YEP Letters: May 17

A reminder of talented Victoria Jack Banner, Meanwood We were very saddened by the death of Victoria Wood. A talented lady taken far too soon! Our memories of her exceptional talent were rekindled by a TV programme on Sunday evening reminding us of her talent and humour . Few entertainers wrote everything that they spoke, but Ms Wood did! Many great comedians relied upon writers , but not she. We really should afford her the recognition that she so richly deserves. May you rest peacefully Victoria and know that your talent will be making us laugh for many many years ! Scrapping of trolleybus no real surprise Nick Palin, Garforth I am writing to express my disappointment, but not surprise, that the Leeds trolleybus scheme is not going ahead. On cannot help but feel that this, to a degree, is due to the ineptness of Leeds City Council and Metro in failing to put forward a compelling case for the scheme per se and also being able to strongly countenance the arguments forcibly expressed against the trolleybus. Of course, we had a similar problem in 2005, when the council (of a different political hue) meekly accepted the then Government’s refusal of Supertram. At the time Manchester’s tram extensions were refused, but there the council resubmitted and since then Metrolink has expanded rapidly. But the main reason why the scheme has been refused is because of the Nimbyismexpressed by some of the residents in the Headingly/ Belle Isle areas. Clearly the proposed scheme would have eased congestion in the areas concerned, particularly in Headingly, and one can only question the reasonableness of the planning process where refusal seems to be based on the views of the 1,700 objectors rather than the benefits to residents in the area concerned and to Leeds as a whole. It is farcical that our planning process is so lengthy, and therefore so costly, meaning since Supertram was first mooted 20 years have been lost without a coherent public transport policy being implemented in Leeds. OK, a tram line would have been preferable but there is no chance of that happening in the foreseeable future and, in essence, the trolleybus proposals were little different to trams, instead running on the road with rubber tyres rather than wheels on rails; both had segregated sections. In conclusion I am sick and tired of people stating that trolleybuses are old technology; were people saying the same things before trams were reintroduced in (some of) our major cities over 20 years ago? Electric bus technology has simply not developed sufficiently to provide a mass viable alternative to diesel buses. Nor has hybrid technology, as no doubt anyone who has experienced Arriva’s hybrid buses between Leeds and Garforth would readily confirm, both in terms of their acceleration from standing and their very customer unfriendly interiors! Tram-train link is the future Alan Haigh, Morley Re the need for a modern transport system for Leeds (YEP,May 14). The best prospect is for a tram-train service to Leeds & Bradford International Airport. This would involve the construction of a short new line from Horsforth to the airport and the adaption of the existing railway from Leeds to Horsforth for tram-train operation. The route would be electrified at the standard 25 kV and at Leeds station the trams would initially run into a new Platform 0 on the north face of Platform 1. If the Rotherham tram-train experiment is successful phase two could involve a new connection from the existing line then street running to a stop at City Square via Aire Street. This could run on battery power and not need overhead wires which is currently being pioneered in Birmingham city centre. Additionally this could then become part of a much needed future Leeds tramway network. This scheme would use modern technology and be flexible in its implementation. We need to proceed quickly with such a major scheme for Leeds. Keep politicians out of decisions Kevin Wilson, Cottingley I would just like to express my agreement with Doug Kemp and Martin Thomas of the North West Leeds Transport Forum in their assessment of the cancelation of the trolley bus system and what should be done. I also agree with Greg Mulholland when he says a conference or summit should be held to plan for Leeds’ transport needs of the future. I would however like to add one proviso; that this summit goes ahead without ANY politicians and should only include Metro, forums similar to the North West Leeds one and other passenger groups. It is due to the failure of politicians of all colours that Leeds is without an efficient and modern transport system. The summit can also do without the current providers; Northern Rail for their failure to provide modern train services (nothing short of packed cattle trucks during the rush hour on the Huddersfield to Leeds line) and of course First Bus currently giving us the worst bus service this city has ever seen. Metro and passenger groups should ensure that all of the £173 million is spent on an efficient, modern transport system publicly owned by the people of Leeds and not wasted on the private companies currently profiteering at tax payers’ expense. Once the summit is over and has come to a decision then we can consult with our councillors and MPs, then completely ignore what they say. Then they might get the message of what their arrogant ‘we know best attitude’ feels like to the rest of us. There’s only one problem with my plan of course and that is that under current EU rules we would be unable to publicly own our own transport system (although of course the French or German government could own it) so we would need to vote to leave the EU in June. A disgraceful waste of money Martin McFadden, Drighlington Over one hundred million pounds down the plug hole - £72mfor the trolley bus joke and £30m for the cycle lane joke. Both so funny people are nearly laughing. What Leeds wants, and needs, is a mono-rail system above the traffic! £100m would have been a good start. So thank you to everyone who contributed to this disgraceful waste of public money. Faith restored by bag’s return Alice Scruton, Morley Today I drove off from Morrisons car park leaving my bag on the floor. It had money, bank cards, our ipad, some prescription medicine and all sorts in it! I drove back within a minute and it had gone. I went round everywhere and it hadn’t been handed in. A lady has just turned up at our door and returned it to me! Faith in humanity restored! So thankful! Got the hump over chicanes? Nathan Farnell, Morley I read with great interest your item on speed humps (YEP, May 9). I am not the slightest bit surprised such a large percentage of people hate and loath speed humps! They are simply nothing more than a menace to traffic and have frequently caused damage to vehicles, mine included. It’s high time the government banned speed humps and those hideous chicanes which are just as bad if not worse, especially in thick fog! Cycle survey is just a joke Martin J Phillips, Cookridge Regarding the article in Saturday’s YEP regarding the Leeds Cycle Strategy. The survey/consultation is a farce. In one section you are asked to tick the parts of the Action Plan you support. I did not support any of them but the survey would not let me move onto the next section unless I supported at least five of the points. What a joke!