Thames Tube Line Proposed - No Digging required!
Could Putney Pier be the Start Of the Proposed Thames Line?
A recent report "At a rate of knots" published this week proposes a fast boat service as the answer to the crush of the underground. Backed by local MP Justine Greening and Zac Goldsmith the report outline plans for a "waterbourne tubeline" running from Putney to Woolwich with stops at twenty piers.
Justine Greening MP told PutneySW15.com:
"
I really hope that this work can provide a real impetus for a plan to start using the River Thames with better river boat services from Putney. Its been launched by the Mayor so having his support could make all the difference to seeing improved river boat services for our local community."
"The Thames is London’s historic highway yet it is invisible on the transport canvas of London. Transport for London has even taken it off the standard Tube map, although we are delighted that it will return in the next edition of the map. The river promises an exciting new transport network for Londoners, at a fraction of the normal cost for infrastructure projects, but needs sustained political leadership to make it happen." Is the opening paragrapgh in the summary from the authors and arguement that has been made many times, with many companies trying and failing with their commuter boat services.
The authors argue that one of teh major arguement the authors believe for the intriduction of the speed boat "line" is the very low cost of infrastructure: they quote
"a new pier costs £1-5 million compared
to £150 million for merely upgrading Bond Street Tube station. It is clear
that significant improvements can be made on the river at very low cost. Flexibility
is another major benefit of river services – routes can develop with demand
rather than being tied to existing infrastructure."
In the plan Richard Tracey Mayor Boris Johnson's Ambassador for the River, who is charged with
promoting more passenger transport on the Thames in the approach to the 2012 Olympics. He represents Merton & Wandsworth in the Greater London Assembly reports:
| "River transport is growing apace between Westminster and the Thames Barrier as regular
new services, and the development of piers atract increasing numbers of passengers.
Sadly it is a different story upstream of Westminster Bridge. Apart from the sponsored “Tate to Tate” service between the two Tate art galleries, there is a skeleton service of three boats from Putney Pier during the morning rush hour and three returning in the evening. These single-hull boats are much slower than the catamarans operating in the lower reaches: the journey from Putney to Blackfriars takes about 45 minutes with stops at Wandsworth Riverside Quarter, a new pier built by a developer, Chelsea Harbour, Cadogan Pier and Embankment. Also, the timetable of links to the Thames Clippers services from Blackfriars is sill far from perfect. Yet there is a growing population of potential river users in the various developments along the banks of the river between Putney and Vauxhall, including new apartments at Batersea Reach, Plantation Wharf, and Imperial Wharf, and the von Essen Hotel Verta by Batersea Heliport. The developers in that part of the river appear willing to share the construction costs of new piers and this should be encouraged in line with the mayor’s stated aim to increase river transport. Such a project would also need goodwill and advice from the Port of London Authority, which oversees dredging requirements and controls the legal status of piers." |
The report identifies Putney and Wandsworth as areas with critical transport problems:
" The Borough of Wandsworth is the fifth most congested in London, with delays of 6.26 million minutes per kilometre a year. Putney, in Wandsworth, is also identified by the London Assembly as an important pinch-point in the rail network where significant overcrowding occurs. These are precisely the areas for which we advocate providing a new West London riverbus."
January 13, 2010
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