Article: Veolia out of steam on train contract, pushes for bikes

[ozbob]

From the Herald Sun click here!

Veolia out of steam on train contract, pushes for bikes

Veolia out of steam on train contract, pushes for bikes
Article from: Herald Sun

AAP

August 23, 2009 12:30pm

NOT trusted to run Melbourne's trains, French company Veolia is now set to try its luck with bicycles.

The transport group is one of two bidders shortlisted to deliver Melbourne's $5 million public bike hire scheme.

The scheme is set to be up and running by next year, providing up to 600 hire bikes at 50 key locations around the CBD.

Veolia Transport Australasia and US company Alta Planning and Design have been shortlisted out of four bidders for the bike scheme contract.

Veolia is the parent company of Connex, which will cease operating Melbourne's trains in December after its contract was not renewed.

Last month the company also lost a government contract to build and operate Victoria's $3.5 billion desalination plant.

Alta is vying for the bike hire contract in partnership with peak motoring group RACV.

Roads Minister Tim Pallas said he was impressed with the quality of the submissions and would announce the successful operator within three months.

"We were delighted with the level of interest in this project, which showed confidence in the marketplace that our scheme will become a successful part of the Melbourne transport network," he said in a statement.

The system is designed to alleviate pressure on Melbourne's public transport system and take cars off the roads.

It also aims to encourage a greener mode of transport.

Operational details of the scheme including pricing, siting and helmet requirements will be announced once the tender had been awarded.

[#Metro]

The RACV wants people to ride bicycles? I though they were pro-car and anti-everything else?

[ButFli]

The RACV wants people to ride bicycles? I though they were pro-car and anti-everything else?

I agree, but they must have something to gain by promoting bikes. The state automobile clubs have a history of promoting soft-option car alternatives. I suspect they don't want be seen as pro-car and anti-everything-else so they get behind things with a warm and fuzzy appeal but don't take away our reliance on private cars.

At the end of the day, bikes-for-hire aren't going to do anything for proper transport. Anyone who was going to ride to work every day would buy a bike. Public transport is still going to be overloaded and the roads choked with private cars. Infrastructure will need to be upgraded and RACV can point to the under-used bikes-for-hire and say that because the masses don't use the public transport infrastructure theyare provided with, the only way to solve the congestion problem is to build more roadway for cars.