Belfast Glider: Preferred routes for expansion revealed

The preferred routes for the Glider extension are along the Antrim Road in north Belfast and along the Ormeau Road and the Saintfield Road in the south.

Infrastructure Minister John O'Dowd said north and south routes should extend to Glengormley and Carryduff.

However he added that the "feasibility" of that would have to be assessed further.

The Glider service of purple tram-like buses has been moving people across the city since September 2018.

The network comprises the G1 service that runs from the McKinstry roundabout in west Belfast to Dundonald park-and-ride in the east via the city centre.

The G2 connects the city centre to the Titanic Quarter.

Under the new plan the G2 service would also be extended to connect with Queen's University and the City Hospital.

Translink chief executive Chris Conway said the extensions would "further transform public transport in the city".

They would allow Translink to "build on the success of the current Glider system", he said.

"We look forward to working with the Department for Infrastructure to deliver the new service as soon as possible and bring the benefits of Glider to people living in the north and south of the city," he added.

The announcement of the preferred routes for the extension followed a public consultation to get the views of the public and other stakeholders.

There had been some debate about the proposed route in north Belfast.

Political parties were divided about whether the new Glider route was best suited to the Shore Road or the Antrim Road.

The 18m-long Glider vehicles can each carry 105 passengers

The main unionist parties favoured the Shore Road while most other parties preferred the Antrim Road.

In October 2021 Mr Conway said he was disappointed the debate was regarded by some as an "orange and green" issue.

Plans for the new routes:

• South Belfast - Running from the existing G1/G2 network at City Hall along Great Victoria Street, Bruce Street, Bankmore Link (proposed new public transport and cycling link road) to Ormeau Road, then continuing from Ormeau Road to Ravenhill Road intersection and along the Saintfield Road to Carryduff

• G2 extension - Running from the existing G1/G2 network at City Hall along Great Victoria Street, Bruce Street, Dublin Road, University Road, Elmwood Avenue and returning to the city centre via Lisburn Road and Great Victoria Street

• North Belfast - Running from the existing G1/G2 network at Belfast City Hall along Donegall Place, Royal Avenue, Donegall Street and Clifton Street to Carlisle Circus then continuing along Antrim Road to Glengormley

The Department for Infrastructure said the initial phase of the service had been a "huge success" in its first four years in operation.

It said: "It has helped transform and modernise public transport services in the east and west of the city."

The department said the number of people using "sustainable public transport" on those routes had increased by 70%.

The new route proposals can be viewed on the department's website.