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Over Christmas and the New Year I was up in Notts and I took the opportunity to try out the new tram system.

I went from Toton Lane (as it's quite near my brother's house) into town.

I've got to say I was pleasantly suprised !

Not only is it fast and frequent, it 's also reasonably priced.

It would seem that Notts council have learned their lesson from past experiences and have set a good fair structure. You can go into town and back now for £4.

On the bus, the round journey would cost nearer £7 - and it's a tedious journey.

But the tram is excellent.

I went into Beeston to see how the high street has changed, went into Market Square to look at the fair and I even went down to Clifton to see where the route goes.

Makes a pleasant change to give the council some praise, but this time it's deserved.

Fair priced, reliable rapid-transit with free car parking.

Excellent.

Not stop the ridiculous parking levy!

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I actually love the tram

I often get the South Notts bus from Loughborough(bus stop five minuets walk from my house) to Cifton & have a "day" of beer by tram

There are quite a few decent pubs on or close to the tram route but these days I have to restrict myself to four pints :)

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I met up with my mate from Leicester just before Christmas with the sole purpose of riding on the trams, I arrived at Nottingham Midland on the train from Newark and caught the tram within five minutes to Toton lane to meet my mate, from there we both went to Midland station for the tram to Clifton going past my old house on Farnborough road, then back to Midland for the tram to Hucknall stopping off in the city center for some food and a drink,great day had by all and all for £4.00, couldn't use my bus pass because it wasn't issued in Nottingham though but four quid is hardly going to break the bank is it

Rog

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Quite agree Rog,.........comfy,smooth and quick..........not much to go to Toton and Clifton for though lol........would like it to go to Mansfield and obviously places on the way...........Sutton,Kirkby and Newstead Abbey.

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What for ? A system no one actually wanted.

So you don't like the tram catfan?

I use the tram quite often & have found it well patronised in fact sometimes too much so.

All councils take on debt to fund major projects so what's the problem. :No1:

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You can always catch the train from Hucknall or even Nottingham Midland to go to those places Benjamin not sure of the cost though,but a tram ride to Hucknall then the Robin Hood line train from there, worth a thought

Rog

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I despise the concept of the tram ! Nottingham City Council's flagship "White Elephant".

Judging by the comments I see most people who like the tram live outside the city, as a tourist attraction it will never pay it's way.

Nottingham City residents endured years of road works upheaval to lay tracks & change road layouts to accomadate the tram. Also motorist have been robbed blind by the council to raise revenue to help towards the cost of the tram network. Unfairly high car parking charges, Nazi style bus lane enforcement by CCTV on bus lanes 24 hour a day, why there are no buses running 24 hours a day ! AND the dreaded Workplace Parking Levy (WPL). nearly £400 to park your car at your employer's provided car park ANYWHERE in the Nottingham area, even on the outskirts of town. The latest casualty of the WPL I suspect is Imperial Tobacco's decision to pull out of Nottingham & move production abroad, the WPL is the final straw for them.

Don't forget Imperial (John Player) had the foresight to relocate to the new Horizon factory at Thane Road years ago, fat lot of good that did.

I read in the NEP that 25% of buses are being taken away from the Beeston routes as a result of the tram, consider people who live in Beeston not on the tram route will lose their bus service soon.

This is what the Nottingham City Council's flagship "white elephant" re-invented ancient tram system has cause to the city. At horrendous cost to the residents who the vast majority never wanted in the first place.

Progress,? you're joking !

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Share many of your reservations about the tram, Catfan. All fair points I think. Also been on the brunt end of the Workplace Parking Levy at Jubilee Campus Nottm Uni (which is hardly the city centre of Nottingham in my view as an aside). I have no sensible way of using them where I live either. Good for some no doubt. Jury still very much still out for me

I do think that people getting on the tram have a personal responsibility to get a ticket before they get on though. It's not anybody else's fault if they didn't get there in time to acquire one. Them's the rules. As a caveat to that I have some time for a stranger/visitor who just jumps on one with no knowledge of the system. Realise as well the NET are are saving cash by not offering decent employment for inspectors to check fares.

That's the problem with some folk nowadays, refusal to take responsibility, it's always somebody else's fault, don't you agree? Just buy a bleddy ticket or wait a few minutes for the next one! :)

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I too felt that 'the tram' was a huge white elephant before - mainly because the areas that it snakes through are fairly run-down (e.g. Arkwright Street) or are being crippled by high rents and business rates that would ultimately making the centre something of a ghost town.

But, now having travelled on the system I must say that as a rapid-transit network it is very good. Principally because they have made it affordable. That is the key.

They got the fares wrong first time round. That's why they missed the passenger targets and had to engage in such nonsense as the 'car-parking levy'. Schemes like that have a negative effect on businesses setting up in Nottingham.

Remember the disastrous 'park and ride' efforts that they've done in the past? Well at least with the tram system there's a good alternative to park for free and get the tram in for £4.

Now they've go to work on making the centre an attractive place to go.

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Now they've go to work on making the centre an attractive place to go.

An important factor and one that has been neglected and little comparatively spoken of in my view. Not much point in finding an effective way of shipping bodies into the city centre if fewer and fewer people want to go there or more importantly no longer have employment there for the reason you touched on.

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  • 9 months later...

Sure did Ian, don't forget NET need every penny they can get to fund the "Slug" !

 

I've seen two revenue inspectors board a slug to check tickets but not one  conductor anymore !

The ticket machines don't accept the new five pound note either.

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  • 3 years later...

Mrs Red, Daughter & Grand Daughter left for Bridgford Asda @ 2pm today @ 5pm still not returned stuck in traffic @ Clifton Bridge says they've not moved the car an inch for over an hour!  

 

Nottstalgia got a massive Tram topic with over 103 replies! One hundred & three! 

 

https://nottstalgia.com/forums/topic/9642-new-nottingham-trams/?tab=comments#comment-124842

 

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