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Category: Melbourne and suburbs

  • Frequent services: Trams lead, trains improving, buses still lag

    A study of Melbourne public transport timetables shows much of the city is still lagging on providing frequent, easy-to-use services that will encourage people out of cars. PTUA outgoing president Daniel Bowen said that the study confirmed what most Melburnians think – that trams run frequently, trains are a mixed bag, and that most buses…

  • ‘Trains not tollroads’ campaign revs up

    From the PTUA’s September newsletter. Join now to receive regular newsletters and support better public transport. In November 2010 Ted Baillieu said of Doncaster rail: “The easiest thing to do would be to do exactly what this [Brumby] government has done and do nothing. We are not going to do that, we are going to……

  • ‘Balance’ is missing

    THE secretary of the Australian Workers Union, Cesar Melhem, suggests Victoria can have the $10 billion east-west road link and still invest in public transport improvements (“AWU pushes for east-west tunnel“, The Age, 30/7). As Darryl Kerrigan would say, “he’s dreamin”‘. Such a massive road project would suck up all our transport funding for a…

  • State quiet on train lines

    THE Kennett government didn’t survive long enough to face the consequences of privatising the roads that became CityLink. It opened in 2000, a year after Kennett was voted out. Moreover, most of the losers from the decision to toll existing roads were in ALP-held seats. CityLink’s main effect was an explosion in private car travel…

  • Single track bottlenecks must be fixed

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has called for duplication of critical single track bottlenecks on the Metro network, to help improve on-time running and boost train frequencies. PTUA President Daniel Bowen said that that single line sections of track played havoc with punctuality, and severely limited the number of trains that could run. “It…

  • Hidden rail plan uncovered: Some lines to miss out on frequent all-day services

    A future rail service plan hidden away in a Rowville Rail study technical document has been uncovered by the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA). The plan is contained in Travel Demand Modelling Draft Report for the Rowville Rail Study[1], and although it emphasises that the plan does “not necessarily represent the actual planned services”, PTUA…

  • Support Doncaster rail – attend a community workshop

    The Victorian government is undertaking a study to provide a train service between Doncaster and the Melbourne CBD. The PTUA strongly supports a rail service to Doncaster as a vital link in Melbourne’s public transport network. We encourage you to attend one of the community workshops organised by the Doncaster Rail Study Team. The purpose…

  • Badly advised

    THE idea that the Rowville line can’t be built without a $5 billion metro tunnel is nonsense (”Monash Uni train line plan derailed”, The Age, 9/3). The line was included in the 1969 transport plan, which gave us the City Loop, but did not say an extra tunnel from South Yarra was required: only some…

  • Metro’s trains every ten minutes welcomed – more please!

    Trains every ten minutes on weekends on the Dandenong, Ringwood and Frankston lines have been welcomed by the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA). PTUA President Daniel Bowen said the proposed services, due to start in late-April[1], would be a good step towards more frequent train services, seven days-a-week, that would encourage people out of cars.

  • Fares rising at almost double rate of inflation – Monthly fare cuts could ease myki pain

    Public transport fares have risen at double the rate of inflation, a study of fares over the last twenty years by the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has shown. PTUA President Daniel Bowen said that the Consumer Price Index was 66.7% over the last two decades[1], but that many fares had jumped by about 120%.…

  • Public left behind on Chadstone transport planning

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has called on the Baillieu Government to ensure greater transparency in transport planning for the proposed Chadstone shopping centre expansion. PTUA outer east convenor Jeremy Lunn said public participation must be a key component of the planning process, but the government and the developer seem to be operating behind…

  • Chadstone interchange not a full solution

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has warned that a modified bus interchange will not be enough to cater for expansion of the Chadstone shopping centre, as it would be only a partial solution. It says bus services themselves need significant upgrades, along with the extension of train and tram services into the centre. “It’s…