My Adelaide Light Rail Vision

[Straze]

Adelaide once had one of the biggest network of tramlines in Australia, however since the late 20th century all lines (except Glenelg Line) were ripped up and replaced with buses which have less capacity, are slow getting through traffic especially during peak periods and are seen as unattractive. Buses however are not the devil of public transport mode when they are used in bus rapid transit systems, local or regional runs where areas are generally low density or have low patronage. Trams are making a comeback in the 21st century as a popular, efficient, cleaner and economial mode of public transport in many cities around the world including here in Adelaide where we have extended the Glenelg Tramline to North Terrace & most recently up Port Road to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre, this has resulted in increasing patronage and improved image. I believe if we in Adelaide want to encourage more people to use public transport we need to extend our metropolitan tram network to the inner suburban areas. I will start off by putting forward my proposals for new tramlines bit by bit so you can follow along.

GRANGE TO MAGILL TRAMLINE via Grange Road, City (North Tce) & Magill Road
- This line will start from the median strip on Grange Road at Grange, heading east along Grange Road, Manton Street, Adam Street, Port Road, North Terrace, Botanic Road, North Terrace (Kent Town), Magill Road to either the terminus stop outside the Magill Village shops or east of the St Benards Road intersection.

- Stops will be located along the median strip with platforms for easy access to the trams for all users. Approximately every 500 metres or less depending on the location.

- Tram services i propose run at a frequency of every 15 minutes during the day on weekdays, weekends & public holidays and every 30 minutes at nights.

- The tramline will run along a dedicated right of way along most of the route as possible however where it is necessary the lane will be shared with other traffic. Buses and other authorised vehicles will be allowed to run along the all of the of tramline corridor. There will be restricted access in many sections along Grange Road & Magill i.e. from minor roads or where there are no traffic lights to allow for smooth and safe travel for the trams.

If you have any questions, suggestions or comments please post on this thread. Next tramline i proposed will be posted soon, if you want to guess feel free and i will revealed it soon.

[Aidan]

'Tis not worth doing if you only plan to run the trams every fifteen minutes. To get the demand for higher frequencies you'd need to discontinue the bus routes on those roads. This may require more tram stops. And North Terrace (Kent Town) can be very busy - are you sure you want the trams to go that way?

BTW the most significant destination in Magill is the UniSA campus.

[Straze]

'Tis not worth doing if you only plan to run the trams every fifteen minutes. To get the demand for higher frequencies you'd need to discontinue the bus routes on those roads. This may require more tram stops. And North Terrace (Kent Town) can be very busy - are you sure you want the trams to go that way?

BTW the most significant destination in Magill is the UniSA campus.

The Grange to Magill Tramline will replace most of the current bus routes along the Go Zones except for 102, 104, 115, 117 & 118. What do you suggest is an ideal frequency for the Grange to Magill tramline? 10 minutes 7 and half minutes and what times are you concerned about - weekdays or weekends & public holidays. I have suggested a frequency of 15 minutes as i think it would be ideal for a starter if demand dictates than it would be adjusted to a more frequent service. Seeing as the buses will be replaced by the trams the stops would be close to same spot they are now. With the tram route i mainly decided it on the most direct route. At first there maybe bit of a problem with congestion along North Terrace at Kent Town for the first few weeks yet i feel that once people see the tram as a good alternative to driving their cars into the city or through the city traffic will improve along this section because trams will likely attract alot more people to use it than the current buses.

[peas_and_corn]

I really doubt Magill road has the room to fit a tram.

[Straze]

I really doubt Magill road has the room to fit a tram.

Can you please give me more details as to why you think a tram cant fit along Magill Road, because i have had a look myself and i suggest with some widening of the road there should be enough room the fit a tram stop with platform nicely in to place along the median strip/middle of the road. The other idea i have looked at is to have the tram close to kerb where the footpaths are wide enough to have tram stops like the ones on Jetty Road which have been raised to allow for easy access to the trams. The tramline i suggest will be used by 100% low floor trams. There are many roads overseas that fit trams easily down narrower streets than Magill Road so it should not be a problem at all. Whether you like my idea of trams along Magill Road is entirely up to you but i am not going to give up because at the end of the day it is not just up to you it is up to the people of South Australia to decide.

[Nathan]

Can you please give me more details as to why you think a tram cant fit along Magill Road, because i have had a look myself and i suggest with some widening of the road there should be enough room the fit a tram stop with platform nicely in to place along the median strip/middle of the road. The other idea i have looked at is to have the tram close to kerb where the footpaths are wide enough to have tram stops like the ones on Jetty Road which have been raised to allow for easy access to the trams. The tramline i suggest will be used by 100% low floor trams. There are many roads overseas that fit trams easily down narrower streets than Magill Road so it should not be a problem at all. Whether you like my idea of trams along Magill Road is entirely up to you but i am not going to give up because at the end of the day it is not just up to you it is up to the people of South Australia to decide.

There is no median strip on Magill Rd until you get east of Glynburn Rd. The footpaths aren't particularly wide either, so there's not really much room for road widening. If there was, it would likely have already been done long ago as traffic regularly comes to a standstill when cars in the right hand lane want to turn right down a side street.

[fasterthanlids]

Whether you like my idea of trams along Magill Road is entirely up to you but i am not going to give up because at the end of the day it is not just up to you it is up to the people of South Australia to decide.

K THX BAI

[Straze]

Can you please give me more details as to why you think a tram cant fit along Magill Road, because i have had a look myself and i suggest with some widening of the road there should be enough room the fit a tram stop with platform nicely in to place along the median strip/middle of the road. The other idea i have looked at is to have the tram close to kerb where the footpaths are wide enough to have tram stops like the ones on Jetty Road which have been raised to allow for easy access to the trams. The tramline i suggest will be used by 100% low floor trams. There are many roads overseas that fit trams easily down narrower streets than Magill Road so it should not be a problem at all. Whether you like my idea of trams along Magill Road is entirely up to you but i am not going to give up because at the end of the day it is not just up to you it is up to the people of South Australia to decide.

There is no median strip on Magill Rd until you get east of Glynburn Rd. The footpaths aren't particularly wide either, so there's not really much room for road widening. If there was, it would likely have already been done long ago as traffic regularly comes to a standstill when cars in the right hand lane want to turn right down a side street.

Yes i have had a look at section of Magill Road east of Glynburn Road intersection and it does appear to be quite narrow down to one lane and just enough room to fit a turning lane, the footpaths appear to be quite narrow too so even kerbside tram stop maybe abit tricky or impossible. However Grange Road, Manton Street and Adam Street appears to be have enough room to fit trams okay.
My next tramline will be revealed shortly.

[peas_and_corn]

Can you please give me more details as to why you think a tram cant fit along Magill Road, because i have had a look myself and i suggest with some widening of the road there should be enough room the fit a tram stop with platform nicely in to place along the median strip/middle of the road. The other idea i have looked at is to have the tram close to kerb where the footpaths are wide enough to have tram stops like the ones on Jetty Road which have been raised to allow for easy access to the trams. The tramline i suggest will be used by 100% low floor trams. There are many roads overseas that fit trams easily down narrower streets than Magill Road so it should not be a problem at all. Whether you like my idea of trams along Magill Road is entirely up to you but i am not going to give up because at the end of the day it is not just up to you it is up to the people of South Australia to decide.

There is no median strip on Magill Rd until you get east of Glynburn Rd. The footpaths aren't particularly wide either, so there's not really much room for road widening. If there was, it would likely have already been done long ago as traffic regularly comes to a standstill when cars in the right hand lane want to turn right down a side street.

This.

The areas I'm familiar with have no median strip and have buildings and narrow footpaths on both sides. Take the parts around St Morris for instance. It's hard to imagine how a tram line would really work here, with the businesses and houses there.

IMO you're one street over from where it really should be- The Parade. There you have a nice median you can put trams down.

[Aidan]

The areas I'm familiar with have no median strip and have buildings and narrow footpaths on both sides. Take the parts around St Morris for instance. It's hard to imagine how a tram line would really work here, with the businesses and houses there.

IMO you're one street over from where it really should be- The Parade. There you have a nice median you can put trams down.

There isn't very much difference between the widths of Magill Road and The Parade. The difference is the number of lanes - Magill Road is two lanes each way, whereas The Parade isn't. Instead they have bike lanes and a median, but the median isn't wide enough to be turned into a double track tramway.

[Straze]

The areas I'm familiar with have no median strip and have buildings and narrow footpaths on both sides. Take the parts around St Morris for instance. It's hard to imagine how a tram line would really work here, with the businesses and houses there.

IMO you're one street over from where it really should be- The Parade. There you have a nice median you can put trams down.

There isn't very much difference between the widths of Magill Road and The Parade. The difference is the number of lanes - Magill Road is two lanes each way, whereas The Parade isn't. Instead they have bike lanes and a median, but the median isn't wide enough to be turned into a double track tramway.

Well the Magill Road i have chosen to scrap after i found some parts didnt have enough room to fit trams and to allow smooth traffic flow especially after the Glynburn Road intersection where it reduces to one lane in each direction, a tramline down the The Parade would be to much of hassle and difficult in some sections so i will give that idea a miss too. What about the Grange Road part of my proposal would that work okay? At least this road doesnt change from two lanes to one lane in each direction like Magill Road.

[monotonehell]

Trams used to go along both The Parade as well as Magill road. But those were the days when such wide roads were not needed.
For inspiration, here's a map of how things were before the evil car became king...
(Linked because it's large)
http://users.on.net/~c0pkf48/AETM_map-all.jpg

[Aidan]

What about the Grange Road part of my proposal would that work okay?

Yes - or at least I can't think of any reason why not.

Trams used to go along both The Parade as well as Magill road. But those were the days when such wide roads were not needed.
For inspiration, here's a map of how things were before the evil car became king...
(Linked because it's large)
http://users.on.net/~c0pkf48/AETM_map-all.jpg

Nice map!
Am I right in thinking it's a photograph of a 3d one?

[monotonehell]

Aiden: Yes, I'd say papier mache. I did not take this photo, and it's way too long ago to remember who did. But I vaguely recall that it lives(d) in the Tram Museum, St Kilda.

[Straze]

ADELAIDE AIRPORT TRAMLINE

- The Adelaide Airport Tramline will start from the median strip on North Terrace outside the Royal Adelaide Hospital, it would then head west along North Terrace, heading south along Pulteney Street, west along Wakefield Street, Victoria Square, Grote Street, Sir Donald Bradman Drive and then south along Sir Richard Williams Avenue where it will terminate outside the Adelaide Airport.

- Tram stops will be located as close as 500 metres or less depending on the area. Tram stops will be located at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, Hindmarsh Square, Adelaide MFS, Victoria Square, Chinatown, Grote Street (West), then Santos Stadium then close to where the current bus stops are located. On Sir Richard Williams Avenue there will be a terminus stop outside the Adelaide Airport (ground level). If the tramline is to be extended to Harbour Town & West Beach Caravan Park this will mean that there would have to tunnel underneath the Adelaide Airport land, yet the track could be at ground level along West Beach Road.

- Trams will run at average frequency of 15 minutes during the day on weekdays, weekends & public holidays, during weekday peak hour trams will run every 7 and half minutes. If demand dictates then trams will run more frequent where possible.

- Jet Buses (J1 & J2) will remain travelling between the Adelaide Airport & City section because this will allow direct route to other parts of the City (i.e. Currie and Grenfell Street).

The Adelaide Airport Tramline will provide a fast, frequent and direct tram service between the Adelaide Airport & the City.

My artist impression of the tram outside Royal Adelaide Hospital on North Terrace

adelaide tram rah.JPG (91.26 KiB) Viewed 4615 times