INVESTMENT STRATEGY FOR NORTHERN IRELAND

(ISNI 2) 2008 - 2018

MEASURE INVESTMENT PROPOSAL (MIP) FOR

1.2 PUBLIC TRANSPORT

COMPRISING

1.2.1 Greater Belfast Rapid Transit

1.2.2 Rail Programme
1.2.3 Bus Programme
1.2.4 Other Public Transport Initiatives

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Section 1: The Context for Investment

The context for this measure is contained in the Regional Development

Strategy (RDS) which was endorsed by the NI Assembly in 2002. This sets
out a fresh approach to future transport requirements emphasising enhancing
accessibility to enable people to get to goods, services and facilities but with
as few negative impacts as possible. This means primarily giving more priority
to public transport improvement, walking and cycling, to gradually change the
travel culture, extend choice and reduce reliance on the car particularly for
journeys to school and work in the Belfast Metropolitan Area and larger urban
centres.

An integral feature of the RDS is the production of a Regional Transportation

Strategy with the vision ‘to have a modern, sustainable, safe transportation
system which benefits society, the economy and the environment and which
actively contributes to social inclusion and everyone’s quality of life’.

The RDS suggests that to enable the north to create an integrated

transportation system and catch up with and adopt the best transportation
practice of other regions it will require the transportation strategy to:

• Contribute to economic activity in a sustainable way through the

improved access to regional, national and international markets by
efficient targeting and deployment of resources, particularly in key
transport corridors;

• Promote accessibility for all to jobs, services and facilities through

improvement to transportation infrastructure and public transport
services in particular enhancing social inclusion;

• Further develop policies and measures to reduce the adverse

environmental impact of transport and contribute to sustainable
patterns of development and movement through support for the role of
public transport, walking and cycling and more responsible use of the

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 car;

• Improve safety for all travellers and promote walking and cycling and
public transport as healthy forms of travel; and

• Promote integration within and between different modes of travel, and

between transportation policies and policies for land use, the
environment, health, education, tourism and wealth creation.

Public transport (including rapid transport) is crucial to the delivery of the

above objectives.

Currently the majority of public transport services in here are delivered under
the “Translink” brand name by Ulsterbus Ltd, Citybus Ltd (operating as
“Metro”) and Northern Ireland Railways Ltd. The companies are subsidiaries
of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (NITHC) a public
corporation which is responsible to the Department for Regional Development
for the operation and delivery of public transport services. NITHC is the
seventh largest corporation here with over 4,000 employees and, in 2006/7 it
handled 76.1 million passenger journeys. Its operations are subsidised by a
mix of capital and revenue grants and government also funds concessionary
fares and fuel duty rebate. For 2005/06 total government support amounted to
£112.4 million (capital £60.1m; revenue £52.3m).

The then Minister David Cairns recently announced 22 August 2006 a revision
of public transport structures here with the setting up of a Passenger
Transport Authority (PTA). This will be responsible, from 2010/11 onwards,
for specifying public transport provision and will contract with public transport
providers for its delivery. The PTA will take on a number of functions currently
residing in the Department and in the NITHC Group of companies.

Also included in this MIP, under other public transport initiatives, is the Rathlin
Island ferry service. Rathlin Island is the north’s only inhabited offshore island
and is located 6 miles from the coastal town of Ballycastle. The island has a

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resident population of 90 persons. Rathlin Island is a tourist attraction
receiving 16,000 visitors in 2004.

The ferry service is a lifeline connection to the mainland for the resident
islanders as well as being essential for tourism. The quality of the existing
ferry fails to meet the expectations of many visitors with respect to shelter,
design and layout. To maintain a high quality and safe service to the resident
islanders and to continue to attract tourists’ investment is needed in the ferry
service.

Historical profile of investment

Over the 5 years from 2002/03 to 2006/07 capital investment was made in
support of bus and rail services provided by the Translink operating
companies as follows:

2002/03 2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07

£m £m £m £m £m
Bus 7.7 5.7 8.1 21.5 21.1
Rail 44.3 20.5 46.5 36.1 * 14.6
Total 52.0 26.2 54.6 57.6 35.7
* = projected figure

This capital investment helped to facilitate the purchase of almost 550 new
buses and 23 new train sets to replace old vehicles and trains. It also
enabled the upgrade of 20 rail track miles and saw the construction of the new
train care facility, the refurbishment of Central Station and various other
improvements completed or currently underway at most stations and halts.

Comparison with UK regions & Ireland

Although different delivery mechanisms apply in GB it is still possible to

extract important comparative and useful data. The table below is based on

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2005/06 figures. Less information is available from DfT Dublin sources but
where this has been identified it has been incorporated.

Rail Services
NI GB Ireland

Rail network km per 100 thousand people 20 36 47

(GB & Ireland include electrified network)
Passenger journeys per capita 5 18 9
Per capita government funding (£) 34 78 75

Bus Services

Buses per 100 thousand people 81 138 43

Bus km per capita 36 68 51
Per capita government funding (£) 28 36 26*
* DfT Dublin figures exclude fuel duty rebate

Sources: Translink, DfT London, DfT Dublin and annual reports and accounts.

The table above clearly indicates that:

• If rail service provision is expressed in terms of the length of the rail

network NI has only 55% of the level in GB and 42% of the level in
Ireland. This means that there is a much smaller rail network available
to the population of NI relative to the populations of GB and Ireland.

• Correspondingly per capita government funding is also significantly

lower and is equivalent to 44% of the GB figure and 45% of Ireland. If
NIR was subsidised to the same degree as GB based on network size
then NI would have received a subsidy per capita of £43 (55% of £78)
compared to the £34 received in 2005/06.

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 • Journeys per capita are 22% of the level in GB and 44% of the level in
Ireland. Such low take up is influenced by the relatively small size of
the network.

• In terms of bus provision the north has more buses per 100,000 people
than Ireland but less than GB.

• The north has the lowest level of bus kilometres per capita and also the
lowest level of subsidy (note DfT Dublin subsidy estimate excludes fuel
duty rebate which accounts for almost 18% of total NI bus subsidy).
While Ireland has relatively fewer buses they must be used more
intensively.

While there is no historical profile for rapid transit the Belfast Metropolitan
Transport Plan sets out transport schemes and proposals up to 2015 which
will support development proposals within the Belfast Metropolitan Area Plan
and together will provide an integrated approach to the future development of
the Belfast Metropolitan Area.

The proposal to introduce rapid transit services is a major element of the

delivery of a step change in the quality of public transport in the Belfast
Metropolitan Area. It complements an increasing incidence of investment in
public transport e.g. the procurement of new trains to enhance rail services
and new buses to improve urban and interurban services provided by
Translink after years of underinvestment.

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Availability of Rapid Transit Services across UK & ROI

Rank City Population Current Rapid Transit Technology

Rapid Transit under
Consideration
1 London 7,172,091 Underground Heavy rail
Docklands Light Light rail
Rail
Croydon Light rail
Tramway etc
2 Birmingham 970,892 Midland Metro Light/ Heavy rail

3 Glasgow 629,501 Underground Heavy rail

Street Car Bus Rapid Transit

4 Belfast 579,276 EWay Bus Rapid Transit

Metropolitan CITI
area* WWay
Super route
5 Dublin 495,781 LUAS LUAS Extension Light Rail

METRO Heavy Rail

DART Heavy Rail

6 Liverpool 469,017 Mersey Tram Light rail

7 Leeds 443,247 Leeds BRT Bus Rapid Transit

First Group FTR Bus Rapid Transit

8 Sheffield 439,866 Sheffield Light rail

Supertram
9 Edinburgh 430,082 Edinburgh Tram Light rail
Edinburgh Bus Bus Rapid Transit
Rapid Transit
10 Bristol 420,556 Bristol Bus Rapid Bus Rapid Transit
Transit
11 Manchester 394,269 Manchester
Metrolink

Metrolink Light rail

extension
Bus Rapid Bus Rapid Transit
Transit
12 Coventry 303,475 Sprint Network Bus Rapid Transit

13 Bradford 293,717 Bradford Bus Bus Rapid Transit

Rapid Transit
14 Nottingham 249,584 Nottingham Light Rail
Express Transit

*Belfast Metropolitan Area includes District council areas of Belfast,

Castlereagh, Lisburn, Newtownabbey, Carrickfergus and North Down

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Fixed Infrastructure Assets

Details of NITHC asset valuations at 31 March 2006 are as follows:

Land & Investment Permanent Way, Vehicles Total
Buildings Properties Signalling & Plant &
Bridges Equipment
£M £M £M £M £M

Cost 139 15 200 328 682

Depreciation 46 - 200 199 445

NBV 93 15 - 129 237

Rail

Main assets at April 2007 include:

• 120.8 route miles of single (20.05 mothballed) and 86.2 route miles of
double main line track comprising 185 sets of points;

• 61 level crossings (public road) and approx 200 User Worked

Crossings;

• 16 railway stations, 40 halts (4 mothballed) and 123 platforms;

• 3 main depots at York Road, Fortwilliam and Adelaide;

• 4 maintenance and storage facilities at Portadown, Lisburn, Antrim and

Ballymena;

• Signalling infrastructure including equipment and fittings for 3 signal

panels, 360 signals, Automatic Warning Systems (AWS), Train
Protection Warning System (TPWS) and communications; and

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 • Structures assets include underline and overline bridges, earthworks
and sea defences.

Rail Rolling Stock

NIR’s rail rolling stock fleet is as follows:

Description Number

Class 3000 3 car Diesel Multiple Unit 23

Class 450 3 car Diesel Multiple Unit 9
Class 80 4 car Diesel Multiple Unit 3
Ex Gatwick Mk II locomotive
Hauled coaches 8
De-Dietrich (Cross Border) Locomotive 14
Class 110 General Motors Locomotive 3
Class 201 (Cross Border) General Motors Locomotive 2

In addition to this NIR has the following on-track infrastructure plant.

Ballast Regulator 2
Tamper 3
Compact Tamper 1
Relay Gantry 1
Relay Beam 1
Flash Butt Welder 1
On-Track Rail Threading Machine (PRD6) 1
Vehicle Motor Traction Unit (VMT) 1
Road Rail Excavators 2
Assorted Flat Bed Wagons,
Ballast Hoppers etc 24

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Bus

Main assets at April 2007 include:

• 23 Bus Stations;
• 26 Bus Garages and Workshops; and
• 3 integrated bus / rail stations at Europa, Bangor and Coleraine.

There are also shared assets including:

• office locations;
• training facilities; and
• call centre.

Translink has a fleet of 1,445 buses split as follows:

Ulsterbus Metro Flexibus

Single Deck Buses 850 123 -

Double Deck Buses 43 110 -
Single Deck Goldline Coaches 123 - -
Double Deck Goldline coaches 26 - -
Minibuses 101 10 26
Tours Coaches 31 - -
Tours Mini Coaches ___2 ___ __
TOTAL 1,176 243 26

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Section 2: Rationale for Investment

Economic nature of the investment

Public sector transport provision aims to address the problems of market

failure that result in external costs being imposed by car users on other
travellers and wider society. One of these externalities is pollution. Car users
pollute but do not cover the cost of polluting since they only cover the cost of
running their private vehicle. Therefore car users impose a negative
externality on everyone else in the form of pollution. In effect the marginal
social cost of car use is higher than the marginal private cost of car use,
therefore government intervenes to try and reduce social cost into line with
private cost. This means encouraging people to use public transport because
relative pollution levels are lower. Translink bus and rail services and rapid
transit services address the issue of pollution by transporting people at lower
levels of pollution than private cars.

Public sector transport provision also addresses the externality of time delays
imposed by private car users on other travellers. Limited road space results in
congestion which in turn means longer journey times and longer journey times
mean lost output to the economy. Translink bus and rail services and the
rapid transit proposals address the issue of congestion by moving people to
destinations in a more cost effective way than by private car.

In the draft Northern Ireland Regional Economic Strategy (January 2007) it is

acknowledged that the local economy has experienced significant progress
over the last decade. Employment has grown at an unprecedented pace and
unemployment in the region is now amongst the lowest in the UK. However,
the local economy still faces some significant challenges. Working age
economic inactivity is higher than in any other part of the UK, innovation and
entrepreneurial activity is comparatively low and our infrastructure needs
upgrading. The growth potential of the local economy can be improved by
increasing the employment rate and improving productivity by focussing on
four key drivers one of which is Infrastructure and which can attract

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Government intervention through the implementation of the Investment
Strategy for Northern Ireland.

Public transport and the persistent deficits on annual spending on capital

investment in the public transport infrastructure is recognised as something
ISNI can address and thus support the development aims of the existing
Regional Transportation Strategy which is a vital component of the Regional
Development Strategy. It acknowledges that the Comprehensive Spending
Review can consider the scope for alternative or supplementary means of
financing public transport infrastructure.

The draft Regional Economic Strategy also highlights the need to align itself
with the Northern Ireland Sustainable Development Strategy and recognises
that the north in achieving a strong and stable economy must ensure that it is
a sustainable economy. In essence this means that the north must become
more resource efficient both in its production and consumption. The north
must also aim to accept its share of global responsibility for reducing
emissions of greenhouse gases and an increased use of public transport can
help to address this problem.

In essence the draft Regional Economic Strategy recognises:

• The importance of an efficient modern public transportation

infrastructure. Inadequate public transport infrastructure can increase
traffic congestion, reduce productivity, constrain markets and increase
costs. This not only affects existing firms but also an area’s
attractiveness as an investment location and general quality of life;

• The role of public transport in the Sustainability strategy in ensuring

that a better balance between economic, social and environmental
progress is achieved.

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External Factors

A good public transport infrastructure is crucial to the promotion of

competitiveness and sustainable development. It is critical that the workforce
has access to a reliable and efficient means of public transport in order for the
economy to function at its optimum level. A good public transport system also
assists in the delivery of an environmentally sustainable economy. The growth
in population and employment, in tandem with the environmental imperative to
reduce carbon emissions, requires a major modal switch in passenger
transport from private car to bus, rail and rapid transit. Current economic and
demographic trends here highlight the imperative for significant levels of
investment in public transport. A brief review of the principal economic and
statistical indicators clearly shows that the issue of investment in public
transport will be critical over the near future.

In 2005 the NI economy grew by 2% in real terms. DETI has provided Gross
Value Added forecasts up to 2016 of 2.5% – 3% growth projections per
annum, covering most of the ISNI 2 period. This compares to projected
growth of 4% - 4.5% in Ireland. In the absence of any measure to manage
traffic demand, traffic will increase in line with this economic growth resulting
in congestion that will have significant adverse economic and environmental
effects on NI. Investment in, and diversion of passengers to, bus, rail and
rapid transit will be an important factor in keeping the NI economy free flowing
and able to compete with the rest of the UK, Ireland and Europe.

The benefits of a free flowing economy are not solely delivered in urban
areas. A good quality public transport system allows people to travel from
rural areas to employment in urban areas. In addition good rural bus services
alleviate the problem of social exclusion for low income rural households
without access to a car.

We have been informed by officials from the Department of Transport in

Dublin that one of the reasons they are investing so much in public transport
is that reports on the transport infrastructure indicated that, if improvements
were not made, investment from North America may be jeopardised. As the

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north enters a critical phase of economic growth it is important that the level of
investment in public transport infrastructure here does not become a
constraint.

The population here increased by 4.3% between 1996 and 2006 to 1.7 million
and will be over 1.8 million by 2021.

Most of the population growth is taking place in the urban hinterlands of

Greater Belfast. This places additional pressure on the public transport
system, the local economy and the environment because without investment
the public transport commuters and workers face longer travelling times to get
to work.

Average household size continues to fall, reaching 2.53 in 2006 and is

forecast to be 2.34 by 2016. This pattern is consistent with the rest of the UK
and Ireland. As household size falls, household numbers increase and car
ownership correspondingly rises.

The north had 737,000 persons in employment at December 2006, an

increase of 7.5% (51,000 persons) over a five year period. They need to travel
to and from work in the shortest time possible with minimum congestion.
Increasing future prosperity will lead to higher numbers of economically active
people leading to increasing levels of congestion in urban areas unless
appropriate levels of bus and rail alternatives are available.

Although car ownership per thousand of the population grew from 510 in 2001
to 581 per 1000 population in 2005 it is still substantially below the GB
average of 634 per 1,000 of population. A high quality public transport system
is required to compete with private car use during peak travel times for the
benefit of the local economy and environment. It is also needed to offset the
relatively low levels of car ownership here and to address issues of social
inclusion by giving households without access to a car a suitable mode of
transportation.

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Despite having lower levels of car ownership than in GB, the north has higher
levels of commuters who use the car for home to work travel. Figures for 2004
show that 83% of all home to work journeys were by car. This compared to
81% in Wales, 71% in England and 69% in Scotland. It is also much higher
than in Ireland where, according to the 2002 Census, 62% of people used
their private car to get to work.

Demand for Investment

Translink’s Corporate Plan projects demand for rail services to increase by

5.6% from 2007/08 to 2009/10. In February 2007 a demand projections
report, commissioned by DRD and delivered by Booz Allen Hamilton
consultancy group, indicated that, with service enhancements to the rail
network, rail demand would grow by a further 22% by 2017/18.

Recent investment in the Citybus fleet and its re-launch as Metro in February
2005 resulted in an increase of 14% in passenger numbers in the two years to
the end of 2006/07. The Metro service runs at capacity during morning and
evening peak times and a Metro phase 2 project has been approved. This will
introduce 25 additional buses on three routes to increase frequencies and on
the basis of success, measured by increased passenger numbers, a further
33 additional buses will be introduced on other routes.

In the two years to 2006/07 Goldline passenger numbers increased by almost

7%. While overall Ulsterbus passenger journeys are projected to fall by 1.4%
to 2009/10 this decline is marginal and continued investment is required to
maintain a modern fleet that both attracts people away from peak time car use
and delivers an attractive high quality public transport alternative to
households in rural areas without access to cars.

Overall there is a significant level of potential demand for public transport

services here as evidenced by the lower use of these services compared to
GB and the rest of Ireland. It is essential to maintain and expand these
services in order to secure the benefits of lower congestion; quicker journey

15
times in urban areas; lower levels of pollution; and increased social inclusion
for those dependent on public transport.

Alternative Ways of Meeting Demand

The Department recently took forward, in conjunction with DFP and SIB, an
option appraisal for train services here. In determining passenger demand this
included the assumption that planned investment in roads would go ahead.
The appraisal considered options for enhancing existing rail services and also
for truncating the network. On that basis, the preferred way forward for rail is
as follows:

¾ retain the whole of the existing network;

¾ to replace existing life expired trains by 2012;
¾ to enhance services for the greater Belfast area;
¾ to enhance services on the Derry line; and
¾ to enhance services on the Dublin line in terms of service frequency.

Further information is provided in section 3.

The Department also undertakes annual benchmarking of Translink’s

performance against public transport providers elsewhere in GB. The results
of this exercise are used to set value for money targets and these have been
incorporated within the projections for additional buses.

The concept of rapid transit for Belfast complements the increasing

investment in public transport generally and provides an opportunity to
significantly enhance transport services which will positively impact on a
number of cross cutting policies:

• The proposed route from Dundonald will progress through socially

deprived areas at Tullycarnet and Inner East which are subject to
DSD’s Neighbourhood renewal initiatives;

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 • For people who don’t own cars it will improve access to employment,
health, education and social needs and have a positive impact on the
Government’s anti poverty, social exclusion and sustainability
strategies;

• For the Titanic Quarter route it will act as a incentive for outward and
inward investment initiatives from Invest NI and DETI;

• Both routes will positively impact on DSD public realm work ongoing
within Belfast;

• Promote a 21st century image of Belfast for tourism /business

reasons;

• Improve environmental perspective on tackling traffic congestion,

lowering emissions;

• To help change travel culture from the car to public transport with
benefits on reducing traffic congestion and road safety; and

• Cross party political support.

Alignment with DSOs & PSAs

One of the Departments Ministerial Priorities is delivering a modern Public

Transport System - The framework provided by the Regional Transportation
Strategy 2002-2012 (RTS) will also help deliver a more modern public
transport system, better able to respond to changing economic and social
conditions and to support the Government’s commitment to sustainable
development.

Further investment in Translink will facilitate further development of the Metro

service and help reduce the age of the Ulsterbus fleet. A decision has been
taken, by Minister, on the size and level of future rail services in the region.

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DRD will also examine the feasibility of potential Rapid Transit pilot routes in
the Belfast Metropolitan Area.

Flowing from this is the Departmental Strategic Objective (DSO) 2 to maintain

and develop a safe and effective transportation network and deliver high
quality public transport services. Key public transport indicators are:

¾ Further passenger growth and modal change towards Public Transport;

¾ Improved public transport services and infrastructure; and
¾ Develop and implement new public transport structures by April 2010.

The Department’s related Public Service Agreement (PSA) 2 is to have a

modern, sustainable, safe transportation system which benefits society, the
economy, and the environment and which actively contributes to social
inclusion and everyone’s quality of life. Key public transport indicators are:

¾ Reduce journey times on the Key Transport Corridors;

¾ Further passenger growth and modal change towards Public Transport;
and
¾ Mid-term review of the Regional Transportation Strategy.

Relationship between bus and rail investment

A key aim of the Regional Transport Strategy (RTS) is to secure a level of

public transport provision which acts as an attractive alternative to the private
car and encourages people to choose a mode of transport that will help
reduce congestion and be more environmentally friendly. In order to fully
address the different needs and demands of different sections of society it is
important to provide as wide a choice of bus, rail and rapid transit options as
possible. It is also important to recognise that the overall level of public
transport provision and usage here is less than in either GB or Ireland and
that there is unmet demand for both bus and rail services.

Recent experience here has indicated that investment in rail does not come at
the expense of reduced bus travel and vice versa. Taking Belfast as an

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example the positive, and mutually beneficial, benefits from investing in both
bus and rail can be highlighted by reviewing the recent investment in both
areas.

Since the launch of Metro, in February 2005, passenger journeys have

increased by 14% 1 to the end of 2006/07. The growth in Metro users can be
attributed to the combined efforts of Translink and DRD. As a consequence
of the investment priorities outlined in the RTS, DRD has provided funding to
allow significant capital spending on a much improved bus fleet for the greater
Belfast area. This has been combined with Roads Service co-operation in
providing Quality Bus Corridors (QBC) and bus priority schemes.

The investment in new buses in recent years has allowed Translink to deliver
a more attractive urban bus service in terms of a more modern fleet (average
fleet age is now 6 years compared with 9.8 in 2002/03 and the accessibility
rate is 96% compared with 48% in 2002/03) and improved operational
performance resulting in higher passenger journeys and higher levels of
passenger satisfaction (72% compared with 64% in 2002/03).

In addition to this increase in bus usage recent DRD investment in new trains
has also helped to generate increased passenger journeys on the core
network of lines which service the Belfast area. Since new trains have been
deployed on the Bangor and Portadown lines passenger journeys have
increased by 29% on both lines between 2004/05 and 2006/07. On the Larne
line, which still generally uses old trains, demand fell by 6% over the same
period (however some catch up is underway after line closure for track relay in
2005/06). Such passenger journey increases highlight the attraction to
passengers of the faster journeys, increased frequencies and greater comfort
that new trains bring.

It is clear from the above analysis of recent developments in public transport

that investment in bus does not come at the expense of reduced rail travel or
vice versa. Recent investment in rail and bus in Belfast has resulted in

1
Adjusted for the re-branding of some previously Ulsterbus routes to Metro

19
increased passenger journeys on both modes of transport. The current
position is that Metro is working at capacity at peak times and the Bangor and
Portadown rail lines are also close to capacity without any sign of demand
falling. To restrain bus and rail capacity at the existing level is therefore not a
good option as this capacity will soon be breached and demand will transfer to
private car. Additional investment is required in bus, rail and rapid transit if
Belfast is not to suffer from increased levels of congestion which will have a
negative impact on the city as a dynamic economy with goods, services and
labour flowing freely.

The above observations and recommendations regarding Belfast are

consistent with the findings and recommendations of the Eddington report
which indicated that investment in bus and rail services in urban areas is
essential to avoid levels of congestion that threaten the economic
performance of cities in the UK.

It is not only Belfast that has benefited from recent investment in bus and rail.
Passengers on the Derry line have also enjoyed the benefit of the new trains.
This has resulted in an increase in passenger journeys of 20% between
2004/05 and 2006/07. The main type of bus alternative against the Derry rail
line would come from the Ulsterbus Goldline inter city service which has also
benefited from the recent investment in bus services. Between 2005/06 and
2006/07 Goldline passenger journeys increased by over 5%. This again
indicates that investment in both bus and rail brings benefits to both modes in
the form of increased passenger journeys and that there is not a mutually
exclusive relationship.

While the introduction of new trains on the Derry line brought about increased
punctuality further investment would bring about increased frequency and
allow the introduction of a timetable that would deliver trains into both Derry
and Coleraine at times that would suit commuters (currently the early train into
Derry arrives too late for people commuting to work). Such investment would
attract many additional passengers away from car use to the benefit of
reduced congestion in Derry.

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It is widely reflected in the public transport investment strategies of GB and
Ireland that investment in both bus and rail services is essential if sufficient
numbers of journeys are to be attracted from private car use to public
transport. This is an important principle which underpinned the RTS and
which has also been incorporated within this proposal.

Main EU policy drivers and Linkages

The European Commission has advocated intermodal transport solutions in

its White paper ‘European transport policy for 2010: time to decide’. Such
transport networks should allow for seamless intermodal passenger
transportation to provide attractive alternatives to ‘car only’ travel. In this
respect intermodal travel chains may comprise all transport modes including
walking, public transport, cycling and car use. An efficient organisation of
intermodal travel would reduce the reliance on the private car and allow for
the use of more environmentally friendly modes to the benefit of all European
citizens and the environment.

The Commission recognises that European cities increasingly face problems

caused by transport and traffic. It acknowledges that the question is how to
enhance mobility while at the same time reducing congestion, accidents and
pollution. It also acknowledges the difficult situation in that transport systems
must respond to the multiple mobility requests of European citizens so as to
provide the freedom to travel necessary for social and economic development
but equally realise that transport is a major consumer of non renewal finite
fuels and is negatively affecting citizens’ health, the economy and cause
climate change.

Risks associated with failure to invest

If new buses and trains cannot be procured, and the associated infrastructure
maintained and improved, Translink will be forced to operate with aged and
increasingly unreliable assets until they are operationally unfit for use. It will
very soon become evident that comfort, reliability and safety have been
compromised to the detriment of staff, customers and the general public.

21
DSO and PSA objectives will be missed and a failure to comply with safety
and environmental legislation will be obvious as congestion levels increase
leading to longer journey times and a less free flowing local economy. There
will be reduced support to economic growth, especially from foreign
investment, and failure to provide for social inclusion. Costs of future retrieval
to the existing network size will be significantly higher if essential planned
maintenance opportunities are missed.

If the rapid transit bid were not to proceed it would have the following adverse
impacts:

• Belfast would increasingly suffer from increasing traffic congestion from

private car use which would adversely impact on business efficiency
and future investment;

• Public transport would continue to be perceived as a secondary choice

for meeting travel needs;

• The opportunity to influence social change in a number of deprived

areas would be lost;

• Failure to realise the transport vision contained in the RDS and RTS;

• Poor reflection of Belfast as a 21st century city

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Section 3: Description of Programmes

Details of funding proposed under this measure are set out below allocated
across the various programmes.

CAPITAL
All capital figures in 2008 prices (£)
First three years: Following seven Total
Programme 2008 - 2011 years: 2011-2018

Greater Belfast Rapid Transit 85m 149m 234m

Rail Programme – baseline (existing
service with life expired trains
replaced) plus core, Derry and Dublin 232m 346m 578m
line enhancements
Bus Programme 102m 140m 242m
Rathlin Island passenger ferry 1.2m 0 1.2m
Rathlin Island roll on roll off ferry 6.3m 0 6.3m
TOTAL (for this Measure) 426.5m 635m 1,061.5

REVENUE
All revenue figures in 2008 prices (£)
First three years: Following seven Total
Programme 2008 - 2011 years: 2011-2018

Greater Belfast Rapid Transit 3.6m 8.4m 12.0m

Rail Programme – baseline (existing
service with life expired trains
replaced) plus core, Derry and Dublin 0 32.1m 32.1m
line enhancements
Bus Programme 0 0 0
Rathlin Island passenger ferry 1.0m 0 1.0m
Rathlin Island roll on roll off ferry 0.5m 0 0.5m
TOTAL (for this Measure) 5.1m 40.5m 45.6m

Descriptions of each programme are provided below:

23
Greater Belfast Rapid Transit

The Belfast Metropolitan Transport Plan envisaged a network of rapid transit

routes across Belfast. Earlier assessments of the different technology options
concluded that bus rapid transit would be by far the most cost effective and
operationally flexible system for implementation in the context of the Belfast
Metropolitan Area. It suggested that the pilot stage utilising the Newtownards
corridor could be implemented subject to economic appraisal, budgetary
processes and the completion of statutory processes. DRD consequently
commissioned transport consultants to undertake feasibility studies on both
EWay serving the Newtownards corridor and in light of the significant
development within Titanic Quarter a CITI route linking the city centre to
Titanic Quarter, Belfast City airport and the new retail development within the
Harbour estate.

Rapid transit will integrate with existing transport infrastructure and

complement public transport services particularly in relation to Titanic Quarter
which currently has no public transport provision. The rapid transit network is
likely to be segregated along significant portions of the routes. The
Commission for Integrated Transport indicated evidence of patronage transfer
from the car to bus based rapid transit coupled with bus priority measures of
between 3% -10%. This could be further enhanced if the associated
infrastructure was comparable to light rail. Therefore it is intended that rapid
transit will include off vehicle ticketing, real time information systems and
level entry into vehicles from stops (similar to LUAS in Dublin), It is anticipated
that there would be improved journey times compared to traditional travel
options.

The terms of reference provided to the consultants allow them to consider

afresh the technology and route options and present a business plan that will
allow the project to advance to a more detailed design and implementation
stage. The capital figures provided are based on those outlined in the Belfast
Metropolitan Transport Plan for a bus based system uprated to 2008.
Dependent on the outcome of the feasibility studies which are considering the
whole range of technology options including light rail this may result in the

24
need to make adjustment to the bid figures. Dependent on the outcome of the
current feasibility studies this bid will allow the Department to initiate the
design and build stage of the project. There is further consideration presently
being given to extending the routes to Queen’s University Belfast, the Royal
Victoria Hospital and beyond into West Belfast. This may result in a further
consequent adjustment to the bid figures. The consultants are due to report
towards the end of Summer 2007 but this may be extended if the routes are
lengthened. The ISNI2 bid includes a proportion for revenue purposes as the
Department recognises that to progress the introduction of rapid transit
services for Belfast will require a significant commitment and the need to
establish a dedicated team to project manage the scheme.

Rail Programme

The Department for Regional Development (DRD) Regional Transportation

Strategy (RTS) for Northern Ireland 2002 – 2012 sets out inter alia the
following two targets for rail:

All current trains to be replaced by new trains – with the exception of

Enterprise services;

Retain services north of Whitehead and north-west of Ballymena – subject to

successful results from the introduction of new trains and infrastructure on the
rest of the network early in the period to 2012.

As the final stage in the delivery of these targets the Department has set up a
Steering Group to oversee an evaluation of investment to date and to
appraise options for future investment. While NIR has brought 23 new Class
3000 trains into service (the final unit entering operational service in
September 2005) it still has a significant level of old rolling stock. A total of 13
Class 450, ex-Gatwick and Class 80 trains will be life expired between 2010
and 2012. Given the time required to produce and take delivery of new train
sets the process of identifying suitable options for replacement has begun
with this project.

25
Railways comprise a substantial asset for a region connecting people with
jobs and providing accessibility for communities and services. In addition they
represent a key means of reducing harmful emissions from transport
compared to travel by road. Elsewhere the strategic importance of railways is
being recognised with additional investment. In Scotland the Scottish
Executive has published a plan for the next 20 years which is designed to
ensure that Scotland’s railway network continues to improve. The plan
involves enhancing the existing rail infrastructure and delivering a programme
of major projects together with ongoing replacement of rolling stock. In
Ireland the Government has embarked upon a major Transport initiative
‘Transport 21’ costing some €34 bn over the period 2006 to 2015. The
programme has a heavy emphasis on railway projects with these estimated to
cost some €16 bn. While the majority of this will be aimed at the greater
Dublin area there are also substantial amounts for the railway outside Dublin
including the construction of the Western Rail Corridor. Transport 21 builds
upon considerable recent investment in the railway network. Passenger
numbers have increased substantially as a result and in 2004-05 Iarnrod
Eireann carried nearly 38 million passengers, making it the fastest growing
railway network in Europe.

Consequently the appraisal also considered options to enhance existing

services taking account of developments since 2002 when the RTS was
published i.e. increasing car ownership and congestion levels, increasing rail
patronage and increasing concern over the environmental impacts of
transport.

The appraisal incorporates a Business Development Analysis carried out by

Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH). This analysed projected demand derived from an
elasticity based demand model developed by BAH using elasticity values with
respect to economic growth, primary service attributes (e.g. timetable
changes, trip generation), secondary service attributes (the impact of new
trains, increased frequencies, increased capacity) and stimulated and diverted
demand (modal shift).

26
The appraisal has evaluated a number of options some of which rank higher
than others in terms of NPV. It is recognised that affordability is also a key
issue and for the purposes of this ISNI2 submission and we have quantified
the costs associated with the following requirements:

¾ retain the whole of the existing network and replace existing life expired
trains by 2012 – the base case – this requires the purchase of 13
replacement diesel multiple units (DMUs) with the expectation that
passenger journeys will increase by 2.3 million over the 2006/07 level
to 10.9 million by 2019/20;

¾ to enhance services for the greater Belfast area - this requires the
purchase of an additional 5 DMUs over the base case to increase
capacity (i.e. longer trains) on the core lines with an expected increase
of 1 million passenger journeys over the base case by 2019/20;

¾ to enhance services on the Derry line – this requires the purchase of

an additional 2 DMUs over the base case to provide an hourly
frequency on the line with an expected increase of 195 thousand
passenger journeys over the base case by 2019/20, and

¾ to enhance services on the Dublin line in terms of service frequency –

this requires the purchase of an additional 4 DMUs over the base case
to provide an hourly service on the line with an expected increase of 26
thousand passenger journeys over the base case by 2019/20.

The inclusion of the Dublin enhancement is consistent with the importance

attached to the rail connection between Belfast and Dublin even though the
economic appraisal concluded that it would not deliver any incremental
benefits compared to the base case. Future work will look at measures to
reduce journey time on the line which, in due course, when combined with
greater frequency of service, could deliver benefits on the line. Further work
can be undertaken to explore the case for such a development.
The capital and revenue requirements of the rail programme are broken down
across the following projects:

27
CAPITAL
All capital figures in 2008 prices (£)
First three years: Following seven Total
Programme 2008 - 2011 years: 2011-2018

Rail Programme – baseline – existing 198m 289m 487m

service with life expired trains replaced
Rail Programme – core enhancement 17m 13m 30m
Rail Programme – Derry line 5m 30m 35m
enhancement
Rail Programme - Dublin frequency 12m 14m 26m
enhancement
(this will not increase train speed)
Total 232m 346m 578m

REVENUE
All revenue figures in 2008 prices (£)
First three years: Following seven Total
Programme 2008 - 2011 years: 2011-2018

Rail Programme – baseline – existing 0 0 0

service with life expired trains replaced
Rail Programme – core enhancement 0 4m 4.3m
Rail Programme – Derry line 0 1.1m 1.1m
enhancement
Rail Programme - Dublin frequency 0 27m 27.2m
enhancement
(this will not increase train speed)
Total 0 32.1m 32.1m

Bus Programme

The case relating to the bus programme (1.2.3) assumes that the current
practice of providing for replacement of the fleet in pursuit of RTS fleet and
vehicle age targets will continue. The forward programme comprises:

28
 All Capital Figures in 2008 Prices (£)
Programme First three years: Following Total
2008 - 2011 seven years:
2011 – 2018

Bus Maintenance Depots 24m 15m 39m

Bus Passenger Facilities 13m 14m 28m
Bus Purchase Fleet Replacement 46m 81m 127m
Bus Purchase QBC 5m - 5m
Other Bus Capital 14m 30m 43m

Total (for this Measure) 102m 140m 242m

Within the infrastructure component, the focus shifts from bus stations to bus
engineering facilities and engineering workshops. Modification of stations will
however be required to accommodate new low floor bus design and possible
centre door location buses.

The continuing programme of fleet renewal which, by 2013, will ensure an

average fleet age of not more than 8 years must also be maintained through
to 2018 and beyond to ensure that the gains made are not lost towards the
end of the investment strategy period.

The proposed investment also covers the roll-out of a two stage project, part
one of which is already approved, involving the purchase of 25 additional
double deck buses to increase frequencies on the quality bus corridors
forming the core Metro routes in Belfast.

Other capital expenditure is needed within the bus sector for general works
including: IT renewal and enhancement; office refurbishment; and
replacement of engineering equipment to ensure the ongoing efficiency and
safety of operations. Illustratively, firm estimates for £7m for IT requirements
have been prepared for years 1 and 2 of the ISNI period. These relate to a
Bus Information System, a Corporate Asset Management system and
equipping buses with on board computers. In the longer term it would cover a
Ticketing System, an Integrated Financial Accounting System and further
investment in Corporate Asset Management controls. Failure to invest in IT

29
will adversely impact on the ability to produce management information
efficiently and will impair the quality of services provided. Similar arguments
can be developed over the other investment areas. Collectively these
investment requirements have been quantified at over £43m over the 10 year
period to 2018.

Other Public Transport Initiatives

The Department has responsibility for providing a ferry to Rathlin Island, the
north’s only inhabited offshore island. The current vessel offers a roll-on roll-
off (RORO) service but is nearing the end of its useful working life. The
operator Caledonian MacBrayne (Calmac) is wholly owned by the Scottish
Executive and may not be permitted by its parent Department to operate
outside of the Scottish undertaking for much longer. Purchase of the existing
vessel (even if it was made available) does not offer a long term solution and
efforts to identify other suitable vessels have thus far failed.

The current proposal targets specific objectives for the service reflecting DSO
3 ‘to maintain and develop a safe transportation network’, viz:

• To maintain a 'life-line' service to Rathlin Island;

• To offer a contract term for the service of 6 years; and,

• To ensure that the maximum annual amount of subsidy to be made

available for the support of the service is based on the most
economically advantageous tender.

and envisages the acquisition of a passenger vessel as an interim measure

until a new purpose built vessel can be procured.

Passenger Ferry

The first phase is to acquire a passenger only vessel to supplement the

existing roll on roll off Rathlin ferry. This will result in increased passenger
carrying capacity to meet the burgeoning seasonal demand from tourists to

30
travel to the island. Increased tourism will generate economic benefits to the
island as a whole increasing the capacity for paid employment. This will
necessitate a higher level of subsidy for crew and running costs estimated at
£250,000 per year. However, fares income will increase by around £12,000,
in total, during the summer months of July and August - figure is based on
recent fares trends plus an expected 4% increase in passenger traffic due to
enhanced carrying capacity and improved level of comfort on a purpose built
passenger vessel.

Roll on Roll off Ferry for Rathlin Island

The second phase involves procurement of a replacement (RoRo) ferry to

facilitate a consistent level of freight to be carried to the island throughout the
year. Freight carriage is currently restricted in summer months to
accommodate higher passenger demand. The current passenger capacity is
limited to 27 plus two cars (or one lorry) in winter and 125 passengers with no
vehicles in summer. The current vessel is nearing the end of its working life
and is providing a very basic service. To ensure continuation of service,
investment in a new vessel is required in the near future. A lead-in time of 2-3
years is anticipated in acquiring a purpose built vessel, and commitment of
the necessary finances must be made ahead of undertaking procurement
action.

Once the new RoRo vessel is fully operational, scope may exist to dispose of
the passenger vessel, generating a cash return to the service.

Unavoidable Elements – Expenditure Already Committed

Contracts have already been awarded for the £17m combined New Rail
Vision and DDA projects, approval is awaited for the £12m track life extension
project (Ballymena to Coleraine); tenders have issued for Project
Management services for the Knockmore / Lurgan relay and tenders for a new
railway station at Newry are due to be issued shortly. Contracts have also
been awarded for most of the bus replacements planned through 2008/09.

31
Revenue consequences

The 2010 new trains project has examined ongoing revenue and cost
streams. The cost streams will be partly covered by passenger revenue and
partly covered by an increase of £480k per annum in the Public Service
Obligation.

Benefits Risks & Interdependencies

These have been discussed at earlier sections of this MIP. In short, failure to
invest will result in a marked reduction in reliability and failure to achieve the
DSO to improve public transport services. Incremental losses in operating
efficiency will impact on the way in which Translink can deliver public
transport services, making public transport a much less attractive option. This
will have an adverse effect on environment, economy and integration/social
inclusion. Without the proposed investment the following problems will arise:

• Without a good public transport infrastructure road congestion will

increase resulting in longer journey times and consequently the loss of
a free flowing economy with respect to labour mobility, access to
services and the movement of goods;

• Without a free flowing economy the north would not be an attractive

place for foreign investment;

• A good public transport system is essential for the development of

tourism;

• A good public transport system contributes to social cohesion by linking

local sub-regions;

• A good public transport system contributes to social inclusion by

providing access to goods and service to people in rural areas and
people in urban areas who do not have access to private cars; and

32
 • A good public transport system helps address the problem of
sustainability and carbon emissions by reducing the average level of
pollution associated with each journey undertaken.

Impacts of Investment

Investment will deliver a reliable, safe, affordable and environmentally

sustainable public transport system that will continue to attract even greater
support from the travelling public. Services will be increased and journey
times reduced to make public transport the preferred choice for a significant
number of people. Wider economic benefits will be delivered including
economic regeneration; the creation and sustainability of employment through
the availability of labour for business and commerce; improved cross border
links and the attraction and development of tourism. Improved integration for
persons living in rural or isolated communities will result from enhanced
access to rail travel.

New trains and buses, and associated public transport infrastructure, will lead
directly to improved availability, choice and accessibility for passengers.

Ensuring Cost Effectiveness

Proposed service levels are assessed at economic appraisal stage thus

ensuring that the appropriate level of service is provided in line with the
overall objectives in the RTS. All investment plans are subject to the
application of the Green Book requirements. Thereafter approval to proceed
from the Department for Regional Development (in all cases) and from the
Department of Finance & Personnel (for proposed expenditure in excess of
£1m) is required.

Alternatives for Delivery

Plans are under development to bring forward a Passenger Transport

Authority and Public Transport Executive to oversee the delivery of public

33
transport services in NI. This will extend to the introduction of private sector
operators to the delivery of these services.

34
Section 4: Delivery Mechanisms

Arrangements are in place to ensure accountability and delivery on time and

to budget.

Rail and bus projects are managed by Translink in accordance with the
Infrastructure Manual of Project Management Procedures, compatible with
both Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) of the Project
Management Institute (PMI) and Association of Project Management (APM)
organisations and with PRINCE2 methodology. The process is based on a
Gateway Process with review points at end of: Inception; Feasibility;
Appraisal; Design; Procurement; Implementation / Construction (Handover); &
Operation and Maintenance (Closure).

Each project is sponsored by a member of the Executive team (Project

Sponsor) and a Senior Responsible Manager (SRM) is responsible for the
delivery of the project. The SRM (normally department head) reports to the
Project Sponsor or Project Director. Each project has a dedicated project
manager independent from the design team. See following graphic of the
organisation structure.

NITHC Board

Executive Group

Project Director / Sponsor Finance Director

Project Control Manager Project Control Manager Head of Financial Planning

Project Manager Planning Engineer

Contracts Engineer

35
The Project Control department is responsible for coordinating programme
planning and ensuring projects are managed in accordance with the
Procedures. The Project Control Manager is supported by a Planning
Engineer and Contracts Engineer in coordinating programme development
and monitoring and tracking progress and compliance of projects within the
overall programme. Project progress/performance is reported on a monthly
basis and performance on ‘cost’, ‘quality’ and ‘programme’ are measured
using a traffic light parameters system.

Programme Quality Cost

Estimated Completion Date Quality Plan complied with Estimated Final Cost of
within Base Line Programme and; project not exceeding 90% of
No significant changes to Letter of Offer (inc Optimism
approved Project Scope Bias)

Estimated Completion Date
within 10% Extension of Base
Line Programme
Quality Plan complied with
but;
Some significant changes to
approved Project Scope
without compromising Client
Requirements
Estimated Final Cost of
project between 90% and
100% of Letter of Offer (inc
Optimism Bias), or Individual
Contracts exceeded up to
10%

Estimated Completion Date Quality Plan modified or Estimated Final Cost of

exceeding 10% Extension of Some significant changes to project exceeding 100% of
Base Line Programme or approved Project Scope Letter of Offer (inc Optimism
missing critical Handover date compromising Client Bias) or individual Contracts
Requirements exceeded in excess of 10%

A KPI has been established to measure performance in delivery of the overall

programme. Progress is also tracked on a Master Programme against the
base line (approved Corporate Plan) programme using a Milestone
Achievement graph. Budget expenditure is also tracked on a monthly basis for
value of work done and amount certified.

The Project Control manager liaises closely with the Head of Financial
Planning in this process.

36
Resources and skills to deliver the investment bid

Additional project management resources have been recruited and a number

of larger projects have been identified as suitable for management using
external project management resources. A procurement strategy is
developed for each project and New Engineering Contract 3rd Edition (NEC3)
is now being used for most engineering contracts including professional
services and frameworks. Select lists have been drawn up within each work
discipline including contractors specialising in: Permanent Way; Signalling; &
Structures, etc. For large projects a separate select list may be prepared with
advertisements placed in Official Journal of the European Community (OJEC).
The train procurement strategy is design and build.

In addition to the internal controls referred to above Public Transport

Performance Division (PTPD) ensures the following external procedures are
adhered to in relation to how the DRD monitors investments (these
procedures will also apply to the proposed rapid transit system investment
and Rathlin ferry investments, however, it is not clear at present where
responsibility for monitoring will lie):

• Economic appraisal are completed and assessed by in-house DRD

economists;

• Letters of offer are issued by PTPD that tie expenditure to specific

conditions;

• PTPD is represented on the project management board;

• Expenditure against budgets is monitored;

• Monthly monitoring meetings are held;

• Accountability meetings are held; and

37
 • Project benefit evaluations and project monitoring evaluations are
completed.

Gateway Review

As mentioned above, the Gateway Review process is central to the

Infrastructure Project Management Procedures. It is applied to all projects at
Inception, Appraisal (Feasibility) Design and Procurement and Project
Handover and Project Closure. The level of detail is dependent on risk. For
large projects scope exists to bring together a Gateway Review panel which
may involve a representative of the Department.

In relation to rapid transit as outlined in section 3 the Department has

commissioned transport consultants to undertake feasibility studies and
present an outline business case. This will include addressing the issue of
determining a preferred route, technology, estimated costs, key risks, any
possible mitigation and an assessment of the funding options.

There are a number of options on how the proposals could be delivered

including variables on the Design, Finance, Build and Operate models, PPP
and PFI arrangements. Experience elsewhere suggests that public money
will still be required as a core component but existing Department for
Transport guidance requires authorities to assess the potential suitability of
each scheme for funding in whole or in part through the Private Finance
Initiative. Article 40 of the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 allows the
Department to enter into an agreement with any person who has an estate in
land for the purpose of facilitating , regulating or restricting the development of
use of the land. Essentially a condition of planning permission may be made
that requires a developer to contribute to or provide gain to any planning
proposal. The ongoing feasibility studies will address this aspect.

The bid for rapid transit has presently been constructed to include for the
moment the total cost of the proposal excluding developer contributions and
will be subsequently adjusted once the outcome of the studies is known.

38
Sustainable Development Champion

Within Translink, the Infrastructure Executive is responsible for championing

the Achieving Excellence and Sustainability and monitoring relevant,
measurable sustainability objectives and targets, and report progress
regularly.

Centre of Procurement Excellence (COPE)

Procurement for bus and rail is the role of the Purchasing Department of
Translink which has achieved COPE accreditation. In achieving COPE
accreditation, Translink has ensured that contractors include employability
measures.

For rapid transit procurement will be undertaken by either Translink or Central

Procurement Directorate.

A Management Statement and Financial Memorandum (MSFM) is in place

between the DRD and NITHC/Translink. This incorporates best practice on
governance arrangements between a Department and its sponsored bodies
and sets out the arrangements for grant funding and audit and accountability
requirements.

39
Section 5: Contribution to the three ISNI cross cutting strategic
objectives

Objective A: to facilitate rising prosperity through investment in

infrastructure that will support strong economic growth, more
employment and higher value added jobs, and improved economic
competitiveness across the Region.

Public transport is an essential requirement for a vibrant economy. For many

cities public transport is the only method they have for accessing schools,
colleges and places of work. As the economy grows and more people are
able to afford cars, a good quality, attractive public transport system is
essential to attract people away from private transport and therefore ease
congestion. The programme for investment falls under two categories:

• Renewal – without this public transport will become more unreliable

and, in some cases, stop altogether; and
• Enhancement – this will make public transport more attractive and
accessible for all.

The Regional Transportation Strategy states:

The increased standard of the RSTN in terms of the retention of the existing
rail network and the enhancement of and addition to bus services and
facilities would also offer benefits in terms of facilitating the movement of
people and goods, attracting inward investment and increasing attractiveness
to visitors, including business travellers and tourists.

The proposed strategy would also support the improvement of employment

prospects for communities in regeneration areas due to improved and
additional transport provision and links.

40
Objective B: to facilitate greater social inclusion and cohesion from
investment in infrastructure that will promote equality of opportunity
and good relations, reflect the objectives of A Shared Future, target
areas of deprivation and social need, and achieve appropriate spatial
balance across the Region.

Currently the proportion of passengers in socio economic groups is as follows:

ABC1 C2DE Refused

Ulsterbus 39% 53% 8%
Metro 40% 45% 15%
NIR 50% 31% 19%

Public transport here targets social need. For many citizens it is the only
method of accessing areas of economic opportunity. Translink is available to
and is accessed by all citizens regardless of their section 75 category. The
programme will have zero impact on race, marital status, religious belief,
political opinion and sexual orientation categories.

However, there will be positive benefits on gender, where Females represent

56% of rail users (population 52%). Therefore an improvement in public
transport positively impacts females. People with disabilities are positively
impacted with the programme targeting 100% of vehicles being fully
accessible and substantial Disability Discrimination Act work being done for
rail and bus stations.

Again there is a positive impact for those with dependents with the target of
100% accessibility for vehicles and improved access to passenger facilities
and older people will also benefit from improved accessibility.

Objective C: to achieve more sustainable forms of development through

investment in infrastructure that will protect and enhance the quality of
our natural environment, contribute to reducing our carbon footprint to
address the challenges of climate change, and deliver a higher quality
infrastructure to enhance our built environment and public realm.

41
 The new trains, buses and rapid transit vehicles have lower emissions than
the generation being replaced. Increased public transport capacity will reduce
the number of cars on the road thereby reducing the environmental impact of
congestion. Train and bus stations will continue to be designed and built to
be sympathetic to the local environment.

Programme Total Total Impact on Objective A Impact on Objective B Impact on Objective C

Capital Revenue
£m £m

Greater 234 12 Though exact numbers Maintain social Diversion of journeys

Belfast Rapid are not known at cohesion and inclusion away from roads will
Transit present, rapid transport by sustaining access to reduce carbon
will reduce journey times goods and services for emissions and address
on increasingly people in Belfast the challenges of
congested Belfast roads without access to a car. climate change.
and contribute to a more
free flowing economy.

Rail 578 32.1 Switch over 1 million Maintain rail connection Diversion of journeys
Programme – passenger journeys to north and north west away from private car
baseline plus from road to rail by Ireland to sustain social use will reduce carbon
core, Derry 2018/19. This will cohesion and inclusion, emissions and address
and Dublin line reduce journey times on with 2.2 million the challenges of
enhancements increasingly congested passenger journeys on climate change.
urban and rural roads the Derry and Portrush
and contribute to a more lines by 2018/19.
free flowing economy.

Bus 242 0 Maintain bus journeys at Maintain social Diversion of journeys

Programme 2006/07 level of 67.5 cohesion and inclusion away from private car
million. by sustaining access to use will reduce carbon
This will reduce journey goods and services for emissions and address
times on increasingly people in rural areas the challenges of
congested roads and and people in urban climate change.
contribute to a more free areas without access to
flowing economy. a car.

42
Programme Total Total Impact on Objective A Impact on Objective B Impact on Objective C
Capital Revenue
£m £m

Rathlin Island 7.5 1.5 Maintain the “life-line” Maintain social This is an essential
passenger and economic connection of cohesion and inclusion piece of transport
roll on roll off Rathlin Island to the rest by sustaining access to infrastructure necessary
ferry of the north for the 70 goods and services for for the built environment
(approx) island residents people resident on of Rathlin Island
and well as develop the Rathlin Island. residents.
tourism potential of the
island. Currently trips
increase to around
11,000 in July and
August compared to
1,000 on average for
each remaining month
of the year.
TOTAL (for 1,061.5 45.6
this Measure)

43