A lot of people have asked why a Z-class tram was chosen for the Queen’s tram ride (rather than Melbourne’s traditional and iconic W-class, for instance). Here’s the answer: W and A-class trams don’t have handrails in the middle of the doorways, which can be a big help for older people. B-class trams do, but ... [More]
Month: October 2011
I’ve done a quick comparison of the main airport to CBD public transport in Australia’s biggest cities. Brisbane and Sydney have trains at premium fares. Perth and Adelaide have normal route buses. Melbourne has a premium bus. City MEL SYD BNE ADL PER Mode Bus Train Train Bus Bus Distance (km) 23 8 13 6 ... [More]
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A few pics for Thursday
Pac-Man on Lonsdale Street (though if the ghost is blue, Pac-Man must have had a power pill, and should be chasing, not chased) I don’t want to seem paranoid, but I don’t think this is a real ATM: Behold! The temple of Gorm!
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Yarra Trams – by appointment
Maybe after tomorrow, this could be the new Yarra Trams logo? Update Wednesday 6:30pm: There you go, here’s my best pic of the Queen in the tram. Not great I know; she was on the opposite side and facing the other way. Lots of pics at The Age and Herald Sun. Most amusing: Channel 9 ... [More]
This is Flagstaff station yesterday at 8:50am. It’s not a once-off occurence, but happens regularly. As patronage has grown at Parliament and Melbourne Central, more gates have gradually gone in… fitting more in at Flagstaff is probably a challenge, but one that will have to be looked at, perhaps in conjunction with the conversion from ... [More]
Eight days until Movember. So, what will I look like with a moustache next month? Well, thanks to this handy dandy kit that Marita provided, perhaps we have an indication. I tried each of them out… here are the results…
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This year, I’m doing Movember
I’ve not been organised early enough previously to do Movember, but this year, I’ve signed-up. For those unaware, Movember is an annual event when blokes grow moustaches to raise money for charities, chiefly associated with men’s health and mental health. One starts off cleanshaven on November the 1st, then starts growing the moustache, for sponsorship. ... [More]
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Brisbane day 6 – heading home
Thursday 6th October Alas, the day came to depart Brisbane and head back home. Perhaps it’s inevitable these days that travelling interstate pretty much requires setting aside most or all of the day just for the journey. I suppose it’s a consequence of modern air travel, which requires getting to and from airports, and lengthy ... [More]
The supermarket war of Coles versus Safeway/Woolworths has heated up, with roast chicken. First, Coles went to $10. …then Safeway/Woolworths struck back with… $9.88. These posters were prominently displayed en masse around the Bentleigh Woolworths last night. “Why pay $10” “Only $9.88”? TWELVE CENTS DIFFERENCE? Or to put it in percentage terms, Woolies are 1.2% ... [More]
Some people got just a little too hysterical last week when news of a security vulnerability in Myki came out. The story broke on Monday, but it wasn’t until Wednesday that the mainstream media got hold of it, with the Melbourne Times running it first, spreading rapidly to The Age, AAP, 3AW and others — ... [More]
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Brisbane day 5 – Surfers Paradise
Wednesday 5th October The first job was to return the hire car. Similar to the circuitous route filling it up the night before, due to the one way streets, this involved a 750 metre drive (Google Maps estimated time: 4 minutes), and then a 170 metre walk back (estimated: 2 minutes). Turning out of Raff ... [More]
(Actually there have been real, major Blackberry outages this week.)