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Some Melbourne Transport Facts

• Melbourne has one of the largest rail systems in the world, with 15 lines. The Paris Metro is a third smaller, while San Francisco’s BART is less than half the size. We also have the biggest tram system in the English speaking world.
• Since World War Two, public transport patronage has declined faster in Melbourne than in any other Australian city.
• Our motor vehicles produce 81% of those greenhouse gases attributable to transport, while public transport is the source of only 3%.
• If Melbourne is to cut greenhouse emissions 20% by 2005 (the internationally agreed target), one in every six journeys now made by car will have to be shifted to public transport.
• Overseas experts who have visited Melbourne say we have the ingredients to build one of the finest public transport systems in the world.
• In 1992, services on the Sandringham rail line were improved modestly. Patronage rose 38% in only a few months and revenue increased. People in Melbourne will use transport if it’s good enough.
• Although it is often claimed that Melbourne is one of the lowest-density cities in the world, this is not true. Our population density is higher than cities in the USA and similar to places with successful public transport, like Toronto in Canada.