Road, Rail & Access Issues

[User0001]

i aint wrong about the road network and i can explain it to you

let's say you live in Leeds, if you got a 8am check in at Manchester, what time would you have to set off? you have to set off at 5:30, now setting off at this time would mean you get to the airport at half 6, seven so you would have to wait an hour now if you set off at 6, or even half six you be lucky to make the check in time due to the traffic on the motorway. Now if you had an 8am check in at Leeds what time would you have to set off?, 07 15 and you wouldn't hit any traffic cause all of the traffic going into the city centre of Leeds, it same if you got one at 10am, no traffic, 1pm, no traffic, 3pm, no traffic, 5pm a little traffic but not much.

so you see the road network isn't as bad as people make it sound like, it the right road network for Leeds Bradford, it doesn't need upgrading or anything only work it needs doing is if the airport was to expand to 6 million passengers per year.

 

[Seasider]

ormz1208
I'm afraid you've lost me with your logic.

 

[Huddy]

The logic is right for the Manchester part but hes told it wrong

 

[pilot_737]

So Leeds has a good road network just because you can get to LBA quicker when you live in the same city? Well I'm not really that surprised! After all Manchester is 60 miles further away!!!

 

[bobleeds]

A shuttle bus to the airport from Horsforth station sounds all very well, but the first trains do not begin to arrive at the station until well after 0600 hours (and on sundays after 0900 or 1200 from York direct). These rail services would be too late for the early morning departures, just like the current bus services.

 

[Aviador]

If you live closer to LBA you have more options for getting to LBA than MAN if something goes wrong. You generally have 2-3 hours to check-in, you have to take into account the travelling time to the airport. If the M62 is blocked for whatever reason MAN is going to be very difficult to get to. On the otherhand a several miles or so taxi ride to LBA will still see you there in good time.

 

[rmac]

As traffic grows at LBA the demand for bus travel to the airport will grow too and maybe something similar to the Airlink 100 service from Edinburgh (Station) to the airport will be viable.
This service starts at 0400 and runs every 15 mins, then every 10 minutes later in the day. It is limited stop to the airport, nevertheless non airport users can hop on and off at some suitable points along the route. This, I suppose helps to defray the costs. The buses are new and dedicated to the Airlink route and in a distinctive colour scheme. Other bus services link the airport too from various points. Someday (?) the tram will also link the airport. Maybe a luxury type coach hourly and non stop (or possibly one stop) from Leeds station would be a useful addition to the existing service. This would be like the Lufthansa service from Munich to the airport.

 

[Bigman]

The buses that Centrebus use to the airport are really poor quality I have to say. Pants branding too!!

As far as getting to Manchester is concerned, the rail service is a crock of shite. Rammed 3 coach trains...10 minute wait outside Piccadilly to get a platform and invariably a points failure near Longsight...and another 10 minute wait for a platform at the airport. After negotiating 2 escalators you are then left with a 3/4 mile hike (travellators all buggered) just to get to a check in desk.

 

[White Heather]

The annoying thing is that years ago, there was a plan to build a Pudsey to Dishforth Motorway, right past the airport, and in fact it would have followed the route that the airport itself is now including in the masterplan, around the end of the runway, and along Scotland Lane, before going down into Wharfedale and following the A659. The latter part of the route was built anyway, and became the Harrogate and Knaresborough by-pass. At the time, Leeds Council objected on environmental grounds and eventually a new link was built to the south of Leeds instead (now the extended M1 link from South Leeds to the A1). It is typical of the council at the time that they objected not only to the airport expansion, but also the motorway that would have serviced it and generated faster growth. It would certainly have been a shame to run a motorway through the area and the Wharfe Valley, but as far as the airport is concerned, it was a massive opportunity lost, so it makes me laugh (ironically) that councillors are now bleating about the roads and trying to pass the buck to the airport whenever they can. They had the opportunity years ago and blew it!

As for traffic around the airport, recent surveys have actually shown that the vast majority of traffic in the Yeadon area is NOT going to or from the airport - it is traffic that would exist anyway in view of the importance of the road between Harrogate and Rawdon/Bradford, and the industrial units etc around the Yeadon area. Having said that many of those units are only there because of the airport being close by - evidence of the jobs created.

It is high time the talking stopped about roads around the airport and that a concerted effort was made to plan a new road link and get the funding to build it. At this rate it will never be built in my life time!

 

[wawkrk]

I suspect a lot of councillors react to tiny groups of tree huggers because they are the only ones who make themselves heard.
These idiot councillors wrongly believe they are the ones who keep them in power.
The regular Jo public cannot be bothered to express their views to the council.They just want to get on with their lives.
The classic case was Bradford Headmaster Ray Huniford.He was crucified by a very small but vociferous minority while the masses sat back just feeling angry and doing nothing to support him.

 

[lbaspotter]

It’s not even been a year since Centrebus took over operating the 737, 747 & 757 Airport bus services from Firstbus and people are already complaining. I'm 100% they improved the operating times as set out by Metro and the Planning Permission Approval directive from Leeds City Council. They also added earlier and later journeys and introduced half hourly service on a Sundays.

Good news to report Bigman. I've been informed that the current Silver "Airport Direct" branded Scania's are due into the paint shop at one off there Huddersfield depots within weeks. Been told that they will be receiving the full Centrebus corporate colours along with some new Airport route branding as well.

 

[User0001]

i tell you now the road network is good for the current airport all you need to do is to open you eyes and see it.

i agree with the centrebus company buses, this is why the college is doing a petition to bring back first to do the route or to get transdev or arriva instead

 

[ls27]

There was also an anecdotel view about the cancellation of the M/W because it would have had the sitting MP house in it's way!

 

[lbaspotter]

Can’t understand why people want Firstbus back on the Airport routes.

When they previously ran the services what did they do with except run all the services down. The 737 was run by clapped out Volvo or Leyland Double decks. The 747 was run by Optare solo's that kept breaking down and the 757 was run by Single deck Volvo's that were always full. There were No advertising of the Airport services, Neither did they brand the buses (Except the Metro Connect 747 which was paid for by Metro) In all the time First ran the routes they never improved the timetables like centrebus have done with new late evening and early morning journeys and a half hourly Sunday service.

On another note when first use to run the services all the airport routes were fully tendered Monday to Sunday operations accept the 737 (Which run Monday to Sat only). Firstbus received vast amounts of Money from both Metro & LBIA to run the service. Any money made by First went into they own back pockets as well. Now that money could have gone into introducing some commercially run services or even upgrading the 757 to Double deck operation. Now that Centrebus run the routes they run them commercially through the day hence they have to use Single deck buses. They make money filling buses with passengers but don’t get any money from us the Tax payers to run them. Yes the off peak early morning and evening services are the only services they get paid to operate by LBIA and Metro using Tax payer’s money.

Anyway as I mentioned earlier this week another operator might be starting a new route between Airport and Leeds running via Horsforth and Headingley. (For obvious reasons i can't name the said operator but from what i read it should please some people on here)

 

[User0001]

what about one going to bradford, end of day i we need a more reliable bus company than centrebus

 

[bobleeds]

Yes LS27, the Pudsey Dishforth link would have crossed somewhere close to the junction of Brownberrie Lane and Bayton Lane, right through the des-res of the then long-standing conservative MP (and I believe member of the powerful back bench 1922 committee) Joseph Hiley - might also have taken out Horsforth Golf Club's Clubhouse!

If it had gone ahead on time I think by now it would have been part of a 6 lane M1 linking London to Edinburgh, and LBA would have long sinced gained a 8500-9000 ft runway and be rivalling BHX at the least.

 

[User0001]

with bridgepoint as the owners of LBA nothing will never get done.

 

[News Guru]

[textarea]Complaint as study says 37% of travellers arrive at Leeds-Bradford by public transport

A report claiming nearly four in ten passengers are using public transport to get to Leeds-Bradford Airport has been described as “confusing”.

The Leeds City Council document said about 37 per cent of travellers got to the airport using public transport during 2010.

But the figure includes people travelling by taxi, private minibus and shuttle bus from car parks. In fact, only 6.4 per cent of passengers got to the terminal directly by public bus.

Councillor Ryk Downes (Lib Dem, Otley & Yeadon) said: “The report can be confusing. The majority of people believe public transport to be by bus or train, but not by taxi or shuttle bus. The airport does have to help fund bus routes, but it’s not ideal when you’ve got an international airport without a rail link.”

A Council spokesman said: “The Department of Transport set us a target of trying to get 40 per cent of passengers to travel to the airport by public transport. We don’t include the car park service bus as public transport though, so we are currently achieving 30.6 per cent.”

Source[/textarea]

 

[White Heather]

Ormz1208 wrote:

'with bridgepoint the owners of LBA nothing will ever get done'


So what evidence do you base that on then? Presumably you have some evidence to support such statements or is it just an ill informed opinion based on no information at all? Bridgepoint have already significantly expanded the long stay car parks, carried out the security works in front of the terminal, paid out considerable amounts to get an airport expansion plan which has now got planning approval, introduced an Executive Lounge available to all passengers, expanded the apron, overseen a significant increase in passenger numbers when the general industry trend was downhill, got a Ryanair base whilst still working with Jet2, and even a guest appearance from Easyjet. They have also contributed to various road schemes in the area as demanded by the Council in order to even get the planning consent for the terminal, and they have only had LBA for a few years.

Bridgepoint are an investment company and like all companies don't have a bottomless pit of money to invest, so their various interests are competing for money, but that applies to all businesses surely, including the likes of BAA and Manchester Airport Group. Development has to be over a period of time, and there has been quite a bit done by Bridgepoint since they took over LBA. Their aim is to develop the airport and then no doubt, when that is done and the financial climate is right, they will sell to another airport operator to make a profit, just as they did at Birmingham.

I didn't see the various Council's achieving that much in the 50 odd years they ran the airport and remember only too well that we had an airport owned by a council who half the time would have happily closed the place down. Bridgepoint may not be perfect, but they are a definite step up as they are not restricted by political shenanigans as has been the case in the past and has negatively impacted on LBA growth over the years. The aforementioned M1 link road being an obvious example that set LBA back years.

 

[User0001]

so is that all they done, that really going to help the airport, long stay car parks extended, sure it ok extending them but you do need passengers to fill them you know.

they need to look at more of what the airport needs and what it needs is two terminals, both brand new not the current mis matching old one, and the runway needs extending. it about time they thought of having 767 and 747 flying into the airport often along with the A330. it been better if Manchester group took over LBA at least we know they actually do all of this.