Can spending on Bradford Forster Square be justified ?

Whilst many projects that were to be funded by the West Yorkshire Plus Transport Fund have had to be paused owing to inflation, many schemes appear to have escaped consideration. [1] The spending of £19.15 million on Bradford Interchange which is considered to be a temporary measure is questionable, the spending of £17.3 million on...

Could Bradford be connected to Sheffield ?

A new report has been published by Greengauge 21 that looks at how rail links between Leeds and Sheffield can be improved by 2030! [1] Whilst this report predominantly looks at links between Leeds and Sheffield it also looks at how to improve connectivity between Sheffield and other places such as Bradford! One of the...

Why is spending on Bradford Interchange being progressed ?

The news that many transport schemes across West Yorkshire are having to be paused in order to save £270 million due to inflation is very disappointing, especially for places like Halifax which was expected to see a new railway station building constructed with proper toilets for both male and female, a dedicated unisex toilet and...

How much would it cost to connect Bradford ?

With news that another U turn (apparently) has been made on Northern Powerhouse Rail and that this now won’t include Bradford. [1] How much would it cost to connect Bradford ? A new line between Northern Powerhouse Rail at Huddersfield and Bradford has been estimated to cost £1.5  billion, a new Central station for Bradford...

Does Bradford want an underground train station ?

With the news that Bradford is to finally get a new station as part of Northern Powerhouse Rail, if this is indeed a new line via Bradford as claimed by Transport for the North, does Bradford really want an underground station ? Out of the three options presented by Transport for the North to the...

Why not extend HS2 study to include Bradford ?

With a £100 million to be spent on a new study to find out the best way HS2 should reach Leeds and the start of West Yorkshire Mass transit, once the secretary of state for the department for transport has published terms of reference, why not expand this survey and explore options as to how...

Is West Yorkshire doing enough to connect Bradford ?

In November 2021 it was reported that “a study of thousands of train journeys has found that Bradford has the worst rail connections of any major British city.” [1] So what does it need to improve ? If we look at neighboring Leeds and compare the two, unlike Leeds Bradford doesn’t have a regular direct...

Do we need/want Northern Powerhouse Rail ‘in full’ ?

Whilst politicians are still brandishing round claims that we need Northern Powerhouse Rail ‘in full’ what does this actually mean ? When NPR is described ‘in full’ what this basically translates as, is the option they want, which unsurprisingly is also the most expensive option but not necessarily the most beneficial to the North nor...

What is the point of ‘Leeds Bradford Airport Parkway’ ?

With proposals of access improvements to Leeds Bradford Airport to be debated at a meeting of Leeds City Council Cabinet on Tuesday 7th January 2020, including a proposal to construct a new parkway station to serve this airport, just what is the point of this new station ? [1] Under the current plan a new...

Should Leeds Bradford Airport be allowed to expand?

A new proposed link road to Leeds Bradford Airport that has previously been the subject of a protest by extinction rebellion has been scrapped. [1] Not because it encourages those travelling by plane to commute by car but because of air travel itself! Interestingly it appears that no-one has asked the fundamental question, should Leeds...