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V/Line and Connex plan to ban bicycles on peak hour trains from the 1st of January 2008. The V/Line ban will apply to all trains in the peak direction, and we understand that the Connex ban will apply to all trains in the peak direction within zone 1. (Bicycles will be allowed at all times within zone 2, including stations in the zone 1/2 overlap.)

• V/Line Fares & conditions — changes from 1 January 2008
• Victorian Fares and Ticketing Manual 2008 — see page 76

The PTUA is opposed to this ban.

While we recognise that many peak hour services are crowded, we are aware of a number of passengers who genuinely need their bicycles at both ends of their train trip. These represent only a small number of people relative to total passenger loads. So a total ban is unlikely to have a big effect on crowding, while unfairly disadvantaging those people who need to take their bikes on trains.
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The finding that there is “no obvious evidence of price fixing” by petrol retailers underlines the need for greater investment in public transport to provide an escape from car dependence, the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) said today.

“The report on petrol pricing released today by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) shows that high petrol prices are fundamentally a result of tight supply and demand conditions – not a massive rip-off by petrol companies,” said PTUA President Daniel Bowen. “We have to face the unpleasant reality that high petrol prices are here to stay and alternatives to car dependence are sorely needed.”
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The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) said today that the Doncaster Hill project was destined for failure without a proper rail transport link and renewed calls for the immediate extension of tram 48 to Doncaster.

“There’s no chance of a successful Doncaster Hill without a tram connecting to the city and nearby suburbs,” said PTUA spokesman and Doncaster resident Christopher Trikilis. “All the plans show a boulevard streetscape but there is no boulevard for people to enjoy if it is jammed full of traffic all day and night creating an unhealthy environment for all”.
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Opinion piece by Anthony Morton, Secretary, PTUA, published in the Herald Sun, 11 December 2007

That slow train is still

HOW do you revive an ailing public transport system?

Who do you blame when your train doesn’t show up because it has broken down somewhere?

Or when it does show up, it’s so crowded you can’t get on?

Who do you blame when you have to wait 30 lonely minutes at night for a bus to pick you up from the station?
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The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has renewed calls for the immediate construction of the Rowville Railway line, describing the route 900 Wellington Road SmartBus as inadequate.

“Bus services just cannot be compared with trains,” said Jeremy Lunn, the PTUA’s Outer-East Convenor. “The bus crawls along at bicycle pace resulting in travel times of over an hour to reach the city in peak times”.

The Rowville railway line would offer commuters a much quicker journey, reducing travel times to the city to as little as 30 minutes. Trains would also provide much greater capacity, as a single train can carry the equivalent of 20 buses or 800 car trips.
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The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has called for the immediate installation of toilet facilities to be installed at Box Hill railway station, the only Premium Station in Melbourne without any toilet facilities.

“Commuters have to go out of their way on a stroll through the shopping centre to find a toilet,” said Jeremy Lunn, the PTUA’s Outer-East Convenor. “For such a busy station this is a joke. It’s a disgrace and something has to be done.”
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From our December 2007 newsletter. Please join the PTUA to receive regular newsletters.

A key campaign for the PTUA this year has been working for the restoration of strong public control of public transport in Melbourne and Victoria. Our favoured model for public control is the ‘Transport Community’ model used in cities like Zurich, Vancouver, London, Madrid and Perth, where a central public authority with a strong passenger-focussed culture takes responsibility for strategic and tactical planning of public transport.

Now Brisbane seems set to follow the example of Perth in embracing this model of public transport ‘governance’. One of the first actions of new Queensland Premier Anna Bligh has been to announce a single public transport authority for greater Brisbane.
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