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 is ludicrous that in the 21st century, we still have sections of single track on the Metro network. With increasing passenger numbers, it is now urgent that rail bottlenecks be duplicated.

“The rail network is the best, most efficient way of moving large numbers of people in our growing city, yet it is hamstrung by single track sections that hark back to the 19th century.

“These pinch points prevent the kind of reliable and frequent service a big city like Melbourne demands. For instance the single track Altona Loop has the least frequent peak-hour services anywhere in Zone 1, with a train only every 22 minutes.

“Single tracks mean any little delay quickly snowballs to affect trains in both directions, which in peak hour can easily mean thousands of people have their travel disrupted.”
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Good connecting services are vital for making more trips viable by public transport. In the case of feeder buses to stations, frequent services with good interchange facilities can help relieve station car parks, and make it easier for those travelling across the day — not just the lucky few who can drive to a station before all the parking is full.

Unfortunately at many stations the interchange facilities leave a lot to be desired. This is Laverton, recently upgraded at a cost of almost $93 million. So why did they not put the bus stops next to the entrance to the platforms?

To change from a train to a bus (or a taxi), you have to go up one set of stairs, across the bridge, down more stairs, and then take a long walk through a car park. And hope it’s not raining.

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Sections of single track on the Metro network are a direct cause of low frequencies, and cause delays to quickly cascade. In this example at Westona on the Altona Loop section of the Werribee line, a citybound train has to wait for an outbound train to arrive before it can continue on.

Similar bottlenecks are found on the Cranbourne, Belgrave, Lilydale, Hurstbridge and Upfield lines, preventing more frequent trains on those lines, and contributing to poor punctuality.

For Altona residents affected by poor train services (in part because of the single track) there’s a public meeting this Thursday night on this issue.

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The $9.80 fee for refunds of Myki credit was removed on the 1st of January this year. But it is still mentioned repeatedly on the online forms, causing many to believe it still applies.

In small print on the Myki web site does it say “Please note that the administration fee mentioned on some of the above forms no longer applies”, but many people don’t notice this.

Surely it can’t take four months to change the text on a PDF form?

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The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed state budget funding for more V/Line carriages and for three level crossing eliminations, but noted there was little new funding for bus and tram services, nor any funding to complete Southland station, as promised before the 2010 election.

“V/Line patronage is booming, and the extra carriages are desperately needed”, said PTUA President Daniel Bowen. “While a few carriages will become available once the Sunbury electrification project is finished, the government clearly needed to act on ordering more.

“Passengers unable to find a seat, forced to sit in the aisles or stand for long periods of time, have become a regular occurrence on V/Line services. Expansion of the fleet is very welcome, and needs to be matched by a commitment to more frequent services, including at off-peak times when V/Line services currently run only once an hour.

“Let’s hope they don’t prematurely scrap older V/Line carriages as the new ones come in – we don’t want a repeat of the Hitachi trains fiasco.”

Mr Bowen said grade separation projects at Springvale Road, Springvale, as well as Mitcham and Rooks Roads in Mitcham would improve safety, and reduce delays for bus passengers, cyclists and pedestrians, as well as motorists.

But new funding for buses is limited to one route[1], and there is no commitment to fulfil the election commitments to construct Southland station, and to expand by 10 the current order for new trams[2].
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We already knew Metro was getting into the habit of having trains skip stops when running late, but now they’re taking it to new heights: a busy service to Frankston on Friday night was altered to bypass the majority of its scheduled stops.

For many passengers waiting on the platform, this was effectively a cancelled service. And we can only hope those aboard the train were told it was skipping so many stops.

While this train was scheduled to run back into the City after reaching Frankston, plenty of others at that time were going to stabling and could have run that citybound service to avoid knock-on delays. Or they could have altered the return service, which was against the peak direction and would have disadvantaged fewer passengers.

This is clearly Metro putting punctuality statistics ahead of passengers.

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New stations at South Morang, Cardinia Road and Lynbrook opened yesterday, which is great news. At Lynbrook a community event drew a big crowd, and just for the event, toilets were provided. Alas, they were taken away on the back of a truck afterwards.

South Morang is a Premium station, but the others aren’t.

With no toilets and also no staff on duty, let’s hope new train users at Cardinia Road and Lynbrook can figure out how to use the ticket machines and get to where they’re going.

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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 President Daniel Bowen said that for the first time it gave the public a glimpse of what was planned for the future operation of their rail network.

The plan was based on the completion of the Regional Rail Link project in Melbourne’s west, and made the assumption that there would be enough trains to run services more frequently.

“The good news is the plan does include services at least every ten minutes all day on most lines. If implemented, this will make a huge difference to travel around Melbourne, making it easier to get around much of the city without long waits or relying on timetables”, said Mr Bowen.
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Many of the remaining problems with Myki relate to its coexistence with Metcard: old slow gates, tram and bus readers not knowing where the vehicle is (because drivers can’t enter trip details).

But some station readers have problems as well. This one had apparently decided to reboot itself at 3:12pm… and still hadn’t recovered almost two hours later at 5pm when this photo was taken.

The Transport Ticketing Authority is looking for passengers to offer their feedback — it should be obvious that they need to make sure Myki equipment works more reliably than it does at present.

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This must be a textbook example of how to confuse people: Westona station has converted to Myki, so no Metcards are for sale here.

What’s the only information on display next to the Myki vending machine? A poster all about Metcard, including a list of those Metcard fares that you can’t buy.

Help our campaign for better public transport. Join the PTUA now. We rely entirely on member funding and enthusiastic volunteers to operate.

More about PT Problem Of The Day, including how you can contribute your photos.