.

The last time I used a train it was to go from my local station in Coventry (Canley) to New Street. The office was shut. We found a machine that you could just stick money in and it gave you some sort of temporary ticket. We didn't know how much it was, so we just guessed. There are no prices anywhere. At New Street we swapped these temporary tickets for proper return tickets... the woman serving should have charged us a load more cash as we got the temporary tickets before 6:30, when prices are peak. She didn't. She just gave us the proper tickets...

[NewTroll]

Originally Posted by SimonTheSoundMan

Druckers are almost bankrupt. I don't think they want to experiment right now with unknown locations.

Where did you read this? I thought they were taken over a few years ago by a company called Patisserie Valerie..?

It wouldn't surprise me if they were. Their stores always look a bit tatty and unappealing. They must be struggling against the likes of Starbucks, Costa and Nero...

I remember a few years back going into a Druckers and asking for a Cappuccino. They didn't do them... These chain places all suck anyway. They can barely be arsed to clear their tables up. There's nothing like clearing someone's half eaten shit away yourself... My nearest Starbucks always has people sitting outside it puffing away on fags. It really does put me off going in.

[daj]

Originally Posted by NewTroll

Where did you read this? I thought they were taken over a few years ago by a company called Patisserie Valerie..?

It wouldn't surprise me if they were. Their stores always look a bit tatty and unappealing. They must be struggling against the likes of Starbucks, Costa and Nero...

I remember a few years back going into a Druckers and asking for a Cappuccino. They didn't do them... These chain places all suck anyway. They can barely be arsed to clear their tables up. There's nothing like clearing someone's half eaten shit away yourself... My nearest Starbucks always has people sitting outside it puffing away on fags. It really does put me off going in.

You are correct. Druckers is owned by Patisserie Valerie. In fact PV's business address is in Hall Green. There are plenty of PV cafe's in the UK, but none in Birmingham because Drucker's replace it. PV cafe's are 'high end' pastry outlets: the type of pastries you only find on the continent. The PV cafe's I have been in are pretty good, but Druckers look rather tired, as if PV can't be bothered to put money into it.