Transport: CIE ready to roll out fleet of new 'green energy' streetcars

[Donal Quinn]

these are just bendy buses, right??

ok more info on the concept here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bus_rapid_transit
they seem to need they're own right of way -i wonder will these have them....

Transport: CIE ready to roll out fleet of new 'green energy' streetcars



A SLEEK new streetcar was unveiled by Bus Eireann yesterday.

The 12-metre long 'bus tram', which runs on an electric/bio-fuel hybrid engine, is to be introduced to cities across the country in the coming months.

Bus Eireann unveiled the new BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) system in Waterford where the company hopes to pilot the new streetcar.



Bus Eireann plans to overhaul the service in the Waterford area over the next two years.

Dr John Lynch, chairman of CIE, said that the new streetcars would run "at one-tenth of the cost of traditional tram and present light rail".

He added: "We would envisage trying out at least one of these bus trams on the streets of Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford in the coming year."

He said the bus trams, which are manufactured by Wrights in Ballymena, Co Antrim, cost just €200,000 each to put on the road.

"The BRT system can be implemented at a fraction of the infrastructure cost of the LUAS or other traditional tram alternatives," said Mr Lynch.

The CIE chairman also spoke of the company's plans to replace the entire local fleet of buses serving Waterford city and the introduction of 35 new buses by 2009.

Environment Minister Martin Cullen, a Waterford TD, gave assurances to the company that their plans would be factored in under the Transport 21 initiative.

"The attractiveness of Bus Rapid Transit lies in its potential to deliver a very high frequency service at a fraction of the cost of designing, building and maintaining a full-scale tram system," said Mr Cullen.

"These streetcars can operate on ordinary road space and are capable of running on alternative and more environmentally friendly fuels," he said

Mr Cullen stated that the streetcars fall in line with work currently being carried out as part of a new 'Government taskforce strategy on climate change' to be launched before Easter.

"A sustainable transport action plan will be prepared as part of this overall strategy," he said. "It will address a range of issues and forecast how the transport sector will significantly contribute to reductions in carbon emissions by 2020.

"The public transport sector will be expected to show strong leadership in this regard and I am prepared to support proposals to move the fleet to a more sustainable basis as speedily as it is feasible," he said.

CIE are currently looking at government proposals to move all Bus Eireann and Dublin Bus vehicles to a 5pc bio-diesel blend and to plan to achieve a 30pc bio-diesel blend in all new buses.

Yesterday's launch also heard from John Clancy, chief architect with CIE, who unveiled plans for a €10m redevelopment of Waterford's main railway station.

The plans, which have been lodged with the local authority, allow for a 340-space multi-storey carpark on the existing Plunkett station site and a new exit on to the N9 road.
Dara deFaoite
© Irish Independent

[robdrysdale]

I seem to remember mentioning them on the previous board.

I was pretty much shot straight down.

Here's some pics and details here:

http://busesireland.fotopic.net/c1186333.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wright_StreetCar
http://www.wright-group.co.uk/streetcar/

One of the big ideas seems to be multiple door boarding much like the luas.

[ACustomer]

Multiple door boarding? Now where did we see multiple doors before? Dublin and hundereds of other cities. And where did said multiple door almost never open? Next thing Cullen and CIE will claim to have re-invented the wheel!

[Thomas J Stamp]

Originally Posted by robdrysdale

I seem to remember mentioning them on the previous board.

I was pretty much shot straight down.

Not by me you weren't, i have always said that these are much better than the LUAS and could be very simply implemented at a fraction of the cost.

Thing is, looking at the links you posted, they seem to be the exact buses at BAC have been running for years (now to be seen on the Number 4).

[Donal Quinn]

wandering slightly off topic has anyone else noticed just how banged up those bendy buses on the 4 route are?

they rattle and shake like they are about to fall apart any second - its quite deafening! - i have difficulty listening to my mp3 player on them!

i presume that one thing about dedicated ROW is that they surface the road properly to that they glide comfortable along rather than feeling like king kong has taken a shine to them...

[Mark Gleeson]

Problem with bendy buses in Dublin was they didn't get on well with the corners, its fun Merrion Square to Lincoln Place to Westland Row

[comcor]

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

Problem with bendy buses in Dublin was they didn't get on well with the corners, its fun Merrion Square to Lincoln Place to Westland Row

Which means they are even less suitable for Cork and Waterford...

[houstyl]

Originally Posted by Donalq

these are just bendy buses, right??

ok more info on the concept here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bus_rapid_transit
they seem to need they're own right of way -i wonder will these have them....

There was what looked to be one of these new buses parked outside the Great Southern in Eyre Square today. Seems like an utter waste using them in Galway, the potential for right of way/segregation seems minimal

[dowlingm]

Ottawa (the place Bus Eireann knows as "Ottowa") has a BRT known as Transitway which uses bendy buses. Have used to from airport to downtown and it's fine so far as it goes and is quite fast in the ROW bits. The problem is once it hits downtown it goes into mixed traffic and congestion ensues.

Someone should also tell Wright, their capitalisation notwithstanding, that when Tennessee Williams wrote A Streetcar Named Desire he wasn't talking about a shaggin' bendy bus.

[IHIR]

Originally Posted by Donalq

Dr John Lynch, chairman of CIE, said
"We would envisage trying out at least one of these bus trams on the streets of Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford in the coming year."

whew!! stand back and behold AMBITION!!

[Mark Gleeson]

Well from what I can see, there is only one bus and its on loan from Wrights for evaluation