Committee
Airdrie-Bathgate Railway and Linked Improvements Bill Committee, 18 Sep 2006
18 Sep 2006 · S2 · Airdrie-Bathgate Railway and Linked Improvements Bill Committee
Item of business
Airdrie-Bathgate Railway and Linked Improvements Bill: Preliminary Stage
I understand the point that you do not operate bus services and that that is a matter for local authorities. However, you want to build the railway line. People in villages along the route are concerned that their bus services might be reduced because of the railway. Have you considered that matter in your discussions with local authorities?
In the same item of business
The Convener (Phil Gallie):
Con
Good morning, everyone. I formally open the fourth meeting in 2006 of the Airdrie-Bathgate Railway and Linked Improvements Bill Committee. This is our third ...
Janis Hughes (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab):
Lab
Good morning. Will the railway noticeably reduce road congestion? If so, how?
Tom Hart (Scottish Association for Public Transport):
It depends what you mean by noticeably. With big projects, it takes some time for the full results to become apparent. A lot of people are unaware that, last...
Robert Samson (Passenger Focus):
We support the Scottish Association for Public Transport's comments. Many factors encourage modal transfer from car to train, one of which is park-and-ride f...
Janis Hughes:
Lab
Are the park-and-ride proposals adequate? Are you happy with the number of car parking places at each proposed station?
Robert Samson:
We are satisfied with the proposals for most of the proposed stations. We know that more than 300 spaces have been identified for Drumgelloch, for example, b...
Tom Hart:
We agree that a significant increase in car parking spaces is needed, particularly at stations with the most frequent services. Network Rail has produced a r...
Janis Hughes:
Lab
You have pre-empted my next question. I was going to ask whether the scheme will maximise for local communities the potential that exists for good integratio...
Tom Hart:
I must reply no to that, partly because legal difficulties are involved in rearranging bus services, although those difficulties are not insuperable. Indeed,...
Robert Samson:
We recognise the legal difficulties with integrating bus and rail, but there should be a one-ticket solution on this line. There should be initiatives such a...
Tom Hart:
I want to add a point about what integration means in practice. You are talking about integrating rail with other modes of transport, but in our evidence we ...
The Convener:
Con
On peak-time pricing, you suggest that there are arguments—which do not fall within the remit of the committee—in relation to peak-time travel on the roads. ...
Tom Hart:
It depends on the package. If there were also peak pricing on road travel, I suspect that some people would prefer to use the car park, which would be cheape...
The Convener:
Con
I accept that, but I was asking specifically about car parking. We are trying to get people to come to railway stations to join the train. Would higher car p...
Tom Hart:
On their own, with no change in road pricing, they would deter some people, but they might also make them shift to another car park that is not as congested ...
Robert Samson:
Mr Hart referred to Network Rail's route utilisation strategy, which is out for consultation. One of its options for consideration is car parking charges. As...
Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab):
Lab
What advantages does the proposed railway offer that improved bus services do not in increasing wider access to job markets, increasing inward investment and...
Tom Hart:
Better bus services are as yet nowhere near offering the journey times that rail can offer, particularly for people who are within easy walking distance of a...
Cathy Peattie:
Lab
In answer to earlier questions, you spoke about access. What would you like the promoter to do to improve and encourage sustainable access to stations for pa...
Tom Hart:
There is mention of walking and cycle access, but our impression is that much more money is being allocated to improve the car parks. You might argue that we...
Cathy Peattie:
Lab
Given your answer, would you support additional stations at Plains and Blackridge?
Tom Hart:
Our evidence focuses on the need for good connections to the proposed new stations and the relocated ones. We discussed that again in our committee, and we r...
Cathy Peattie:
Lab
If stations are not placed in Plains and Blackridge at the start, might it not be more difficult to argue for them in the future?
Tom Hart:
I do not think so. On the Ayrshire line from Glasgow, which is the one I normally use, a number of stations were shut after the Beeching report, but most of ...
Robert Samson:
My local station in Lanarkshire is Shieldmuir, which Strathclyde Passenger Transport reopened a few years ago. The number of stations that have been reopened...
Cathy Peattie:
Lab
If the plan goes ahead with a view to opening the additional stations that people are arguing for at Blackridge and Plains in the future, will it mean that t...
Robert Samson:
Over the years, we have been contacted by a number of organisations that want stations in their local communities, some of which have been successful. Such s...
Alasdair Morgan (South of Scotland) (SNP):
SNP
Will the promoter's passenger forecasts be reasonably accurate? Will the pattern of services and stops that is suggested be attractive to the people who are ...
Robert Samson:
Experience has shown—particularly since the recent reopening of Bathgate and Larkhall stations—that patronage forecasts tend to be on the negative side. Lark...
Tom Hart:
It is important to have a range of forecasts, because they are influenced by the assumptions that one makes about road pricing, for example, and whether ther...