Forward Thinking In Liverpool
As a Londoner, I have always been fascinated with the City’s transport system. I have watched it develop and grow for over sixty years, from the days of trams and trolley buses through the classic Routemaster buses and the birth of the Victoria Line to the present day. London always seemed to have some sort of plan, even if sometimes some of them like the Bakerloo Line extension to Camberwell don’t get implemented and some like bendy buses were a mistake. In some ways one of the best parts of London’s transport system, that has grown over these years has been its coherent and understandable non-electronic information system, which is second to none in the world.
When I first went to Liverpool in the 1960s, the local train system was old and decaying and although the buses were generally younger than most of London’s, the only way to find how to get to different parts of the city, was find out your bus route before you started. It was the same in London in those days, but now generally turn up at any bus stop, train or Underground station in the capital and want to go a particular tube station and you can easily find the route.
Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and most of our large cities, still have public transport systems that are fairly incomprehensible to a visitor, who perhaps just wants to get to the hospital to see their Auntie Gladys.
I have never seen something as basic as a decent pedestrian or bus route map at a bus stop outside of the capital.
Could London’s obvious superiority in this area and others in particular, be down to London having an overall transport body, whose origins go back almost a hundred years? Part of Transport for London’s genes say that you must make the best of what you’ve got and that all design must be top class, even if you can’t afford the best architects and designers.
Most conurbations outside London don’t have overall transport bodies with such a heritage. They also often seem to allow the train and bus companies to go off in their own directions, rather than one that is best for everyone.
As an example, ask any visitor to London, how many bus companies there are. They will probably say one. Which is not true as there are several, who each run a number of routes to the same rigid standards laid down by Transport for London. How many areas outside London have a joined-up transport system?
Merseyside is slightly different, in that many of the local rail routes are run under the name of Merseyrail, in much the same way as the London Overground. It is system that seems to serve the city and its visitors well.
I was pleased to see on Global Rail News, that Liverpool is developing a thirty year rail plan. Here’s the first part.
The Liverpool City Region has worked with Network Rail to draw up a 30-year plan to improve passenger and freight rail links.
The Long Term Rail Strategy outlines 12 high-priority rail projects for the city and surrounding area designed to improve both suburban and intercity rail services.
Are other cities so forward thinking? I shall get hold of their plan and explore it.
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