Our London-wide Pamphlet and our latest Newsletter are available as colour pdf's via requests to richard.erta@gmail.com
ERTA is a voluntary association of members of the public who want better public transport and choice to road and vehicle reliance, we want cutting of fossil fuels and we don't buy the Grant Shapps view that the electric vehicle revolution is a panacea. Numbers of vehicles on our roads are rising and the volume of traffic can only be dented if adequate rail-based alternatives are put in situ. Popularism suggests Light Rail (LRT) is an answer and in some dense urban locations like Central London and possibly West London could make a contribution just as Birmingham, Manchester and other large cities across the country. However, getting more freight on the rails has to be tailored - can LRT cater for such? Freight is often seen as block container loads, whereas new markets for parcels, post, pallets by rail can be done out-of-hours and use the same infrastructure. Freight Multiple Units was once something mooted but under funded to develop properly. If it is not steel wheels on steel rails, if it is rubber, it is a bus?! How many give up the car for a bus whereas would use a train?
In M25 to radial growing urbanisation areas like St Albans, Watford, Potters Bar and Stansted via Harlow, extending the Underground Network may lend itself to serve intermittent places like London Colney, Bushey and Potters for example. Hertfordshire north of M25 needs a joined up conventional rail choice able to utilise rail for more passenger and freight off roads choices. Government found £27 billion for new roads, but cannot provide funding for rejoining links of a heavy rail kind and even its Reverse Beeching Fund is a mere £500 million for the whole nation! If lands are not retained, opportunities will be lost. If ideas are not studied, cases which could be made will be lost.
Likewise in West London:
a. Could the Southern Heathrow Link be extended to link with Old Oak Common Interchange and via a new tunnel link with the Chiltern Main Line?
b. Could that West London new north-south link enable out-of-hours freight from Southampton and Portsmouth bypass busy London routes and enable more off roads?
c. If we don't get designs and crucially capacity right, we lock-in overcrowding on and off the rails.
Please have a perusal and give support where you may. We welcome feedback, local knowledge, solutions to challenges and delivery maps and pathways please.
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