Hamilton Central Station (underground) CBD

[pickle]

Do you think there would be room for an extra two platforms, because my plan would require 2 platforms to operate the light rail and 1 for the intercity trains

[Jonthekiwi]

At present there is not enough space. However, with a bit of excavation there could be. Cheaper still, and really just as good would be light rail station directly above the enterance to the underground station. Then it is now more than a walk up one flight of steps to light rail, or an elevator. In this day and age of spend tightly on PT and spend as much as you want on roads, this would work well.

[geoff_184]

The service duration from Ballarat are 1 hour at 160km's on a 112km? route (Dare we punt the Silver Fern against a service like that?)

The Ballarat line was given a big upgrade during the 2003-2005 period, including a deviation at Bacchus Marsh, and a much larger deviation closer to Ballarat itself, known as the Millbrook Deviation, in order to reduce the Ballarat-Melbourne running times. It took some big money.

I visited the Millbrook Deviation as they were putting the finishing touches to it in November 2005, and took the photos below (it's not just project DART I photogragh!). Have also posted a map of the Millbrook Deviation, showing how it shortened a 13km route down to 7km.

It's interesting that the project was announced in 2003, and construction began that same year. It then opened in 2006. In NZ it would have taken decades of planning!

Location of Millbrook Deviation, near Ballarat. It's purpose is quite obvious when looking at the old route:



East end of Millbrook Deviation, looking toward Melbourne:



East end of Millbrook Deviation, looking toward Ballarat, new line at left (note viaduct in background), old line at right:



The first of two viaducts on the Millbrook deviation (as seen in the previous image):



The second viaduct, closer to the Ballarat end of the deviation:




West end of Millbrook Deviation, looking back toward Melbourne, with old line at left, and new line at right:

[QuintinH]

Blimey Geoff your up late, or up early.... either way thanks for the pictures.

[deathtoluke]

The beauty of the underground station is that it goes right under Centre Place mall. If the station and services were frequent enough it would make sense to have an accessway from the mall to the platform.
At the eastern end of the tunnel (by the claudelands bridge) it would be rather easy to have an accessway from the road to the platform. I can easily see 3 accessways to the platform, if we also include the council owned land by the warehouse

[deathtoluke]

Do you think there would be room for an extra two platforms, because my plan would require 2 platforms to operate the light rail and 1 for the intercity trains

havin one reserved for freight would be ideal

[Daniel]

Please, provide examples of cities of the size of Hamilton that has a light rail network now, preferably examples from the Anglo-Saxon world, and ones that aren't heritage trams.

Well I don't think Blackpool has a big resident population, but of course it enjoys a large transient population of tourists.

I don't think Little Rock has a large population, but to be fair I think its streetcars are partly maintained for heritage purposes.

I don't think Nottingham has a very large population either, although it's undoubtedly larger than Hamilton.

Well that's all I know of in the Anglo-Saxon world. But then again, the post second world war urban planning sprawl in the Anglo-Saxon world hasn't been anything to aspire to continue. Perhaps Hamilton could become the smallest city in the Anglo-Saxon world to get a light rail system, and perhaps this light rail system could generate further growth.

There are quite a few cities in continental Europe with small populations with a light rail systems. In fact Bilbao with a population smaller than Wellington or Christchurch has its own underground metro! Amongst these cities are; Basel, Norrköping, Bordeaux, Grenoble, Lille, Montpellier, Rouen, Saint-Étienne, la Valenciennes, Turku. They've all got commuter light rail/trams.

[QuintinH]

Adding to your list there are a bunch of smallish cities in France with Light Rail or trams. I know of Rennes, Le Havre, Reims, Toulon, grenoble & Saint-Etienne. Also bern in Switzerland, salzburg & Graz in Austria and I really wan to check out Osijek in Croatia.

I agree with your comments daniel, we dont have to continue to aspire to the urban sprawl planning the UK and especially USA have been very good at in the past 60 years. There are other examples out there. I would love to see a light rail system on the agenda for Hamilton City it would be another way of showing up Auckland and Wellington.

[Nick R]

Just by poking around on google maps I see the Hamilton Bus Station and a few other bus stops right on top of where the rail station is. Is this an intercity bus station, or does it handle local routes?

Anyway, it seems like H Town has the makings of a very effective transport interchange, perhaps one day light rail could even stop out on the street too.

If they ever sort out the rail network in the upper north island then the Hamilton Central Station could be quite busy, it would handle as many intercity trains as Auckland as they would all pass through Hamilton (except maybe the Overlander might not make the detour into the CBD).

Could have a couple of trains a day to Tauranga, a couple to Rotorua and a couple direct to Auckland, plus the trains running back through to Auckland from Tauranga and Rotorua and vice versa would add up to quite a few services.

[keg]

Just by poking around on google maps I see the Hamilton Bus Station and a few other bus stops right on top of where the rail station is. Is this an intercity bus station, or does it handle local routes?

The bus station is over the road from the underground rail station (which is under The Warehouse). It serves both long distance and local buses.

[Nick R]

Ok, so maybe an underpass is needed (and a serious refurb of the station) but otherwise Hams could have long distance trains (serving some regional commuters too), long distance buses and local buses all in the one place downtown. Sounds perfect!

[Daniel]

I would love to see a light rail system on the agenda for Hamilton City it would be another way of showing up Auckland and Wellington.

No offence but I think even if Hamilton built a great light rail it would still have a long way to go before showing up Wellington .

But it would be a step in the right direction. Perhaps if the council then got its act together and built up a proper CBD (possibly built of brick) and some higher density population centres it would make a vast improvement to the soul-less, sprawling suburban wasteland it unfortunately is now. The city is just the right size to change its direction IMO.

[eurokiwi78]

All completely unnecessary, the good folk of hamil tron will all have electric cars soon and require a few more spaces and some more power points.

[QuintinH]

I was reffering to the V8s when I mentioned showing up Wellington.
But I dont know... Take the buses and add a couple of expandable rapid transport corridors using light rail along the main population axis of the city connecting the CBD with the tertiary study centres plus various job hubs and you would have a system PT system rivaling Wellington, if not smaller.

Plus all the electric cars of course!

[Daniel]

I was reffering to the V8s when I mentioned showing up Wellington.
But I dont know... Take the buses and add a couple of expandable rapid transport corridors using light rail along the main population axis of the city connecting the CBD with the tertiary study centres plus various job hubs and you would have a system PT system rivaling Wellington, if not smaller.

Plus all the electric cars of course!

I think the light rail system you describe would be the best in the country to tell you the truth.

[ka9102]

A light rail system for Hamilton,what for? Whats the population there? The buses are almost empty during off peaks times what makes you think the Light rail can be a success? and the owner and operators of the light rail? city council? Dream on.....

[Daniel]

A light rail system for Hamilton,what for? Whats the population there? The buses are almost empty during off peaks times what makes you think the Light rail can be a success? and the owner and operators of the light rail? city council? Dream on.....

But if a decent system was built don't you think patronage could become popular?

[keg]

I think light rail is a distant future option. IMO in the short/medium term passenger rail for Hamilton should consist of inter regional links - initially to Auckland, later to Tauranga and maybe Rotorua if that line is ever reopened.

But if a decent system was built don't you think patronage could become popular?

Try improving the bus service first - both in Hamilton and to/from the surrounding towns. When you have a major bus corriodor that has high frequency all day every day is busy during the peaks and well used outside the peak, then look at light rail.

[QuintinH]

I have to agree with the last couple of posts. Light rail for Hamilton right now is a bit of a dream and its not on anyones agenda at the moment.

The HARTS paper said a lot of good things about Light Rail in Hamilton but wrote it off in 1 paragraph because “investment in high cost high capacity transit systems such as light rail just does not occur in stand alone cites the size of Hamilton, and is uncommon in cities twice the size of Hamilton.” I would argue this point.

As keg said the immediate and medium term goals for rail should be inter region to Auckland, Tauranga, Rotorua and Wellington. With the Waikato towns of Huntly, Ngaruawahia, Morrinsville, Cambridge and Te Awamutu piggy backing on the service and getting rail connections to Hamilton.

[Daniel]

Try improving the bus service first - both in Hamilton and to/from the surrounding towns. When you have a major bus corriodor that has high frequency all day every day is busy during the peaks and well used outside the peak, then look at light rail.

But here's the catch 22. People will use the service if it's frequent and good and well advertised. But if it doesn't get the patronage and thus the returns the service gets reduced... and becomes less popular. If the system is only planned for adequacy it can never be very good.
Perhaps PT for Hamilton needs to be projected to make a loss for the first 5 years of operation.