Archive for 2015

Photos from ten years ago: August 2005

I started taking photos of trains just over a decade ago. So what a better time to borrow an idea from fellow transport blogger Daniel Bowen, and put together a post looking back in time – starting in August 2005.

View south along Spencer Street

Public Transport Victoria and Melbourne Monopoly

At my local railway station I recently noticed a poster from Public Transport Victoria, stating “We’ve made it to Melbourne Monopoly”. But for me the bigger question is – did the taxpayer have to pay to get there?

PTV poster promoting their involvement with the tacky tourist tripe that is 'Melbourne Monopoly'

Grade separating the Cranbourne line

In November 2015 the Andrews Labor Government announced another four level crossings in Melbourne would be removed – two of which are on the Cranbourne line. While any rail related upgrades are positive, from the information available so far it appears that the work will be just piecemeal upgrades that benefit road users, and not a holistic program to improve the transport network as a whole. So how could the Cranbourne line south of Dandenong be completely grade separated in a cost effective way?

Regional Rail Link and level crossings delays in Deer Park

Since the full opening of Regional Rail Link on June 21, level crossing delays in Deer Park have skyrocketed, with some newspaper reports claiming that the boom gates have been down for period of up to 40 minutes! So what is actually going at the Mount Derrimut Road crossing?

N461 arrives into Deer Park with a citybound service

Small children – “you’re going to need a car”?

The other week in the Herald Sun I read an opinion piece titled “In Melbourne’s real world, cars still rule”, but it was a quote from Labor member for Brunswick, Jane Garrett, that really made me ask “are people really that blind”.

Down in the basement car park of Altona Gate Shopping Centre