Public Transport Services

The current public transport services will be affected in many ways by these proposals:

• Impacts on existing bus services:
• The frequencies of services along A660 and out to Adel, Holt Park and Cookridge are likely to be reduced (Metro have assumed that frequencies will be halved) - this implies a doubling of average wait times at bus stops
• Some services may cease to be commercially viable and may be cut back
• Loss of bus revenues on A660 may impact on services or fares elsewhere in Leeds
• Bus journey times are forecast to decrease only marginally (probably due to increased congestion in Headingley where buses will be delayed by other traffic)
• Some people will still have to use bus services - there will be insufficient space on the trolleybuses to fit everyone in (indeed, during peak times, the trolleybuses will have space for less than half the hoped-for number of passengers).
• Even when the trolley buses are not full, some people would want to use the bus. For example:
• If their journey starts or finishes somewhere not served by the Trolleybuses (eg along the route of service 28 or 97)
• If they are unwilling/unable to walk to a more distant trolleybus stop (trolleybus stops will be fewer in number and thus, on average, will require a longer walk)
• If they wish to be sure of getting a seat (full trolley busses will provide seats for only 1/3 of passengers)
• If they are unwilling to pay a higher fare to use the trolleybus (Metro do not plan to charge higher fares but, as noted by the Department for Transport, they may be forced to do so to cover their costs)
• If they want to take advantage of lower fares on buses (under current legislation, Metro cannot prevent bus operators from undercutting the NGT fares)
• If they want to use their "bus pass" (It is thought that Metro will have discretion as to whether they offer free or discounted fares to trolleybus users who hold ENCFS bus passes)

• Consequences of having separate stops for trolleybuses (lack of integration):
• Average frequencies at any given stop will be half what they would be if all services picked up at the same stops
• Passengers will need to choose in advance which service they plan to use and then go to the appropriate stop (very frustrating if they choose the bus and then the trolleybus turns up first - and vice versa!). Bus stop and equivalent trolleybus stop may not be in sight of one another (e.g. in Headingley where buses continue to run on existing road while trolleybus runs on a new alignment "behind" the Arndale Centre and Telephone Exchange).

• Park and ride may not succeed - it is well known that park and ride users want fast, non-stop, shuttle connections to the city centre but this cannot be achieved with the system as proposed. The plan is for the trolleybuses to serve all stops along the route and it is not possible to have a non-stop trolleybus service running at the same time (trolley buses cannot simply overtake one another!). If park and ride fails, the paving over of Bodington Fields to provide car parking will have been all in vain.