i think its fair to say that any decision to expand the current network on the iow is a long term project, and one that will not be made any time soon.
the problem is what to do in the short-term, especially as investment and replacement of the current rolling stock is needed within 5-10 years time. I agree with the idea of exploring trams and/or parry people movers as a replacement to the current rolling stock, and install a new loop at brading to enable trains/trams/people movers whatever to run on a 30 minute frequency, or 20 minute during times of high demand.
could ticket barriers be installed at the ryde stations to ensure that everything has purchased tickets - surely there must be a significant number who get through the system, especially if a ticket inspection is restricted to a single carriage.
maybe smallbrook junction could be connected to the nearby road and turned into a park and ride facility for the ryde-portsmouth passenger ferry - plenty of space nearby for car parking and for use as a station down south to sandown etc
Have you ever been to Smallbrook Junction by road? It's in the middle of nowhere.
It is some distance from any semblance of a main road not far from the local athletics track accessed off a lane and some way from the main road between Ryde and Sandown. It is totally impractical to consider it as a park & ride site (or maybe that should be Ride for Ryde!)
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We need to be realistic here - buses between Ryde-Newport-Cowes are far more frequent and carry far more people
all year round than those serving the West Wight. With all the will in the world Yarmouth and Freshwater will not regain a railway service.
I don't think reopening to Freshwater and Yarmouth has ever been seriously suggested, let alone costs investigated - it closed relatively early in 1953 for a reason.
There's a link to a
2001 study suggesting some possible costings for Ventnor, Newport and Cowes on the previous page though they seem a little optimistic...
Yes but Chris things have changed dramatically since 1953. A doubling of the IoW population for a start!
A system largely following the FYN is not that daft except that when you come to Gunville one is stuffed. The obvious is to try and thread a way across to St Mary's/College but linking Carisbrooke High with that would be difficult. They would be the two main traffic generators by volume. The High School for 40 odd weeks in the year, really heavy peaky demand and the hospital/college continual demand but at a lower level.
I am very much behind a tram system for the IoW. To me it is a no brainer. Having lived there since 1964 I've seen the changes and from a traffic point of view it is horrendous. Crap road surfaces, a shed load of traffic - some highly seasonal and never any money to carry out serious road maintenance.
Not for nothing did IoWCC put up the signs 'Island roads are different' near to ferry terminals. Too right they are! By comparison (and the serious underfunding of all LA roads in the UK) the gap now between 3rd world IoW and the 2nd world mainland has narrowed considerably than what it was in the 1970's I can assure you, but in the long run having a transport system that provides access to the main corridors is the obvious way to go. Sadly I can't see there being the money to do so and thus this wretched situation will continue.
Car drivers don't generally like buses, so switching is not 'natural'. Car drivers prefer train/tram like systems. Luckily or otherwise it doesn't bother me. I started using buses at 5 when I was in Sheffield and regularly commuted from St Helens then Cowes to Ryde for school and later to Carisbrooke from Cowes and Brighstone. But I did grow up in the era when getting a car was considered important and I think that influenced a lot of people and thinking.
As mentioned in a previous post the loss of Freshwater - Newport, Cowes, Newport - Ryde, Newport - Sandown and Shanklin - Ventnor were bad decisions and have contributed to the mess we are in today on the Island. I don't think a heavy rail system would have survived but conversion to even diesel or lpg powered tram might have been an answer.
It would have been so easy. Carisbrooke station close to the High School (allowing the closure of West Wight secondary modern, which did happen), perhaps a station/halt for what was Medina High on the way to Ryde. It may also have helped get more children to Sandown by rail from the Arreton valley area.
Some reduction in large buses would have been possible. Because of the school traffic Vectis keep a large fleet of deckers as operating smaller vehicles just ups the cost base when they need the volume. Not much point keeping a load of smaller vehicles when you need 70 odd seaters to take a bunch of pubescent neanderthals home at 4pm on a Tuesday afternoon (been there, t-shirt, scars etc.)