Comments on round the merseyrail we go: The Central Question

"There's still some smaller schemes that ...

2011-12-23T15:25:33.872Z

"There's still some smaller schemes that I think could be implemented to improve life for Central's users. At some point in the rebuild forty years ago, some jobsworth realised they could save a few quid by only putting in three escalators, even though there was space for four."

No, they didnt - there were four. One was removed when I was a kid (must have been about 1985 or so, as I *only just* remember it) for those who didn't like using the escalators.

Neil

This could be the last opportunity to excavate and...

2011-10-12T09:16:17.599+01:00

This could be the last opportunity to excavate and enlarge the Northern Line platforms, as the Central Village development will probably prevent such work once it is completed. How much does it cost to dig a hole these days? Probably more than £20M.

Doubling to Hunts Cross won't work because the...

2011-10-11T00:20:45.410+01:00

Doubling to Hunts Cross won't work because there aren't enough paths once you've taken the Allerton Curve into account. Terminating the second one at LPY could work (if they had enough train sets) but I'm not too sure how much it would solve as *most* people know train times and only go for the southbound train around the time they know it's due.

One solution is to employ full-time dispatch staff to force people to spread out on the platform, particularly when 6-car units are in use - it would be boring for them, yes, but it would spread people out better and safer.

Another is to improve signage (and use other awareness-raising techniques) to let people know about the direct access to the Wirral Line platform - in the throng for the escalators there's always a fair few people planning to go 'up and over' who don't need to clog the main exit. On-board announcements could be altered to reflect this, for example.