Categories
Photos from ten years ago

Old photos from February 2007

Here’s my regular post of ten year old photos… quite a few this month, and mostly transport-related.

This is then-Opposition Leader, later Premier Ted Baillieu being interviewed by the media about widespread train disruptions at the time, caused by the Siemens train brakes problem reaching crisis point. I recall Age reporter Steve Moynihan (seen here facing away from Baillieu, but no doubt listening in) saying his mum was rapt he’d got several front page stories out of it.
Then Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu addresses media

Large numbers of Siemens trains had been taken out of service, and this combined with strong patronage growth at the time meant many of the remaining trains on the network were at crush load during peak hours. This was the scene at Glenhuntly one Monday morning.
Glenhuntly station - train crowding
Glenhuntly station - train crowding

Following the November 2006 election, the government had postponed the usual January fare rise until March, and in line with their election pledge (which was bipartisan), removed zone 3 as well (or to be precise, merged it with zone 2).
Of course, responding to dissatisfaction about crowding with a price cut for some users, which would logically result in more patronage, may not be the most logical action…
At this time, V/Line fares also dropped by 20%, alongside better timetables as the Regional Fast Rail project was completed. Cheaper fares and more trains resulted in V/Line patronage growth in the years following this.
Removal of zone 3 poster, February 2007

Not all Siemens train were out of service. Here one in the Connex livery approaches Huntingdale station.
Connex train approaching Huntingdale, February 2007

…and this one approaches the boom gates at Bentleigh station. This area all changed in 2016 with the level crossing removal.
Connex train approaching Bentleigh, February 2007

South Yarra station. What is the point of having fare gates if they always leave them unstaffed and open?
South Yarra station

Paramedics wait on the station at South Yarra. Note the open space next to the station – another skyscraper has since filled this space.
Paramedics at South Yarra station

Connex met their December target. I don’t think they were so lucky in January and February.
Connex performance results, December 2006

For some years the PTUA ran a stall at the annual Sustainable Living Festival at Federation Square. Often it could be stinking hot in the tents, and eventually we realised the considerable effort was not getting a huge return in new memberships.
PTUA stand at Sustainable Living Festival, February 2007

A Critical Mass bike event in Lonsdale Street. Do they still do these anymore? Unclear.
Critical Mass bike ride, Melbourne, February 2007

At ACMI playing old Commodore 64 games. This looks like Way Of The Exploding Fist.
Playing Commodore 64 games at ACMI, February 2007

…the picture has shown up (with permission) in various spots related to vintage video games.

Finding this photo means not only have I had this couch for ten years, that t-shirt (which I still have as well) is also a decade old.
My new couch, February 2007

An ABC crew came to visit one Saturday. The story was about Connex’s SMS alerts service being hacked. In the end, as I recall, they went to a lot of trouble to light my livingroom just so, and filmed me showing the hack text on my phone, then never used the footage.
About to be interviewed, February 2007

By Daniel Bowen

Transport blogger / campaigner and spokesperson for the Public Transport Users Association / professional geek.
Bunurong land, Melbourne, Australia.
Opinions on this blog are all mine.

One reply on “Old photos from February 2007”

The abolition of Zone 3… until it was revived under Myki for northern Geelong and similarly distant regional centres – further out. Interestingly, all Zone 3 stations overlap with either Zone 2 or Zone 4 (Lara overlaps with both).

Correct me if I’m wrong, but the V/Line fare reduction at the time, as well as the expansion of Zone 2 pricing further into V/Line areas, meant that the abolition of Zone 3 did not create distortions in the wider fare system – apart from making longer trips cheaper compared to Zone 1/2 – that are there following the abolition of Zone 1/2 pricing last year. This latter adjustment was to the benefit of Zone 2 commuters to Zone 1, but not for any commuters further out, creating anomalies.

Apart from my usual touch-off and touch-on again when changing from Platform 3 to 1 at Sunshine to save $1.36 on the trip home from Geelong (if I haven’t driven to Sunshine – that saves me $4.10!), I could save another $0.96 if I got off the train at Lara, touched-off and on again, and then waited 20 minutes for the next train (I think – not tested), as I’ve made one trip in Zone 4 ($2.40) and one trip in Zones 1/2 ($4.10) compared to the off-peak cost of the single journey of $8.82 ($12.60 peak). Does that mean that Geelong commuters are being slugged $$ – you could save 50% on peak travel costs by increasing your journey time by 20 minutes? (Maybe I’ll try that one day on the trip home.)

(I did get a Myki reimbursement recently when I’d been charged over the daily cap within Zones 2-5.)

Rather than tinkering at the edges with political decisions, a full review of the wider system is needed to remove the anomalies – but of course that would mean winners and losers. But I think one of the underlying principles of the system should be that the whole journey is at least no more expensive than any combination of shorter trips.

Comments are closed.