Transport blogger / campaigner and spokesperson for the Public Transport Users Association / professional geek.
Bunurong land, Melbourne, Australia.
Opinions on this blog are all mine.
Here’s an update on the state of level crossing removals. I’ve done these lists before: 2020, 2018, 2017, 2014. They’re all based on the 2008 ALCAM list, which ranked Victoria’s level crossings by risk. It’s now pretty old, and rankings would have changed due to different road and train traffic growth, but it’s still the ... [More]
Another in my series of ten year old photos, this time from October 2012… Well, except for this one from 29th September 2012, which I missed last month – a letter in the Herald Sun – the time I tried and failed to escape the PTUA! Thanks, Mr Surkitt. Spring Racing Carnival… and a train ... [More]
If you donât want a parking permit, you can get a free Myki Pass instead.
The Coalition addressing PT fares is welcome, but a more considered fare reform package is really what’s needed.
Why should only the wealthy be able to afford the discounts?
Another in my series of photos from ten years earlier. Ventura’s Oakleigh depot full of buses, having a nice rest on a Sunday, despite heavy passenger demand and crowding. Since then, most buses running PTV routes have been put into PTV liveries. What happens when you run a red light but don’t make it across. ... [More]
The trains are great. Perhaps unsurprisingly the buses are meh. But it’s the trams that are a real disappointment.
What’s going on with iPhone and Myki?
Am I miscounting? Is there really only one station with all-over platform shelter?
We’ve got family in Heathcote, so I visit there a few times a year. The town is about 110 kilometres north of Melbourne and has a population of just under 3000. So what are the current and past public transport options in a town like this? Have you ever noticed how the main freeways out ... [More]
Suburban Rail Loop was first announced by State Labor ahead of the 2018 election. They romped it in, and the conclusion was that the project had widespread support in the electorate. Despite the cost, it was genuinely seen as a big thinking, city-shaping project. Last week the Coalition announced they’d put the project on hold ... [More]
2022 State Election politics has just hotted up on the transport front, and I’ll try and do a blog post on that soon, but in the meantime, here’s another in my series of ten year old photos: this time, August 2012. Multilingual rhinos! The “Melbourne Visitor Shuttle” bus, eventually scrapped in 2017 – it could ... [More]
The past week has been a blur and I haven’t had time to post here, so here’s a quick one: On Wednesday I was on ABC Radio Melbourne, talking about train seat covers. Why train seat covers? It was inspired by a Reddit post that noticed the Siemens train seats have lots of station names ... [More]
Iâm not sure why itâs taken so long to get back to this, but here’s the third post comparing old (1924 and 1974) vs current train timetables. Parts one and two covered the western and northwestern lines. Going clockwise the next lines are the red ones on the rail map: the Mernda and Hurstbridge lines. ... [More]
The Glen Huntly level crossings are being grade separated, but the tram/train crossing looks like it’ll continue to cause problems until it’s gone next year. On Monday during evening peak, an outbound route 67 tram came off the rails at the crossing. This used to be my neighbourhood, and I don’t live far away, so ... [More]
Instead of a long rambling blog post today, you can read this from me in The Age: One reason this is being raised now is that problems around slow Myki readers and card availability (and other issues) are likely to be resolved under the new Myki contract. On the point that the FTZ encourages driving: ... [More]