NEW plans for a tram system for Aberdeen are being explored by city leaders.
The Labour-led administration wants Scottish Government support for a feasibility study into the establishment of a light rail network.
Finance convener Willie Young said the scheme could include connections from Dyce directly into Aberdeen International Airport and from the harbour through Torry to Cove.
But last night, opposition politicians branded the proposals “pie in the sky” and said it would be prohibitively expensive and cause major disruption across the city.
However, Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce said it was “interesting” to hear new ideas on improving the city’s transport system.
Mr Young insisted the council must think ahead and adapt to infrastructure challenges posed by a string of major housing and business park developments planned for the region. More than 30,000 homes are included in the recently-adopted local plan for Aberdeen, with 20,000 earmarked for Aberdeenshire over the next 10-15 years.
The proposal is included in the council’s Strategic Infrastructure Plan (SIP), which is due to go before a full council meeting next Thursday. The report states: “As we look around the world, and Europe in particular, we see more and more successful cities of Aberdeen’s size developing rapid transport systems or light transport systems, which connect communities to major strategic sites, including universities, business parks, harbours, airports stations and city centres.
“We will start to investigate ways to maximise connectivity between new developments arising from the local development plan, including continuing discussions with Nestrans and Transport Scotland about planning and funding.”
Mr Young said the idea to “link communities together” should not be dismissed out of hand. “If you go back 40 years and if we had done this, I don’t think we would have the problems in the city that we have in terms of traffic congestion,” he said. “All we are asking is for the Scottish Government to do a feasibility study with us to see if it can happen and how much it would cost.”
Opposition SNP leader Callum McCaig argued a survey would be costly and time-consuming.
He said: “Light rail systems, or trams as they are more commonly known, look like an attractive proposition on paper, but in the real world they come at a prohibitive cost and I fully expect this to be an absolute pie in the sky idea.
“It’s a non-starter, but if it were to start, it would cause unbelievable disruption right across the city.”
Lib Dem group leader Ian Yuill said: “I would welcome any Scottish Government investment in Aberdeen and action to improve our cities transport infrastructure, but it would take a very brave politician who went down the road of trams after the difficulties in Edinburgh.”
James Bream, policy director at Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, said: “It’s interesting to hear new ideas being raised to address the challenges facing the city’s transport system.
“A feasibility study is a natural first step in assessing the costs and benefits of a scheme of this nature, and transparently assessing the impact of transport challenges is critical, as the recent HS2 coverage has highlighted.
“We are also calling for business cases on proposals such as the high speed rail link between Edinburgh and Glasgow, as we believe investment in our region could return greater benefits.”
Transport Scotland said: “Our transport priorities are clearly set out. However, this is being promoted as a purely Aberdeen City Council initiative and is contained within their Strategic Infrastructure Plan.”
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