Almost all my photos from August 2005 seem to be from a three day Canberra trip (actually the only time I’ve been to Canberra). I remember it being cold but fun. And many of the photos are from around the Parliament Houses (old and new). Old Parliament House: New Parliament House. I think this was ... [More]
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Metro rail tunnel ads
Remember the ads for future transport projects that we saw in 2010 and 2014? They’re baaaaaack. The metro rail tunnel isn’t fully funded. But the ads are a bit different from the ones we saw last year for the proposed (but now scrapped) Melbourne Rail Link (the Coalition’s then-alternative tunnel plan) and the airport rail ... [More]
It must be difficult for Tony Abbott’s loyal MPs to defend him in matters like public transport, where he refuses to fund it, while heavily funding motorways. But of course they try. What’s fascinating is when they get their basic facts wrong. This morning there was a discussion on Twitter about a Coalition-run forum about ... [More]
If you haven’t heard, the train and tram stoppages for Friday have been cancelled. Say you know which line you want, you’ve found the correct platform, but a train comes in with some obscure station on the destination sign — how do you know if you can catch it? You might have only a few ... [More]
Nothing makes public transport more usable than frequent services, where you don’t need a timetable, you just “turn up and go” — in transport planning circles this is actually known by the TUAG acronym. Regular readers might know: the Frankston and Dandenong lines now have TUAG trains every ten minutes every day for much of ... [More]
It’s the end of the phone call that I remember the most. Before she hung up, she said: “Drive safely”. I’m sure it was a standard line, but I’m equally sure she meant it. She was a nurse; the last thing she’d want having communicated the bad news would be the recipient having a crash ... [More]
It’s Rail Safety Week, an annual event to highlight the importance of staying safe around trains. It’s an important issue, and the official video is well worth a look: Back in 2012, The Age highlighted the issue of level crossing regulations which are illogical, and out of step with engineering practice as well as public ... [More]
I was looking on the State Library’s web site for material related to my local suburb, and found these old real estate ads. This one is from back when Bentleigh was called East Brighton. It’s dated 1885. It’s the area immediately to the east of the railway station, which opened in 1881, and was renamed ... [More]
Updates below If you’re keeping up with the news, you’d know that the Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) is in dispute with both the tram and train operators. At this stage, there is a threat of industrial action, which could be anything from refusing to wear uniforms to refusing to check tickets to disrupting ... [More]
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Spring is coming
Snapped near my house on Sunday afternoon.
Bernard Salt writing in The Australian today implies that Y2K was a hoax: Do you remember the Y2K bug, the computer programming flaw that threatened to reset the digital world to the year zero at the turn of the century? Hospital life support systems might stop. Planes might lose navigation. Everyoneâs bank accounts might reset ... [More]
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Learning from elsewhere
Once in a blue moon I’ll buy a copy of Modern Railways. It’s a Brit magazine which — although it does feature full-colour photos of trains — isn’t really a trainspotter mag. At least, that’s what I keep telling myself. It highlights developments in railways in Britain, and the other week I noticed the May ... [More]
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How do people get to the station?
Last week’s Age reported that Metro proposed multi-storey car parks at some stations. When it comes to how people get to the station, Park And Ride gets a lot of attention, probably because it’s so obvious. In terms of land taken up, car parks often dwarf the stations they serve. But it’s important to remember ... [More]
The “five group railway” is something that’s been on the cards for a while. The Age highlights it today in this article: Metro plan to split Melbourne rail network into five lines hangs on union fight It has its origins last decade — the 2008 Victorian Transport Plan talked about “creating a Metro system”, in ... [More]
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Productivity while travelling
Peter Martin in The Age yesterday, on driverless cars: Imagine studying, reading books, watching TV, sleeping or (legally) playing with your mobile phone on the way to work. Whichever way you look at it, the freed-up time will boost productivity. Sounds great! Wait a minute, thousands of us do that stuff every day by catching ... [More]
Warning! No transport content! If you only want to see transport blog posts, you can use this URL, or sign up to the email alerts! My first recollection of the ABC Shop in Melbourne was a small space in their then Lonsdale Street radio HQ, which was where the County Court is now — on ... [More]