Park and Ride Schemes

Dear Mr Pinder

Thank you for your recent enquiry on the above matter under the FOI
legislation. i will respond to you in detail as soon as possible and
within the 20 day timeframe for FOI requests.

Best Wishes

Joe Grint
Principal Engineer - Transport Planning

Department of Regeneration - making great places

Asset Management .$B!|.(B Economic Development .$B!|.(B Housing .$B!|.(B
Planning .$B!|.(B Transportation & Highways

City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council - Floor 5 Jacobs Well
Bradford BD1 5RW

T 01274 434645
F 01274 431932
E [email address]
W www.bradford.gov.uk

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intended solely for the attention of the named addressee(s).

If you are not the intended recipient you are not authorised to, and must
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Dear Mr Pinder

I refer to your FOI request in relation to the above issue and my
subsequent acknowledgement.

Firstly I should mention that many of the rail stations in Bradford
District (and beyond) serve as park and ride facilities for Bradford City
Centre and other significant employment and shopping locations in the
District. Crossflatts, Menston, Shipley and Steeton & Silsden have over
100 parking spaces each and New Pudsey has 245 spaces. A number of other
stations which have direct trains serving Bradford also have a significant
number of car parking spaces. The Low Moor and Apperley Bridge stations
currently under development will also have car parking facilities to
encourage people not to bring their vehicles into Leeds and Bradford City
Centres.

Bus Park and Ride has been considered at three locations in Bradford
District in recent years: Crossflatts, Cottingley and Odsal.

The Crossflatts option was discarded in 2001 due to the direct competition
of the much quicker journey by rail.

Analysis of the A650 Cottingley option in 2001 suggested that the
potential market for Park & Ride was very small, even if a dedicated
service were introduced - with a predicted am peak period (0730 -
0930) patronage of only around 100 customers. This was due to three main
factors a) a very small proportion (around 12%) of drivers using the A650
(or other local routes) were heading for the City Centre, b) a large
number of drivers did not pay to park in the City Centre (they either had
private parking or park on street outside the limited waiting zone) c)
those who did pay to park paid a sum similar to that which would need to
be charged for the park & ride service as the Council or Metro cannot (and
in any case would find it difficult to afford to) subsidise services that
are in direct competition with commercial operators. The situation in
relation to these factors is likely to have changed little since 2001 and
sensitivity testing undertaken in 2001 suggested that, with such a
relatively small number of drivers heading for the City Centre, even a
decrease in the number of free parking spaces in the City Centre would
only increase patronage by around 35% (ie to around 135 passengers in the
two hour am peak period).

A bus Park and Ride facility at Odsal was originally proposed as part
of the South Bradford Integrated Transport Improvement Scheme when it was
submitted to the Department for Transport for funding support in 2000.
Unfortunately this had to be removed from the scheme when rising bus
operating costs and fares (hence reduced attractiveness of the
facility) would have meant that a substantial revenue deficit would occur
if it were to be implemented. The Department of Transport accepted that
the change to the scheme needed to be made and approved a revised funding
submission omitting the Park & Ride in 2002.

There are currently no plans for bus park and ride in Bradford but it is
possible that this situation may change over time dependent on the
likelihood of such a scheme being both affordable and likely to attract
sufficient custom. Transport investment in Bradford is to a significant
extent focussed on improving bus journey time and reliability through
initiatives such as automatic vehicle location providing priority at
traffic signals which is being implemented at a large number of sites
across the District. A programme of accessibility improvements at bus
stops is also being progressed. Metro are also taking the
opportunity, when funding and other constraints allow, to expand car
parking provision at those stations where demand exceeds current supply.

I trust that the above information is helpful in response to your query.

If you have any questions about the content of this email please do not
hesitate to contact me by return or on 01274 434645

If you are not satisfied with this response you may ask for a review of
this decision by contacting [Bradford City Council request email] or by writing to Freedom
of Information, 7th Floor, City Exchange, 61 Hall Ings, Bradford, West
Yorkshire, BD1 5SG.

If you are still not satisfied with the outcome of the internal review you
have the right of appeal to the Information Commissioner who can be
contacted at: Information Commissioner.$B!G.(Bs Office, Wycliffe House,
Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Tel: 01625 545700 URL: [1]http://www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk

Best Wishes

Joe Grint
Principal Engineer - Transport Planning

Department of Regeneration - making great places

Asset Management .$B!|.(B Economic Development .$B!|.(B Housing .$B!|.(B
Planning .$B!|.(B Transportation & Highways

City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council - Floor 5 Jacobs Well
Bradford BD1 5RW

T 01274 434645
F 01274 431932
E [email address]
W www.bradford.gov.uk

The information in this email and any attachments is confidential. It is
intended solely for the attention of the named addressee(s).

If you are not the intended recipient you are not authorised to, and must
not copy, distribute, use or retain this message or any part of it.

References

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