An article has appeared on Media Wales (Western Mail/ South Wales Echo) by Freshwater PR CEO Steve Howell suggesting that trams would be a better solution than normal rail for the 'Metro'.
Are trams really suitable for journeys that could last well over an hour between the heads of the Valleys and places such as Barry Island & Penarth = just over 30 miles end to end? Surely, such distances are much greater than any other tram network that exists in Britain today? Would not the trams be much slower than modern light weight electric trains? Surely, speed is of the essence is trying to link the poorer communities at the heads of the valleys with the more prosperous Cardiff area? That being so, increasing the number of stops would surely put these communities further away from Cardiff time wise?
He suggests that trams could give increased frequencies but surely, that would require that the single track sections in the upper valleys are re-doubled?
What about the new Hitachi trains coming to the Great Western Mainline. If the line to Barry is a 750 volt tram system, surely, these express trains would not be able to use the Vale of Glamorgan coast line as a diversionary route in the event of an incident/ engineering on the main line?
What about the present Valley Line train drivers? You surely would not be able to pay tram drivers the £40,000 or so salaries that these train drivers get due to each tram having a lower payload? Would they all be fired and then have to apply for jobs on perhaps half that amount as tram drivers?
QUOTE: "These days the word is synonymous with light rail or trams to most of us - with regions such as Greater Manchester and Tyne and Wear setting the pace.
When the Metro first emerged four years ago as a concept in Wales, courtesy of a report commissioned by the Cardiff Business Partnership, the Manchester model was very much what we had in mind".
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/business/business-opinion/south-wales-metro-needs-based-9774875