The Chamber

Visitors to this year’s Tall Ship Races event are being urged to use public transport and avoid peak time travelling wherever possible.

Access by public transport is good to the two key sites of the event, Albert Dock and Wellington Dock and a range of public transport options are in place to get people to and from the Mersey River front.

Download an events and travel guide [PDF 5MB]

By Rail

The easiest way to get to the Tall Ships event will be by train.

There are around 5,000 free park and rides spaces across the Merseyrail network.

Enhanced rail services will be in operation throughout the event, with trains every ten minutes at peak times.

Rail passengers should get off the train at James Street, Central or Moorfields on the city centre loop line for access to the Albert Dock.

Passengers should get off at Sandhills Station on Merseyrail’s Northern Line for Wellington Dock.

The Northern Line has great links with trains connecting at Lime Street Station, Liverpool Central, Liverpool South Parkway and Southport. The advice is to use Central Station or Moorfields to get onto Northern Line from the City Centre.

From Friday 18th July to Saturday 19th July, there will be six strengthened trains (six cars) every hour during the peak hours (6.30am to 10.30am and 4pm to 8pm) on the Southport line for visitors travelling to/from Liverpool city centre and Sandhills (for Wellington Dock) to view the tall ships in dock.

In between these hours the frequency will be three trains every hour, also made up of six cars. Trains on the Ormskirk and Kirkby lines will be all six-car services and run three times every hour.

On Sunday 20th July, strengthened Southport line services will again run six times every hour during the peak hours (7am to 10.30am and 4.30pm to 8pm) and four times per hour during the rest of the day. Trains on the Ormskirk and Kirby lines will operate a normal Sunday service (two strengthened trains every hour).

Wirral line services will operate a Saturday service and, wherever possible, will operate as six car trains.

Parade of Sail - Merseyrail

Enhanced rail services will be in operation to the Wirral and Southport coasts for the best views of the Parade of Sail on Monday 21st July.

On Monday trains will operate to their normal frequencies across the Merseyrail network (mostly four trains per hour) with all Southport line trains made up of six cars.

There will be additional trains on the New Brighton line (eight trains every hour) between 3pm and 7pm for spectators who want to view the spectacle from the Wirral side of the Mersey.

By Bus

Existing bus services will be in operation, subject to some adjustments due to road closures.

Contact Traveline Merseyside for the latest information on bus services in Merseyside during this event – 0871 200 22 33.

A regular shuttle bus service will operate from St Nicholas Place opposite the Crowne Plaza Hotel to Wellington Dock on Regent Road.

The service, operated by Arriva North West and Merseytravel, will be fully accessible.

These buses will run from 10am until 10pm on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the race.

On the Monday, a shuttle bus will take passengers from Hamilton Square Station on the Wirral line to Seacombe, one of the recommended viewing areas.

Buses will not run to Wellington Dock on Monday 21 July as the ships will move from their berths to the River Mersey for the Parade of Sail.

Mersey Ferries

Mersey Ferries will be providing extra services on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the Tall Ships.

Services will be extended into the evenings and two vessels will be operating on all three days.

On Friday 18th July, normal direct services will operate between Seacombe and Pier Head from 7.20am to 9.50am.

From 10am until 3.30pm River Explorer cruises will operate every half hour from Pier Head, Seacombe and Woodside.

Direct services to all three terminals will then again continue from 4.15pm to 8.55pm.

On Saturday 19th July and Sunday 20th July direct services will operate between Seacombe, Pier Head and Woodside from 8.05am to 9.45am.

Then from 10am until 6pm on both days River Explorer cruises will operate every half hour from all three terminals.

Direct services to all three terminals will then again continue from 7pm to 8.40pm.

On Parade of Sail day, Monday 21st July, Ferries will depart every ten minutes between Pier Head and Seacombe from 7.20am to 10am. Between 10am and 10.50am direct services will continue every 20 minutes.

Due to the closure of the river to all vessels not involved in the Parade of Sail, the will be no ferry services from 10.50am through to 5.55pm.

From 5.55pm direct services will begin operating between all three ferry terminals every ten minutes. Last services are 8.25pm (Seacombe to Woodside and Liverpool), 8.35pm (Woodside to Liverpool) and 8.45pm (Liverpool to Seacombe).

Visit www.merseyferries.co.uk for full details.

Mersey Tunnels

Both Mersey Tunnels will be operating throughout the event and there are no planned closures.

Useful Contacts

For information on all modes of transport contact Merseytravel’s Traveline team or visit the websites below.

Traveline Merseyside - 0871 200 22 33 – Extra staff will be operating Traveline from Thursday 17th July to Monday 21st July and it will extend its hours, operating from 6am
National Rail Enquiries - www.nationalrail.co.uk
Liverpool Culture Company - www.liverpool08.com
Merseytravel - www.merseytravel.gov.uk
Wirral Council - www.wirral.gov.uk
Sefton Council – www.sefton.gov.uk

Our friends at Merseytravel have asked us to publicise their survey into cycling habits in Liverpool:

We would like to know how you think we can make Liverpool more cycle friendly. By completing the survey at www.liverpool.gov.uk/cycling, your views will help to inform the review of Liverpool’s Cycle Strategy, which will include plans to improve our cycle routes and to encourage more people to make their journeys by bike.

All completed surveys received by Monday 11th August 2008 can be entered into the free prize draw to win:

• 1st prize - £50 high street vouchers and a signed copy of ‘A Cycling Career in Pictures’ by Chris Boardman
• 2nd prize - £30 high street vouchers and a signed copy of ‘A Cycling Career in Pictures’ by Chris Boardman
• 3rd prize - £20 high street vouchers

We look forward to hearing your views. Tell us your views on cycling in Liverpool - complete the cycle survey at www.liverpool.gov.uk/cycling and enter the free prize draw.

It’s maritime culture we celebrate this week with two major events happening on the river this month.

CLIPPER RACE FINALE takes place on July 5 when the Mersey hosts the climax of an epic ocean adventure in July with the return of the Clipper 07-08 Round-the-World Yacht Race. The race is the world’s fastest, non-professional, yachting race with a flotilla of boats following the yachts up the Mersey to the finishing line. Cheer on the Liverpool 08 Yacht. For more details contact www.liverpool08.com

THE TALL SHIPS’ RACE 2008 takes place around Albert Dock, Liverpool, July 18 – 20 Enjoy the biggest gathering of tall ships anywhere in Europe this year as over 70 sailing vessels fill Liverpool’s quaysides and docks, berthing in the Wellington and Albert docks.

Climb aboard to find out more about the realities of life at sea, or enjoy the waterside location with live music, performers and displays to enjoy. The three-day maritime festival culminates with the start of the Tall Ships’ Race 2008 on 21 July as the ships begin their parade of sail and their journey to Norway.

For visitors travelling to the Tall Ships’ Race by car, please note that there is no parking within the Wellington Dock, Regent Road area of the city. Please use Park and Ride sites or City Centre car parks, and the shuttle bus service. Visit the Tall Ships’ Race website for more travel information. For more details contact www.tallshipsliverpool.co.uk

A Unique Experience to Walk the Mersey Tunnel

At least five thousand people will be walking through the Queensway Tunnel, as part of Merseytravel’s historic walkthrough event ‘Under and Over the Mersey’.

Held on Sunday 15 June, Under and Over the Mersey will give families a rare chance to walk through a closed Mersey tunnel and travel back across the water on the Mersey Ferry. It will be only the fourth time in the history of the tunnels they will have been closed for a walkthrough.

Street performers from Liverpool Lighthouse will provide the colour and carnival atmosphere; there will be special performances by the Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, and a vintage car rally.

The event, which will be held between 11am and 4pm, will cost £5 per person or £15 for a family of up to two adults and two children. Children under five will go free.

Everyone taking part will receive a specially cast commemorative medal, a certificate and a DVD along with free travel on the Mersey Ferries to and from the event. Half price rail travel is available on Merseyrail and Northern Rail for those who pre-register for this event.
Merseytravel has opened up registration for people to enter the event via any of the Merseytravel Travel Centres across the region. Organisers will also be taking registrations on the day of the event between 12noon and 2.30pm.

For further details about taking part contact Pennine Events on 01695 682020 or email denise@pennineevents.co.uk.

Train times for passengers travelling from and to Chester and Ellesmere Port change and Merseyrail is running more 6-car trains to increase capacity. The changes are a result of Merseyrail’s improvement plan to create a more robust and reliable service on the Chester line based on passenger feed back.

The new service pattern means that Merseyrail trains from Chester now depart on the hour and on the half hour (at ’00 and ’30) towards Liverpool throughout the day. Departures from Ellesmere Port to Liverpool are at ’19 and ‘49 minutes past the hour throughout the day.

During the morning and evening peaks additional trains will run from Chester and Ellesmere Port creating a 4 trains per hour service for commuters to/from Liverpool during the peaks. This is unchanged from the current frequencies during the peaks.

The changes create more recovery time during the morning and evening peaks leading to better punctuality and reliability of the service. This announcement coincides with the re-opening of the front entrance of James Street Station after an intense programme of refurbishment.

In response to growing numbers of passengers and in partnership with Merseytravel, more of the trains from Chester in the morning peak and to Chester in the evening peak will consist of 6-cars. This also applies to Saturdays when many Chester services will be formed of 6-car trains.

Bart Schmeink, Merseyrail’s Managing Director said: “Passengers on the Chester line have given us a loud and clear message. And I agree with them; I want their trains to be as punctual and reliable as the rest of the Merseyrail network. Together with Merseytravel we have been able to respond quickly. The changes won’t just benefit Chester; they will also benefit all passengers travelling from and to South Wirral stations as there will be more 6-car trains for them as a result”.

Liverpool’s new Jury’s Inn hotel, next to Liverpool’s Arena and convention centre,  opened on Friday.

It provides superior budget three star accommodation, located at Kings Waterfront, adjacent to the Albert Dock. To celebrate its opening, Jurys is offering a special opening rate of rooms from £69 (subject to availability).

It boasts 310 spacious and comfortable bedrooms, 10 conference rooms that can accommodate between 5 & 100 delegates.

The Innfusion restaurant seats 210 and will, be serving tasty food all day and is also available for private events. II Barista ‘All day’ coffee bar is the ideal place for an informal meeting or snack. Inntro Bar can also be hired for events and holds 100 buffet and 80 sit down.

For booking, conference and menu information call June Doyle on 0151 244 3800.

Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC)

Wednesday 21 May 2008

Come along to a free seminar briefing on the implementation of the Driver CPC held by  RTITB and Voss.

Whether you operate one vehicle or 100 the CPC will affect your business. The Driver CPC will impact on almost 1,000,000 drivers; will require 3,000,000 training hours annually (freight only) and will require the training of more than 1,000 new instructors.

By any measure the CPC is a major challenge for the industry. We do hope you will be able to set aside time and attend this important FREE event.

Topics covered include:

• EU DIRECTIVE 2003/59/EC - Driver Certificate of Professional Competence: Mandatory Driver Training
• The Driver CPC in detail – who, what, when and where
• The opportunities and challenges the Directive presents
• The type of training options available
• The type of training infrastructure that will be required
• Options available for minimising cost and maximising benefits

There will also be the opportunity to see a demonstration of the RTITB’s new desktop, portable, in-house training system called Digit-ALL that can be used for training individuals or groups of drivers.

The free seminar takes place on Wednesday, 21 May between 10.30 - 12.30 followed by a buffet lunch at LACE Conference Centre, Croxteth Drive, Sefton Park, Liverpool L17 1AA.

To book your place please call Voss Training on 0151 650 6600.

Liverpool CDP and Merseyrail are pleased to announce that from 31 March Moorfields station Old Hall Street entrance will remain open until 9pm Monday to Friday.

The longer opening hours of the entrance, and the on-site M to go shop, will be piloted over a 6 month period and depending upon its success, could continue indefinitely.

Paul Rice, Liverpool CDP Chief Executive explained: “We have been working closely with Merseyrail, Merseytravel, and our public and private sector partners over the last 12 months to secure this pilot scheme.

“I believe the longer opening hours will help to serve our business and residential community in the area more effectively as they can now catch the train from their doorstep after 7pm.

“We are also pleased to announce that the M to go shop will stay open until 9pm.” he added: “M to go shop offers a full range of services, from a cup of coffee to buying your train ticket through to London or anywhere else on the national rail network.”

To mark this important change, Liverpool CDP & Merseyrail will be running a competition in the Daily Post in the next few weeks with the lucky winner receiving a year’s free rail travel on the Merseyrail network.

Bart Schmeink, Merseyrail’s Managing Director said: “There are major changes happening in the Commercial District and people’s travel patterns in the area are changing. I am delighted that together with the Liverpool CDP, we have been able to respond to these changes by extending the opening hours of the Old Hall Street entrance for a trial period.”

Some travel / parking news for those based in the business district:

Ormond Street will be closed at its junction with Bixteth Street from Monday 10th March for 3 days to enable Enterprise Liverpool to undertake reinstatement works to the carriageway and footway. There will be a signposted diversion in place for users of the Albany car park.

Where’s Ormond Street? Why, here, of course (Google Maps)

For those of us who drive through or into Liverpool city centre, here’s a final reminder of the changes happening to the direction of traffic flow on North John Street  and Stanley Street and the impact on surrounding streets.

Click more for the full details.

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