SalfordOnline
Your local community website
   More misery as Metrolink fails again
by Tom Rodgers
With thanks to Lindsay Carr and all @SalfordOnline Twitter followers Metrolink commuters have reacted angrily to the continual failures on the tram service. Delays, hold ups and cancellations, broken down trams, dangerously overcrowded vehicles, lack of communication both on the platform and on the tram - it's been a torrid two weeks for tram users. Many are being left unsure how late they'll be for work, or whether they'll be left at a station with no information forthcoming, or whether they'll be able to get home. With recent fare increases fresh in the mind - up to £6 for a monthly ticket - the failures and delays have sparked anger among Metrolink travellers. Johnno Nolan calls the service "an utter shambles; when it started it was less busy but more efficient. Since RATP took over, it's been much worse." French firm RATP - who also run the Paris lightrail metro service - took over the running of the network in August. They say: "RATP Dev carefully listens to its clients and works with them to address their specific requirements, enriched by its experiences with small cities, metropolitan and regional entities. It enters partnerships to expand coverage and improve service." Metrolink face a £1.4bn expansion with lines being developed through Oldham and on to Rochdale, to Ashton-under-Lyne via Droylsden, from the Chorlton line to East Didsbury, and to Manchester Airport via Wythenshawe. But after six months of rush-hour failures frustrated travellers are asking Metrolink to scale back plans until the problems can be corrected. Dave Hollis writes: "[The] Last fortnight has been a complete joke. We need solid investment in existing infrastructure and vehicles, soon." Transport for Greater Manchester (@officialTFGM) are still responsible for the Metrolink platforms, trams and track, and are repsonsible for providing answers to complaints. But their communication is coming under fire again. Liam Snape, who posts as @Nortilus on Twitter, writes: "I spend over a grand a year and the service is worse than ever, the driver couldn't get thru to the control room Says it all." Louise Reid (loureid81) says: "been on tram from alti to bury for nearly an hour, stuck near old trafford. Not had a single announcement by driver. Shocking." Some have even been turned off the tram network completely - returning to their car or in one case we heard of, buying a scooter. Twitter was ablaze with angry reaction last night at the height of the difficulties. Nat Dodman writes: "#metrolink couldn't organise a p***-up in a brewery, taken two hours to get home, should take 1/2 hr, fairs up, service down." Simon Plumb writes: "I've bought a scooter today after only 45 days of struggling with #metrolink." Ben Poole commutes to MediaCity all the way from London, and says that Metrolink service has definitely got worse recently. He writes: "The tram to MediaCity is the weak link in that journey!" Replacement bus services have been criticised as well; especially on those stations where a replacement bus is not an option such as Cornbrook, Pomona, Exchange Quay. Whether it's mums and dads with childcare obligations, frustrated commuters late for work, let-down travellers who aren't told what's going on, the level of anger is palpable. Lindsay Carr told SalfordOnline she'd never been motivated to complain until last night. In a letter to Metrolink she writes: "I sincerely hope Metrolink can improve their service and manage to update commuters in a more helpful, less patronising manner. The failure of your services have a very real impact on the everyday lives of many hard working people. "This is not a good advertisement for our great city. I have been a regular Metrolink commuter for over a year now and have always been a supporter of the system and its expansion, overlooking problems here and there as inevitable. Over the last two weeks however, there has been a marked decline in the service provided. "The catalogue of delays and suspended services over the last two weeks have been even harder to take given the astronomical fare rises introduced at the beginning of the month to already cash-strapped commuters. My average journey over the last two weeks has increased by an hour. I have arrived late at work in the mornings as well as been faced with a frustrating long journey on the way home after a hard day at work." "Unfortunately I have not kept a diary of all the delays suffered over the last two weeks, but here are just a few; on Tuesday 10th January after sitting on a stationary tram for 20 minutes at Altrincham, we were advised that all services were suspended and that we could use our tickets on the 263 bus. "I travel from Altrincham to St Werburgh’s Road on the Metrolink, so this bus route doesn’t actually get me anywhere near home. I got the bus from Altrincham to Stretford, which took over half an hour in the traffic, and then was luckily given a lift home. "On the morning of the 17th January, both my tram from St Werburgh’s Road to Trafford Bar and my tram from Trafford Bar to Altrincham were subject to signal failures, resulting in an extra 25 minutes added to my journey meaning I was late for work. On the evening of the 17th January commuters were yet again informed of a suspension of services and I again made the journey on the 263 bus to Stretford, which given the heavy traffic took almost 45 minutes, and had to rely on someone else to collect me – incurring an additional petrol cost on top of my redundant Metrolink ticket. "On the evening of the 18th of January, after boarding a tram, we were informed that a signal failure at Trafford Bar had resulted in a suspension of all services. After 10 minutes we were then informed the problem was resolved. The driver managed to get us halfway to Navigation Road for the tram to be held up by a signal failure. We were stationary for 45 minutes between stations unable to get off. "After discovering there were also major problems on the South Manchester line, I changed my journey again and got off at Stretford where I had to pay for a bus to make the rest of my journey home. "These are by no means isolated problems. I have lost count of the number of times I have been stranded at Trafford Bar waiting for the South Manchester line. This line is supposed to run every 12 minutes at commuter times, but there are regularly 25 to 30 minutes between these trams. I find Trafford Bar an uncomfortable and somewhat unsafe-feeling station to be waiting at for any length of time on my own in the dark." "What frustrates me is the fact that Metrolink always leave it too late to communicate information to passengers; the website is updated far in advance of any tannoy announcement being made on vehicles or platforms. "What is the most frustrating however, is that Metrolink always trot out the same statements that they are sorry for the ‘minor delays’ caused to people’s journeys. These are not minor delays, and indeed are far more frequent than Metrolink care to admit. "I no longer trust the service and I now make sure I carry spare cash in case I have to pay for a bus or taxi, which is ridiculous given I have already forked out for what is a fairly expensive season ticket." In a general statement yesterday the Director of Metrolink for TfGM, Philip Purdy, apologised profusely and blamed points failures on the problems. “We understand how frustrating this is for passengers, particularly as there have been other incidences of disruption on the network in the last week or so, and we are grateful to Metrolink users for their patience. “We’ll be working closely with Metrolink’s operator, MRDL, to look into what has caused the recent problems and will take all possible steps to resolve them for the future.” SalfordOnline is waiting for TfGM Metrolink to respond to our questions. Due to problems with spam only SalfordOnline members can now leave comments. Becoming a member of SalfordOnline only takes a minute, just hit the red Join Us button at the top right hand side of the page to create your Personal account. Got a news story? Need help with publicity for an event in Salford? Send it to newsdesk@salfordonline.com or call the SalfordOnline newsdesk on 0161 789 5377. |
