Categories
transport

It only took eight years

It’s a miracle! Back in 2011, the train information on this Smartbus sign at Bentleigh station was switched off. In 2016 during the level crossing removal project, the bus stop and sign were removed, then put back. For a while the sign wasn’t working, but then the bus times were switched on. But not the  ... [More]

Categories
Melbourne

Remembering James Coppell Lee

I was in Brighton Cemetery on Saturday (long story) and noticed this statue from a distance, so thought I’d have a look. Someone famous? Not really. A young man, tragically drowned off Mornington. The statue was made by his workmates. Thanks to Trove, I found quite a detailed report of the accident. FISHING BOAT OVERTURNS.YOUNG  ... [More]

Categories
transport

State Library station

This blew my tiny mind. Speaking of Metro tunnel station names, the project publicity is increasingly talking about (new) North Melbourne station. It’s a shame the old one wasn’t renamed to West Melbourne (as per the plan) last year when all the maps were reprinted for the opening of the Mernda extension. Hopefully they get  ... [More]

Categories
Home life TV

Home improvement

Yes, sometimes my blog isn’t about transport. If you’d prefer to see only transport posts, you can use this link. Here’s a post where I ramble on about recent upgrades around my house. Wall insulation I had wall insulation installed earlier in the year. The winter gas bill came in recently. It’s down 37.7% from  ... [More]

Categories
transport

Passengers for the Airport, change trains at Sunshine

Trouble afoot for the Melbourne Airport rail link? Age: The new proposal would see airport trains use existing rail lines between Southern Cross and Sunshine, and add a new line between Sunshine and the airport, sources close to the project have said. Herald Sun: …while most prefer an express route with only one stop, the  ... [More]

Categories
Photos from ten years ago

Old photos from August 2009

It’s nearly the end of the month, so here’s another in my series of photos from ten years ago. Yarraville one afternoon. This hasn’t changed much at all. In Swanston Street, a quirky display of old public benches. Every few years, the tram/train level crossing at Glen Huntly needs renewal. Of course during the renewal,  ... [More]

Categories
transport

Some thoughts on the Myki data leak

This, the other week, was interesting: In a concerning revelation, researchers have found that myki, in conjunction with social media, can be used to uncover a wealth of information about card users. ABC: ‘Shocking’ myki privacy breach for millions of users in data release Here’s the report and media release from the Office of the  ... [More]

Categories
transport walking

Is the importance of car parks inflated?

One of the tropes of urban planning is that traders think car parking (and car access generally) for their customers is far more important than it might actually be. Here are some live examples in Melbourne right now. Save Inkerman! In Caulfield, traders reckon their businesses will suffer if separated bike lanes, part of the  ... [More]

Categories
transport

SoCross: the interchange

If you follow me on Twitter, you may have already seen this. A man rushed past on the stairs at Southern Cross. He ran down and around the corner, then doubled-back to the V/Line fare gates. My guess is he’d come from the Metro platforms. Here’s a short video of what happened next. (It’s only  ... [More]

Categories
transport

Public transport Shapes

This went super viral, at least by my standards. It started off as a reply to a Tweet from Tosh Greenslade (from Mad As Hell) – he pointed out a similar slogan, then I realised the BBQ Shapes box design is near identical to the livery on the trams. Someone suggested a look at the  ... [More]

Categories
transport

The circle is broken. But…

You might recall I had put in a request to Vicroads to resolve a 13 year old problem with a local bus zone. The bus zone hours hadn’t been updated since last decade. In 2006 the operating hours of bus route 701 were extended so it runs until after 9pm in the evening, and Sunday  ... [More]

Categories
driving transport

A year in the new car

Sorry PT fans, this is a blog about driving. I’ve had the new car, a 2017 Mitsubishi Lancer bought brand new, a year now, and have got to just on 10,000 kilometres so far. The average in Australia is about 15,000 km per year, but some drive a lot further. My past average is about  ... [More]