Why is a tram like a banana? Because they come in a bunch! ba dum tsh So why do trams supposedly timetabled an even distance apart end up running up against each other? The usual cause is the tram in front getting a bad run, which results in it getting progressively more delayed as passengers […]
Melbourne’s tram network is one of the biggest in the world, with 24 routes traversing 250 kilometres of track, dating back over a century, and progressively extended and upgraded in the years since.
Today the challenge is to keep services moving despite increasing traffic congestion, carrying more passengers than ever before, while meeting new accessible transport standards. This is difficult activity given no two parts of the network are the same – so how can the Melbourne tram network be categorised by the environment they runs through?
If you have ever caught a tram down Bourke Street and alighted at the corner of Spencer Street, the massive wait for the pedestrian lights to turn green should be quite familiar. So how long will you get stuck waiting there?
Melbourne’s bus and tram networks have one thing in common – they get delayed by single occupant cars. Dedicated lanes are one way to keep public transport moving, but what happens when there is not enough road space for both?
Over the weekend Melbourne newspaper the Herald Sun ran a piece about an upcoming trial of tram priority by VicRoads, Public Transport Victoria and Yarra Trams. So what to make of it – an important move to make Melbourne’s tram service faster, or just another report to gather dust on the shelf?
