A mate of mine told me this funny story, which I posted to Twitter yesterday. Here’s a version with fewer emoji, and a bit more detail. He was on a bus heading out to Doncaster. Two young men got on, full of attitude. They sat in the back, and started playing music through a Bluetooth ... [More]
There’s something of a disconnect between the headlines today and the reality. Say goodbye to your Myki card â the death of the trouble-plagued $1.5bn ticketing system has begun. Here's how you will soon pay for public transport https://t.co/lY7DEPxdMt #exclusive #springst pic.twitter.com/hVAtgHE2l6 — Herald Sun (@theheraldsun) January 27, 2018 “THE death of the trouble-plagued $1.5 ... [More]
I’ve posted about Rule 128 before. Rule 128 says: Entering blocked intersections A driver must not enter an intersection if the driver cannot drive through the intersection because the intersection, or a road beyond the intersection, is blocked. Penalty: 3 penalty units. The Age recently got hold of figures revealing there were just 18 fines ... [More]
On Wednesday the State Government announced that the first section of “skyrail”, at Noble Park, will open on Thursday 15th February, along with the new station, following a two week disruption to rail services between Westall and Dandenong. This will mark the removal of three level crossings: at Corrigan, Heatherton and Chandler Roads. Trains will ... [More]
You may have seen photos from the mock-up train design back in October. It’s been part of a consultation process over about the past year, which has concluded. As the Herald Sun reported on the weekend (pay wall), the finishing touches are now being put on the design. Yesterday on behalf of the PTUA, I ... [More]
Another in my series of ten year old photos. In late-2007/early-2008 there was a stoush around the banning of bicycles in zone 1 during peak hours. In February 2008 the ban was reversed. Notice that this sign is ambiguous: are the bikes banned on any train that serves zone 1 during peak, or just banned ... [More]
When you’re house-hunting, there’s a continuum of numerous factors weighed against each other, including indoor space, outdoor space, location, walkability, and plenty more, including of course price. By walkability, I mean the walking distance to amenity such as parks, good public transport, shops. (Walkscore attempts to measure this.) From some points of view, perhaps the ... [More]
Just a quickie… A senior politician (I won’t say who, or which side) once told me something which, at the time was somewhat surprising to hear, but in retrospect it’s obvious – and puts a lot of things into perspective: For politicians, the number one priority is to get elected / to get re-elected / ... [More]
Two seemingly unrelated things are occurring this week: Today, Saturday, is expected to be the hottest day of Melbourne’s summer so far this season, with a forecast high of 42 degrees. And… the 60th E-class tram just came into service. We welcomed the new year in with the introduction of Melbourneâs newest E-Class tram, entering ... [More]
Happy new year! Noting that the most-viewed and commented-upon blog posts of last year were all transport-related (yeah this blog has moved to mostly transport in the past few years), I’m wondering what topics people might be interested in for posts this year. I have a number already in the works, but if you’d like ... [More]
One last post of miscellaneous stuff to mark the end of 2017. Grandad My Grandad was born on this day in 1924. He passed away on Boxing Day, just shy of his 93rd birthday. Being one of our UK relatives, we didn’t visit him much, but we did manage to see him during our UK ... [More]
Night Buses are not running on New Year’s Eve tonight. Most trams and trains are running all night — and it’s more trains than last year; half-hourly after about 2am, rather than hourly as last year. There are also some regional trains and coaches after midnight. Night Bus routes are designed to fill the gaps ... [More]