Author: PTUA

  • 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 “This practice is way out of date and ought to be replaced by running direct Flinders Street trains,” said Jeremy Lunn, the PTUA’s Outer-East Convenor.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…

  • High petrol price signals Rowville Rail need

    With petrol prices expected to hit $1.60 in the next fortnight, the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has warned the State Government that urgent action is required. According to the association, the Rowville railway line is the only sure-fire way to ensure economic stability in the Monash region, as petrol prices continue to rise.

  • Tram-like buses to solve transport woes

    The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) is calling on Geelong councillors to support a bid to the State Government for “tram-like” bus routes in Geelong. The Association has been meeting with councillors to seek support for three high-quality bus routes along Geelong’s major roads, as the first priority for upgrading the whole system.

  • Eddington: Tunnel vision

    This article is from our April 2008 newsletter. Please join the PTUA to receive regular newsletters. Rod Eddington’s East West Needs Assessment report was finally released at the beginning of April. The assessment was a key part of the government’s Meeting Our Transport Challenges strategy, and like MOTC itself the Eddington report deserves a hearty…

  • April 2008 newsletter

    Please join the PTUA to receive regular newsletters. April 2008 edition articles: Eddington: Tunnel vision Outer east news Metro train timetables revamped What would YOU like to see in the new contracts? How many trains?

  • Tram-like buses to solve transport woes

    In response to bus reviews in Manningham/Monash/Whitehorse, the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) is calling for principal ‘tram-like’ bus routes to be established on all main roads in the three municipalities. “The current bus network with all its spaghetti-tangled routes, just doesn’t meet our travel needs in the 21st century,” said Jeremy Lunn, the PTUA’s…

  • Transport policy on road to climate disaster, says new report

    Greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks are currently growing so fast that national emission reduction targets will be impossible to achieve; biofuels are causing hunger and deforestation for little or no benefit; and new motorways make carbon pricing more painful for vulnerable households. These are just some of the warnings contained in a new…

  • Changes to metropolitan train timetables

    From November, Werribee trains will not run via the loop in peak hours, and Epping/Hurstbridge line trains will run permanently clockwise through the loop. These changes will allow more trains to run. And daytime trains on almost all lines will run as 6 carriages from late-April. (See links to details, below.) Why is the PTUA…