Transport blogger / campaigner and spokesperson for the Public Transport Users Association / professional geek.
Bunurong land, Melbourne, Australia.
Opinions on this blog are all mine.
Last week Gareth Dennis posted this superb and hilarious thread of British PMs as locomotives. It’s very funny, even if (like me) you’re not much of a Brit trainspotter. A friend asked me to do an Australian version. Initially I said I wasn’t sure if there were enough Australian trains to match the multitude of ... [More]
When I last wrote about COVID-19, it was just before we went into Level 4 restrictions in Melbourne. Level 4 has been harder. While I’m not affected in a financial sense, the further closure of businesses is causing stress for people. There are now severe limits on leaving the house: once per day per household ... [More]
Here’s a quick tram video for you. It’s only a couple of minutes long. There’s no sound. It was recorded last month on a Sunday afternoon on St Kilda Road and Brighton Road. (There are a few edits – check the dashcam timestamp if you can’t spot the cuts.) What we’re seeing here is how ... [More]
This is one of those posts like I used to do, with life events and observations. Little or no transport content here, so if that’s what you’re here for, you can skip this post. We moved into my current house back in 2005. It was what I could afford at the time. I prioritised position ... [More]
The people who have to travel during curfew are ensuring our hospitals can care for the sick, and that our food supplies aren’t disrupted.
I tweeted these thoughts out earlier, and thought I’d post them here too. Some thoughts on Melbourne’s COVID crisis, just over halfway through the 6-week lockdown (likely to be extended) The daily numbers are an essential quick summary view of how it’s going, but sometimes agonising. There’s collective relief when they drop, but anguish and ... [More]
It’s the end of the month, so time for another in my long-running series of old photos from ten years ago. The afternoon sun hits a Comeng train at the old Bentleigh station. This was about 8 months after Metro had taken over from Connex. Note the old colours on the train, with logos covered ... [More]
At long last the shops built as part of the new Bentleigh station (my local) have been leased. Somewhat to my surprise, in the middle of an economy-busting pandemic, they’re being fitted out now. One of them will be a medical centre. Following a conversation on Twitter about it, I was curious to see if ... [More]
It’s been almost two week since the recommendation to wear masks when you couldn’t stay 1.5 metres away from others. This includes public transport. With COVID-19 case numbers rising, on Sunday they upped the ante: masks (or other face coverings) will be mandatory outside your home (with a few exceptions) from Thursday. Interestingly this is ... [More]
I wrote most of this post late last year, so obviously circumstances have changed a tad, but my assumption is it’s all temporary – eventually things will get back to something approaching “normal”. Maybe not quite what it was last year, but the pattern of increasing travel demand will come back. Works on the northern ... [More]
Some things worth noting in PT this week. Masks now recommended On Friday, the Chief Health Officer recommended that Melburnians now wear masks outside home when it is not possible to stay physically distant from others – including when using public transport. Obviously this has been prompted by the current rates of COVID-19 community transmission ... [More]
SBS is showing UK rail documentary series World’s Busiest Stations – and last night they aired the episode set in Melbourne. Although it’s ostensibly about specific busy stations, the series looks more broadly at the local rail networks. You can watch it on SBS On Demand. It’s well worth a look for a view inside ... [More]