Month: May 2008

  • Albury Rail Standardisation Welcomed

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed today’s announcement that the broad gauge rail line from Seymour to Albury will be standardised and upgraded under a deal between the Commonwealth and Victorian governments, but criticised the rail “bypass” plan that will see Wodonga’s station moved.

  • Evening trains overcrowded – Urgent upgrade required

    In response to overcrowding, public transport users are calling for an urgent upgrade to evening off-peak train services in Melbourne. According to the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA), evening services should be upgraded to operate at the same interval as daytime (between peak) services. This move would apply to all lines, with evening trains operating…

  • Commuters Reignite TrackDown Call

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed the Commonwealth and State Governments’ pledge to grade separate the Springvale Road level crossing in Nunawading. However, it says that Springvale Road should not be done in isolation and that other crossings on the line need to be eliminated simultaneously. “Springvale Road and Mitcham Road are two…

  • Langdon’s freeway not welcome

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has slammed Ivanhoe Labor MP Craig Langdon’s call for a freeway between Bulleen and Greensborough. This recent move by Langdon comes despite multiple promises that he would resign if this freeway were ever constructed.

  • Speeding towards dangerous climate change

    Slides now available for download Public forum: 15 June 2008 Hear what the world’s leading climate scientists are discovering about the speed of climate change, the potential impacts on our way of life, and what we need to do to safeguard our future.

  • Canterbury Road Petition Success

    The PTUA today presented its petition for the Canterbury Road SmartBus to Robert Clark MP, Member for Box Hill. The petition, consisting of over 380 signatures, was presented by Outer East Convenor Jeremy Lunn and PTUA member Andrew Sadauskas at the Box Hill bus interchange.

  • Re-design to help bring more trains

    Because it will help enable more frequent services, the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has cautiously approved of proposals to re-design suburban train interiors. “The current design of carriages is grossly inefficient”, said PTUA president Daniel Bowen. “The ‘wall’ of seats in the Comeng and X’Trapolis trains results in almost all standees milling around the…

  • Alamein upgrade call

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has called for an end to the archaic practice of terminating Alamein shuttle trains at Camberwell. “This practice is way out of date and ought to be replaced by running direct Flinders Street trains,” said Jeremy Lunn, the PTUA’s Outer-East Convenor.

  • Budget brings slow progress on public transport

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed upgrades to public transport announced in the state budget, but warned that more needed to be done to provide Victorians with sustainable transport choices. “There are certainly some welcome upgrades that have been announced, but nowhere near what’s really needed to provide relief from chronic traffic congestion…

  • Spending: Roads versus Public transport

    Here is more detail of figures published in today’s Age, in the article New road cash five times funding of rail. There are sometimes claims of “balance” between public transport and roads, but in the past ten years, some five times more has been spent expanding Melbourne’s road network ($1.7 billion), compared to building tram…