Hi,

LB Hammersmith and Fulham have now come out fully against the West London
Tram, ostensibly because of the large strategic construction compound which
would occupy a big chunk of Shepherd's Bush Green, and about which TfL didn't
inform them before going public to the media.

It's worth taking a good look at the TfL website
[http://www.tfl.gov.uk/trams/initiati...ion2005.shtml] detailing
the construction compounds and substations and, even more importantly, the
devastating new permanent layout proposals for West Ealing Lido junction,
Hanwell Broadway and Southall Broadway main junction. Many small shops and
other businesses will be wiped out, and old but perfectly serviceable and in
some degree townscape-valuable buildings, will be demolished. In some cases
the land used to provide sites for construction compounds and will ultimately
be used for permanent substations.

It is worth stressing that a trolleybus scheme would require far more
minimalist (and much shorter-lived) construction compound facilities, and no
such destructive road widening in town centres. Presumably substation
requirements would be similar to tram although why roadside cabinets using
local electricity supplies can't be used is a mystery to me.

David Bradley