The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has warned that expansion of the Chadstone Shopping Centre will lead to greater mayhem on roads and buses around the centre if high quality public transport is not provided.

PTUA President Daniel Bowen said that the expansion should not take place unless it was accompanied by an overhaul of public transport in the area: a railway connection, an extension of the number 3 tram route and major upgrades to bus services.

“The car parks at Chadstone are already unable to cope with the volumes of visitors, and nearby roads are regularly gridlocked”, said Mr Bowen. “If public transport services remain as they are today, it would be a disaster to upgrade the shopping centre.

“It’s bad planning practice to facilitate such large scale development away from the railway network. Without a railway connection, the expansion will only promote car dependency as the reality at Chadstone.

“A railway line to Chadstone could be achieved by extending the Alamein line to Oakleigh, via East Malvern and Chadstone. It would help alleviate traffic chaos around Chadstone, complete a missing link in Melbourne’s rail network and provide extra capacity.” [1]

Mr Bowen said it would improve access to Chadstone from suburbs along the Belgrave, Lilydale, Alamein, Glen Waverley, Pakenham and Cranbourne lines, along with the proposed line to Rowville. It would also enhance access to Monash University, Swinburne University, Holmesglen TAFE and employment opportunities across the east and southeastern suburbs.

“If Chadstone want to create an ‘international experience’ for shoppers, then transport to the centre needs to match international best practice. At the moment, transport to Chadstone can only be described as a nightmare.

“The buses at Chadstone are not coping – they are either hopelessly infrequent or packed to bursting, particularly on weekends, while motorists also face lengthy delays just to exit the car park.

“The mess we’re in today is the result of substantial development at Chadstone over the years without providing effective public transport. This shows that a transport solution such as rail needs to be part of any further expansion plan.”

Along with a railway line, an extensive upgrade will be required for buses serving Chadstone. Mr Bowen said that bus users currently face significant delays, and immediate action needs to be taken, dedicated priority lanes needed on all access roads.

Mr Bowen said the current plans show a major new road interchange at Princes Highway, including two 5-6 lane roads, indicating that Chadstone is looking to increase the level of car traffic into the centre – but there is no indication of bus lanes.[2]

“The level of bus services will also need a significant upgrade. Current services are mostly appalling. Most buses on weekends operate only hourly, and those that run more often are overcrowded. Is it any wonder that most people drive?” [3]

The PTUA is calling for major bus routes to Chadstone to operate every 10 minutes, seven days-a-week. Other routes should be upgraded to operate at least every 20 minutes. Extension of the number 3 tram from its present terminus in East Malvern would provide an efficient link for people coming to Chadstone from the inner suburbs, complementing bus and train services.

“It would be irresponsible for the local council and the State Government to sign off on this development without a major shakeup to transport arrangements. Consolidating the bus interchange is not sufficient. The expansion should not go ahead without a rail connection, tram extension and a major upgrade to bus services”, Mr Bowen concluded.

* * *

Notes:

[1] What is now the Alamein line ran to Oakleigh between 1890 and 1895 as part of the Outer Circle railway line. Much of original reservation remains as a linear park. Some proposals have suggested an Alamein via Chadstone to Oakleigh rail line be integrated into the proposed Huntingdale to Rowville rail line.

[2] See picture below, or for full papers, see the City of Stonnington web site

[3] 14 bus routes currently serve Chadstone. Summary of weekend bus frequencies:

612 Saturday: hourly, Sunday: no service
623 Saturday and Sunday: hourly
624 Saturday and Sunday: hourly
625 Saturday and Sunday: hourly
626 Saturday and Sunday: hourly
742 Saturday: every 30-60 minutes, Sunday: hourly
767 Saturday: every 30-40 minutes, Sunday: 40 minutes
800 Saturday: every 60-120 minutes, Sunday: no service
802 No weekend service
804 Saturday: every 60-120 minutes, Sunday: no service
822 Saturday: every 40-60 minutes, Sunday: hourly
862 Saturday and Sunday: hourly
900 Saturday and Sunday: every 30 minutes
903 Saturday: 15-30 minutes, Sunday: every 30 minutes

Route 903 regularly experiences overcrowding on weekends

The Public Transport Users Association has described as “pure spin” Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder’s excuse for regional trains not stopping at North Melbourne station under the Regional Rail Link (RRL)

“The minister is trying to dress up a downgrade as an improvement,” PTUA regional spokesperson Paul Westcott said.

Mr Mulder has said that continuing to allow V/Line passengers to use North Melbourne would “add to congestion” at the station, yet it was recently rebuilt at a cost of $30 million to increase its capacity.

“It’s nonsense to claim that regional trains will suffer delays from congestion by stopping at North Melbourne because they will now all stop at Footscray instead,” Mr Westcott said.

“The actual reason for this inexcusable decision is that the track layout being provided at North Melbourne means many RRL trains will be physically unable to use any new platforms provided there. That can and must be changed.”

North Melbourne is currently a major interchange point for travellers on regional lines, providing connections to City Loop services, as well as the recently-introduced 401 shuttle bus from North Melbourne to the university and hospital precincts in Parkville.

After the RRL opens, V/Line passengers wanting to transfer to the City Loop will be forced to change trains at Footscray, from where they can only use Sydenham line trains to gain access to the Loop, because all other trains stopping at Footscray only run direct to Flinders Street.

“The Sydenham line is the most overcrowded in Melbourne, and forcing all regional passengers to squeeze onto those already packed trains in peak hour is a recipe for chaos,” Mr Westcott said.

He also noted that suburban trains to Craigieburn, Upfield and Melbourne Showgrounds stop at North Melbourne, but do not run via Footscray.

“Given that over $5 billion is being spent on this scheme, it is completely unacceptable to bypass such a vital and well-used interchange point,” Mr. Westcott said.

“Doing that will inconvenience a large number of regional rail passengers every day.

“This silly move only adds to the likelihood that regional passengers will be short-changed by the RRL project. We still have no real idea how the line is to be operated, and with this latest announcement, there’s the likelihood that it will offer no time savings to many rail users, and inconvenience them as well.”

Route bus services along Point Nepean Road face collapse over the Christmas/New Year period as thousands of revellers descend upon bayside holiday spots.

“What is supposed to be a relaxing family time of the year is likely to be reduced to bedlam as visitors try to cram on to infrequent bus services, while the road network and car parks overflow,” said Public Transport Users Association spokesman Jeremy Lunn.

Mediocre standard bus services will be unable to cope with the explosion in visitor numbers . The only service on Point Nepean Road which connects with the metropolitan rail network at Frankston, the 788, will only run every 75 minutes on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, 27 December, New Year’s Day and on 2 January. Even during weekdays this increasingly overcrowded service runs at an appalling 45 minute interval.

The 786 bus service between Rye and St Andrews Beach, the 787 between Sorrento and Safety Beach and the 886 between Rosebud and Rosebud TAFE are not scheduled to run at all on public holidays during this period.

Mr Lunn said that “It is obvious that locations with convenient route bus services suffer less from road congestion. It is a complete disgrace that the Baillieu government, which was elected on the promise to fix Melbourne’s public transport system, has ignored the needs of the permanent and visitor population on the Mornington Peninsula.”

Mr Lunn noted that it’s bad economics too, because the travel needs of tourists have never been factored into the Victorian government’s public transport plans for the Peninsula. The Mornington Peninsula attracts four to five million tourists annually. Tourism is the largest single industry and a large employer on the Peninsula. Tourists, local residents and this environmentally precious area, an important part of Melbourne’s green wedges, deserve much better,” Mr Lunn concluded.

The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has found in a comparison study that — measured by first train time — Melbourne has some of the worst Sunday morning train services in Australia.

“Our trains start too late, and are too infrequent on Sundays”, said PTUA President Daniel Bowen.

The PTUA compared train timetables from across the country and found that Melbourne’s earliest trains into the CBD arrive later than anywhere else in Australia except Adelaide.

Median first arrival times are Sydney 5:11am, Brisbane 6:48am, Perth 7:39am, Adelaide 8:38am and Melbourne 7:56am.[1]

“First trains arriving around 8am into Melbourne’s CBD causes a lot of problems for those working on Sunday, particularly shift workers and those in the hospitality industry, many of whom need to start work earlier.

“The train system waking up at 8am might have made sense in the 1950s, but it doesn’t in 2011.”

Mr Bowen said the trains’ late start played havoc with Melbourne’s special events calendar. “Big city events such as the Melbourne Marathon have been forced to advise thousands of participants that ‘public transport is not an option’ because they start at 7am. This causes untold traffic chaos.”[2]

Mr Bowen said another example was the City 2 Bay event, which started later in the morning at 8:30am, but flagged on its web site that due to train timetables, ‘time will be tight for dropping off your bags, making a toilet stop then getting to the start line’, and suggested people instead drive and park at Etihad Stadium.[3]

“Is this really the best we can do for sports-mad Melburnians?”, said Mr Bowen. “Tell them that for getting to CBD events, public transport can’t do it, and they’ll have to battle the traffic instead? This is what trains should excel at.”[4]

Mr Bowen said that poor frequencies on Sundays also led to overcrowding and long waits for trains across the day.[5]

“Trains only run every 30 to 40 minutes for most of Sunday morning, and also on Sunday nights – and the result is long waits and overcrowding.[6] Why should someone wait 40 minutes for a train and then find they can’t even get a seat? Even the 20 minute Sunday afternoon services are now overloaded on many lines.”

Mr Bowen called for an immediate shake-up of Sunday timetables, and said that the new Public Transport Development Authority, once operating, should review weekend and holiday timetables, and ensure that services met Melbourne’s needs, with earlier services on Sundays and more frequent trains, trams and buses to cope with weekend shopping and sporting crowds and to help people get around the city and suburbs.

“It’s time we had public transport that met Melbourne’s needs in the 21st century”, concluded Mr Bowen.

* * *

[1] We compared train timetables for all capital cities in Australia with suburban train services. Services that do not run on Sundays were excluded, as was Melbourne’s Stony Point line and V/Line suburban services. First arrivals may not serve all stations. We have been generous to Melbourne and used the first CBD/loop station. For other cities we have counted the main CBD station/terminus, even if the first train called at other CBD stations first. We did not compare train frequencies, but see point 6.

• Spreadsheet (Excel format, 13 Kb)

[2] Melbourne Marathon web site, 2010

[3] City 2 Bay, January 2011: http://www.city2bay.com.au/Event/Transport.aspx

“Tight Train Times: Our research tells us that most trains arrive at Southern Cross Station between 7.50am and 8.10am, so time will be tight for dropping off your bags, making a toilet stop then getting to the start line.”

[4] http://weightloss.com.au/events/melbourne-events.html This list of fun runs includes eleven this year that start in inner-Melbourne on Sunday at or before 9am

[5] Sunday train overcrowding
http://www.ptua.org.au/2011/05/01/potd-packed-weekend-trains/

[6] The Sandringham, Hurstbridge, Epping, Upfield, Craigieburn, Sydenham, Werribee and Williamstown lines run every 40 minutes on Sundays until about 10:30am. Other lines run every 30 minutes. All lines run every 20 minutes until about 7pm.

After 7pm, the Epping, Hurstbridge, Lilydale, Belgrave, Glen Waverley and Alamein lines run every 40 minutes, with last trains around 11:30pm. Other lines run every 20-30 minutes until about midnight.

Boroondara is fencing in tram passengers, delaying trams and resulting in greater road congestion according to the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA). Pedestrian fencing exists at a number of tram stops in the City of Boroondara, including the intersection of Glenferrie and Riversdale roads, Hawthorn and is making it difficult for passengers to board and alight from trams.

“These ugly fences do nothing to enhance safety, instead putting pedestrians, cyclists and tram passengers in greater danger,” said PTUA eastern spokesman Jeremy Lunn. “They are an inconvenience to pedestrians and tram passengers, while often delaying trams and cars as passengers queue up single file to squeeze through the narrow gaps.”

Mr Lunn said that retaining such fencing goes against international trends. Kensington High Street in London, United Kingdom proved that removing pedestrian fences resulted in a decline in pedestrian injuries that was three times greater than elsewhere [1].

“What this suggests is that pedestrian fences create a greater danger for pedestrians by encouraging motorists to pay less attention and speed through instead. A further danger is created because passengers cannot cross directly between the kerbside and the tram.”

“Gaps in the fencing often fail to align with tram doors, which hinders passenger access to trams. This would be impossible to achieve with this fencing in place because of the wide range of tram types that operate on Glenferrie and Riversdale roads.”

“Our photos show that the fencing was installed without much thought or consideration for tram passengers. It’s a perfect example of failed urban design and planning.”

“The fences are unsafe, inconvenient and an eyesore. They should be removed from this location and others in Boroondara,” Mr Lunn concluded.

[1] http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article703116.ece

Tram stops with fencing
Glenferrie and Riversdale roads, Hawthorn (tram 16, 70 and 75) as per this release,
Glenferrie Road near Barkers Road, Hawthorn (tram 16),
Burke and Cotham roads, Kew (tram 72 and 109),
Bridge Road and Church Street, Hawthorn (tram 48, 75)