Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED to:

(1)  appoint Councillor Adele Williams as Chair of the Greater Nottingham Light Rapid Transit Advisory Committee for the current municipal year (May 2019 to April 2020);

(2)  appoint Councillor Phil Rostance as Vice Chair of the Greater Nottingham Light Rapid Transit Advisory Committee for the current municipal year (May 2019 to April 2020).

Councillor John Longdon  -  work commitments

Councillor Parry Tsimbiridis  -  work commitments

Roger Bacon  -  on leave

Nick Chischniak  -  work commitments

None.

Minutes of the meeting held on 12 March 2019, for confirmation

The Committee confirmed the minutes of the meeting held on 12 March 2019 as a correct record and they were signed by the Chair.

To note

The Committee noted the current membership and the updated Terms of Reference, which came into effect on 20 May 2019.

Report of the Head of Operations, Nottingham Trams

Mike Mabey, Head of Operations at Nottingham Trams, presented a report on the operational performance and progress for NET from the beginning of February to the end of April 2019. The following points were discussed:

(a)  the reliability (98.8%) and punctuality (95.9%) of the tram service was very good for February, March and April, with reliability at its highest level since 2016. This improved performance was achieved due to a reduction in the number of technical faults to trams, along with a decrease in the number of service-disrupting incidents involving third parties. Punctuality is measured against an actual timetable – to be on time, a tram must depart from a stop no more than three minutes after the time as set by the timetable. In terms of reliability, the headway between trams is monitored to check that there are enough trams in service, and there is a stock of spare trams that are used in case of breakdowns;

(b)  a storm on 25 April created some service disruption as lightning strikes to electrical substations at The Depot and Basford caused a power trip, resulting in the overhead line losing power. The substations have lightning conductors that mitigated the damage but, following investigation, it is not feasible to install further lightning protection. CCTV feeds and passenger information displays were lost temporarily, but this did not affect passenger services, and the affected equipment was restored by the following day;

(c)  essential track replacement works were carried out at the Middle Hill Viaduct on Sunday 28 April, with the works completed successfully by the Monday morning. The track section between Nottingham Station and Old Market Square was closed, with services operating between Hucknall and Phoenix Park to Old Market Square and from Toton Lane and Clifton South to Nottingham Station. A replacement bus service was put in place between Old Market Square and Nottingham Station;

(d)  a major renovation of the fifteen ‘Incentro’ trams (which came into service in 2004) commenced in April as part of their mid-life refurbishment plan, with the first tram launched back into service on 10 May. The works include the replacement of all tram floors and interior fittings, together with an extensive mechanical overhaul, and the re-branding of the exteriors to align their appearance with the newer ‘Citadis’ tram models;

(e)  as part of the second phase of the NET fares strategy for 2019, some fare increases were made by Tramlink to multi-operator tickets and certain season tickets on 31 March. However, it is felt that the fare structure still compares favourably to other tram networks across the country;

(f)  as part of Nottingham Trams’ planned track renewals programme, repairs will be carried out over 14 days between The Forest and High School tram stops from Sunday 4 August. The works will include the removal and replacement of the northbound rail and points at The Forest and the removal and replacement of the rails across Forest Road. Once the tram service ends on 4 August, the trams will be moved into position on the Nottingham Station Viaduct, and at Toton Lane and Clifton South, ready for Monday morning. During this period, services between The Forest and Old Market Square tram stops will be replaced by buses using equivalent street routes. Normal operations are planned to resume on Monday 19 August. A full communications plan to inform customers and local residents of the work to be carried out and of the replacement services is being produced for circulation;

(g)  the NET Customer Services Team supported ‘My Sight Nottinghamshire’ by assisting a group of 7 volunteers with 17 partially-sighted or blind individuals so they were able travel safely by tram around the University of Nottingham. This formed part of the ‘Try the Tram’ campaign, where passengers are shown how to use the help point buttons, which include braille, and the processes for safely boarding and alighting the tram (including features such as the blue stop request button, listening for door alarms, etc.). The event was a great success and further meetings will be held in the future to promote this campaign and support the community.

Verbal update, if required

The Committee noted that no safety issues had been raised for this meeting.

Verbal update, if required

The Committee noted that no correspondence from members of the public had been received for this meeting.

June 2019 – April 2020

The Chair introduced the Committee’s Forward Plan for the coming municipal year. Members felt that it would be helpful to receive general updates on any planned changes, developments or extensions to the tram network, where this was relevant to the Committee’s particular remit relating to the operation of the NET system.

Tuesday 10 September 2019

Tuesday 10 December 2019

Tuesday 10 March 2020

All to be held at 2:00pm in the Ground Floor Committee Room - Loxley House, Station Street, Nottingham, NG2 3NG, unless stated otherwise

RESOLVED to meet on the following dates:

·  Tuesday 10 September 2019 at 2:00pm

·  Tuesday 10 December 2019 at 2:00pm

·  Tuesday 10 March 2020 at 2:00pm