Leeds Bradford: Airport Road, Rail & Access Issues

[jason1-11]

With better road links to DSA, passengers from towns and cities like Wakefield, Castleford, Dewsbury and York etc will undoubtedly find Doncaster more attractive than before. Just think how many people with an LS postcode already use Doncaster when travelling with TUI?

That's got to be worrying for the LBA Management.

 

[whoshotjimmi]

I tend to agree with white heather here. When airlines such as Easyjet try and fail to establish routes from an airport, it becomes obvious that the issues are more in depth than the provision of a link road. Certainly, at the very least, the airport is no more difficult to access than LBA.

When it comes to gaining funding, West Yorkshire and particularly Leeds is extremely poor. Awarding 18m to a DSA project shows that there is some money available, even though (in our opinion) there will be little discernable positive impact on the airport. I think many people (not just aviation enthusiasts and commenters but the wider population also) will see it as a phenomenal waste of money. But clearly, they have and continue to do a better job at attracting funding and I think this is entirely down to the shambles that is Leeds city council. They couldn't attract bee to honey in my opinion.

I would also like to comment on the A65 blog by Thomas Harvey. He is absolutely spot on with what the issues are. But his ideas on how to deal with it are in absolute fantasyland. None of the things he suggests are reasonable, realistic or acheiveable, especially with the aforementioned Leeds city council in charge. The solution lies in integration of ALL transport modes and coming up with a clear plan for the future that improves ALL aspects of travel. Until ALL the relevant parties sit down and actually come up with such a plan, we will be stuck with the current unacceptable situation. That means that the airport has to learn how to integrate better with the community also.

 

[ryan]

To be honest, if you want to weigh out who deserves a link road, it would probably cheaper to build one to DSA than to LBA. From a rough sketch on Google Earth, the DSA one would be about 3.5 miles, through fields, on flat ground. I'm not an expert on the area of LBA, but it's 12 miles (as the crow flies) from the nearest motorway, and the ground is hardly flat.

With better road links to DSA, passengers from towns and cities like Wakefield, Castleford, Dewsbury and York etc will undoubtedly find Doncaster more attractive than before. Just think how many people with an LS postcode already use Doncaster when travelling with TUI?

That's got to be worrying for the LBA Management.

From the 2007 CAA Survey, 44% of DSA's passengers are from South Yorkshire, 19% from Humberside, 11% from West Yorkshire, and 5% from North Yorkshire. And oddly, 0.3% from Scotland. The last one for LBA was in 2005, and shows that 65% are from West Yorkshire, 20% from North Yorkshire, 4% from Humberside, and 4% from South Yorkshire. While they may have changed since, it shows that DSA is already more accessible to a wider area, the fact that only 44% of passengers come from the local area, vesus 65% of LBAs.

 

[ryan]

Also to add, the DSA link road will not solely be there to link DSA with the M18. It will serve the South-Eastern areas of Doncaster who would otherwise have to travel virtually through the town centre to get to the motorway, and also give easier access to the west of Doncaster and the Lakeside area. It will also hopefully relieve the traffic problems encountered on Bawtry Road in the peak, and relieve the pressure put on White Rose Way at those times also.

Look at it as part of a ring-road, if you will.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Leeds, like Bristol, are cities deemed economically self-sufficient and in far less need of public money support than some other areas.

It's no surprise that a recent Centre For Cities report identified these cities as the two major UK cities that weathered the recession best and the two whose economies are likely to grow the quickest when the recession recedes.

Bristol City Council is regularly accused by its citizens, as Leeds City Council has been here, for being useless at getting public funding. But when that funding is always likely to be denied on the grounds that the applicants don't need it because they are wealthy enough to be able to fend for themselves there is little the councils can do.

Read West Yorkshire v South Yorkshire as Bristol v Cardiff where the latter city receives eight times as much public funding as Bristol and, as a result, has many facilities that its English neighbour lacks. Some can be attributed to its status as Wales's capital but not all by any means, and Cardiff is a smaller city.

It's a bit like two men going through life and earning the same money with the same core commitments. One spends everything he earns on leisure and the good life and is skint when he reaches retirement. The other is prudent and has a tidy sum to go into retirement with. The first man will get all sorts of public help whilst the second will be told he has too much money to need state assistance.

 

[whoshotjimmi]

Ryan, whilst the CAA statistics suggest that DSA has a proportionally larger "outside" customer base than LBA, it does not prove that DSA is more accesible than LBA. I live in the South of Leeds, near the M62 which makes getting to Donny as easy as possible, but LBA is still far more convenient.

I think the statistics are more indicative of what DSA has to offer, especially that offered by the Thomson package holidays. You can, for example, fly with thomson holidays from DSA to Kos, which you cannot do from LBA. There are also flights to Turin, Katowice, Poznan, Warsaw, Wroclaw etc from DSA which are not available from LBA.

It is also important to note that, in 2007, DSA had flights to Canada, Florida and Mexico - again, flights that LBA did not have. With all this in mind, I do not believe that access was the main reason for the statistics stated.

I would also like to mention, in reply to your post regarding the potential benefits of a link road into Doncaster, that the potential benefits of better transport links in North West Leeds would be far greater than those that could ever be acheived in Doncaster.

The Local Yokel - I appreciate what you are saying but if places like Leeds and Bristol are seen as big and strong enough to look after themselves without significant public investment, how can the levels of public investment in London and Manchester be explained? I think the traditional shambolic approach from Leeds city council has a lot to do with it, though I commend your attempts to defend them!!

 

[wawkrk]

As I wrote in another forum, maybe strings have been pulled in favour of DSA by the likes of Caroline Flint etc. and of course in the past by John Prescott. Leeds never had a public figure supporting the airport or the city. The council Luddites have always been strongly opposed to LBA apart from one notable execption who has spent years swimming against the tide.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

[offtopic]

The Local Yokel - I appreciate what you are saying but if places like Leeds and Bristol are seen as big and strong enough to look after themselves without significant public investment, how can the levels of public investment in London and Manchester be explained? I think the traditional shambolic approach from Leeds city council has a lot to do with it, though I commend your attempts to defend them!!

London gets everything because it is London - the capital of the country and a major world city that the government decides must flourish for the sake of the country as a whole.

As for Manchester, and I mean Greater Manchester not merely the city of Manchester, it's probably the exception that proves the rule. :rose:

Of course there will be exceptions but that's for all sorts of political and other reasons such as the idea of moving much of the BBC to the provinces, and here of course Manchester benefits hugely.

In general there are cities that provide more in business taxes than they get back and vice versa, and it's usually the former (though not always I will admit) who find it harder to get any sort of meaningful public investment.

I'm not saying they don't get any - that would be daft and if that's how my post sounded then I am happy to clarify - but in general the more successful a city or area is the more they have to stand on their own feet and don't get the facilities that the grateful recipients of public largesse enjoy.

I suggest that if we want to continue this we do so in a more appropriate forum and I accept responsibility entirely for taking the discussion off topic in the first place.[/offtopic]

 

[ryan]

As I wrote in another forum, maybe strings have been pulled in favour of DSA by the likes of Caroline Flint etc.

Could have been helped by the fact Ms Flint has her constituency office at the airport... 😀

 

[lbaspotter]

LBIA has just released the following artical regarding the new airport direct 737 bus route operating between Bradford, Airport & Harrogate which was commenced by Centrebus this past weekend..

Source: http://www.facebook.com/notes/leeds...ff-from-bradford-to-harrogate/220057944672546

New 737 Airport Bus Link Takes Off From Bradford To Harrogate

L-R LBA’s Carl Lapworth, Operations & Engineering Director, Dave Pearson from Metro, Mark Muirhead-Reeves from Centrebus and Brian Dunsby, Chief Executive of the Harrogate Chamber of Commerce

Passengers and staff will now benefit from improved connections to the airport from Harrogate and Bradford thanks to a new bus route commencing on Sunday 1st May, 2011.

The new 737 service will be supported financially by Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) and North Yorkshire County Council.

The service will create a new link from Harrogate to Bradford, via Leeds Bradford Airport. It will operate seven days a week, increasing the frequency of the existing route from Harrogate to LBA to every hour*.

As part of the airport’s recently launched Green Travel Plan It is hoped that the increase in frequency and extension to and from Bradford will encourage both passengers and staff to use public transport.

The route has been designed to serve the popular commuter belt with regular stops along the way, including Yeadon, Guiseley and Shipley.

Carl Lapworth, Operations & Engineering Director, said “We are pleased to be involved in this collaborative service which will offer a frequent link between the popular Harrogate and Bradford corridor, via the airport. Regular bus routes are a key component of our Airport Surface Access Strategy and Green Travel Plan for both our staff and passengers”

Brian Dunsby, Chief Executive of the Harrogate Chamber of Commerce, said, “Harrogate depends on visitors to its many national and international conferences, trade exhibitions and agricultural shows which together attract over 650,000 delegates to around 750 events each year. They come from all over the UK, from Europe and some from around the world.’

This new route will also be beneficial for commuters, shoppers and students to travel from the Bradford district to Harrogate where there are many opportunities now available in Harrogate's colleges, hotels, restaurants and shops.”

West Yorkshire Metro has awarded the contract of new route to Centrebus, who will operate the service.

For full timetable and frequency visit http://www.wymetro.com/NR/rdonlyres/21EDAA60-34A7-44A2-AF2C-1BABF80BB003/0/737bustimetable.pdf

 

[Aviador]

An incident is currently causing tailbacks between Rawdon traffic lights and the airport on the B6152 leading to the A658.

 

[Aviador]

The previously mentioned problem has now cleared.

 

[lbaspotter]

Road Closure Notice: Apperley Lane only between Micklefield Lane and A65 - Rawdon

The road will be closed for 3 weeks between the hours of 09:30 - 15:30 only, Commencing from Monday 16th May and running until Monday 16th June, 2011 due traffic Island reconstruction.

A Diversion route will operate via Micklefield Lane and the A65.

 

[Bigman]

What was up with the car park yesterday? All the drop off area closed off.

 

[Aviador]

I think you will find your answer in this thread...

topic1863.html

 

[News Guru]

[textarea]Fate of LBIA taxi rank to be decided

The fate of a proposed taxi rank at Leeds Bradford Airport will be decided by councillors tomorrow.

Leeds City Council’s Executive Board will decide on the proposal after hearing that there is a difference of opinion which cannot be reconciled.

The recommendation for a taxi rank has been put forward by the council’s Scrutiny Board, but it is not supported by the Directorate – meaning the executive board will have to make a final decision.

The Scrutiny Board (City Development) unanimously decided that provision should be made for a hackney carriage stand at Whitehouse Lane adjacent to the airport.

But a report to the Executive Board says the initial road safety review has raised concerns.

It states: “Whilst the proposed rank has some support from ward members and the taxi operators, the proposals are not supported by LBIA.”

The cost of the scheme is estimated to be around £80,000.

The report says: “It is the view of the Acting Director that it is clear from the consultation that there is no common opinion and opposing views are unlikely to be reconciled.”

Source[/textarea]

 

[pilot_737]

Theres already a taxi rank?!

 

[Aviador]

pilot_ben

They mean a hackney Carriage taxi rank for black & white cabs. The one already in place is for the private firm Arrow taxis.

Yesterday Leeds City Council passed plans for a new black & white cabs taxi rank to be placed on Whitehouse Lane at a cost of £80,000. The airport authority objected to the idea but the council decided to go ahead with the plans.

Hackney Carriage have agreed to pay £20,000 towards the costs of implementing the new taxi rank. There is no timescale for implementing the new rank and concerns about pedestrian access have to be addressed before the taxi rank can be built.

Clearly the airport objected to the idea for financial reasons but as far as I am concerned the competition will be good. Arrow have got very expensive and foreign visitors tend to prefer the more visible black & white cabs as opposed to the rather dubious looking arrow cars.

 

[Bigman]

Just to let everyone know that there are temporary lights on Rawdon Road outside Rawdon Crematorium which are causing heavy delays. Avoid it if you can!!

 

[Aviador]

Just to let everyone know that there are temporary lights on Rawdon Road outside Rawdon Crematorium which are causing heavy delays. Avoid it if you can!!

The road always seems to be getting dug up around that area. I'm just waiting for one of the services to dig up the new section of road a little further up.