Melbourne Trains

[ozbob]

http://www.metrotrains.com.au/news/2012/aug/20/potential-disruptions-tuesday

Potential disruptions this Tuesday.

Potential disruptions this Tuesday.

Melbourne's Metro service has changed a lot over thepast two years. With 38 new trains increasing our fleet to 203 and 1,484 new services bringing total services per week to 14,353, we now have a Metro service departing somewhere across Melbourne every 30 seconds, everyday. This is all part of our journey to change from being a traditional suburban railway into a high capacity metro-style service the likes of which customers experience in London, New York and Hong Kong.
To date, good progress has been made to effect these changes. But change isn't always easy.

Notification of work bans from unions

Negotiations with unions representing Infrastructure maintenance employees have been ongoing for many weeks.

While a fair and affordable agreement was reached in early July with unions representing 2,700 of our 4,100 employees,
including our drivers and station staff, we have yet to be able to reach a similar agreement with unions representing 700 infrastructure maintenance employees.

The infrastructure unions have notified us of their intent to undertake protected industrial action to progress their claims and this includes a number of stop work meetings on Tuesday 21 August.

These claims are effectively seeking to keep things the way they are – no change. But with a much busier railway, we need to shift when it is that we do maintenance and therefore a change to more flexible rostering is essential.

In the event of disruption

While we have received assurances from unions that industrial action will avoid disrupting day-to-day railway operations a fault on the network could affect services on one or more lines.

At this stage, we expect business as usual on Tuesday.

Our drivers, station staff, signallers, authorised officers and operations centre will all be on duty during this time to keep
you informed every step of the way.

For customers with smartphones, please bookmark our new mobile website at metrotrains.com.au so we can keep you
up-to-date on any disruptions should they occur.

To finish

We apologise in advance for any disruption. For us to build a metro service to support Australia's fastest growing and most liveable city, there is only one certainty...we must continue to change.

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Song tracks sung by the train tracks

[ozbob]

Results from the latest train load standard survey

--> http://ptv.vic.gov.au/news/news-promotions/results-from-the-latest-train-load-standard-survey

[somebody]

They have some work to do.  Worsening AM peak performance, but improving PM peak causing the average to improve overall.

When are their new carriages arriving?

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Gang of armed bandits steals keys to train

[ozbob]

From the Melbourne Age click here!

Salvos plan to patrol trains and stations

Salvos plan to patrol trains and stations
August 29, 2012 Carolyn Webb

METRO is backing a new Salvation Army program to patrol trains and railway stations to help the needy and improve public safety.

Salvation Army commanding officer Major Brendan Nottle said a project called Train Teams will be launched in two weeks.

The Salvos last night held an information session at their Bourke Street headquarters for members of the public wishing to take part.

They would be required to work on trains and train stations, with the program operating six days a week from Mondays to Saturdays.

The project has been outlined in a bulletin notice the Salvos put up on the City of Melbourne's what's on website, thatsmelbourne.com.au.

The notice said workers would be ''engaging with the public to create a positive presence on trains and at train stations, improving the perception of public safety and responding to the needs of the public''.

''The train teams will particularly focus on connecting with vulnerable, intoxicated and disadvantaged people using the rail network,'' the notice says.

The Train Teams project will be based on the Salvos' successful Street Teams program, which is supported by the City of Melbourne and started in December 2010. Street Teams volunteers aged 18 to 25 patrol city streets on Friday and Saturday nights from 11pm to 5am.

They aim to prevent mishaps among vulnerable, intoxicated young people by helping them get home or to access services.

A Metro spokesman said the program was ''still in the planning process''. Metro staff involved in the project would not yet talk about it publicly but they took part in last night's information session, the spokesman said.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/salvos-plan-to-patrol-trains-and-stations-20120828-24yum.html

[ozbob]

From ABC News click here!

Premier backs metro tunnel despite funding doubt

Premier backs metro tunnel despite funding doubt
By state political reporter Alison Savage

Victoria's Premier has told an infrastructure conference the Government is determined to get plans for Melbourne's metro rail tunnel off the ground.

The nine-kilometre tunnel would stretch from South Kensington to South Yarra, with five underground stations.

The project has been designed to let the rail network carry an extra 24,000 passengers per hour.

Ted Baillieu has told an infrastructure conference in Melbourne the Government is serious about the tunnel, even though it still has to find the money to build it.

"There has been some investment from state and commonwealth for that preliminary work but more work needs to be done," he said.

"This is about getting the preliminary work done and building the business case."

The Government has committed almost $50 million for planning.

It has also applied to Infrastructure Australia for federal funding, but no money has been allocated so far.

Mr Baillieu says the Government has declared the tunnel a major project, which means planning work can start.

Labor's Tim Pallas says the Government needs to commit to funding the project itself, not just money for planning.

"Victorians can't ride a plan to work and they expect the Government to get on with the job," he said.

"What the Premier has announced today is an administrative management process for a project he's nowhere near starting."

[ozbob]

Herald Sun --> Metro is on a roll but aims to keep moving forward

TRAIN operator Metro is celebrating its best monthly punctuality result but admits it can still do more.

An estimated 92.39 per cent of trains ran on time in August, the highest monthly punctuality rate since Metro replaced Connex in 2009.
...

[somebody]

Herald Sun --> Metro is on a roll but aims to keep moving forward

TRAIN operator Metro is celebrating its best monthly punctuality result but admits it can still do more.

An estimated 92.39 per cent of trains ran on time in August, the highest monthly punctuality rate since Metro replaced Connex in 2009.
...

The cancellation rate above 1% is more concerning than the OTR.

[ozbob]

Twitter

PTUA ‏@ptua

PTV and Vic govt announce new @metrotrains timetable, including suburban services to Sunbury, to start November 18th

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Call to fix 'hideous' rail stations

MELBOURNE'S railway stations are badly designed, unpleasant places that will be incapable of handling predicted passenger growth, an influential public transport academic says.

Melbourne University transport strategist Chris Hale argues that the city's railway stations are well behind world standards and need major investment to turn them into vibrant public places that can also efficiently handle peak-hour commuter bursts.

Dr Hale has received $156,000 in seed funding for his train-station rejuvenation proposal, but says it is a task transport planners and operators need to attack with much greater urgency ...

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/call-to-fix-hideous-rail-stations-20120929-26sjj.html#ixzz27tVvlPE6

[ozbob]

http://twitter.yfrog.com/kjn74pgj

[ozbob]

From the Melbourne Age click here!

Rail staff to strike ahead of Caulfield Cup

Rail staff to strike ahead of Caulfield Cup

CLAY LUCAS October 01, 2012

MELBOURNE'S rail maintenance staff will take a 48-hour strike in the lead-up to the Caulfield Cup, in a move likely to disrupt some racegoers.

Four unions are locked in a dispute with Metro Trains over pay and conditions, and have already taken a series of lawful stoppages in a bid to pressure the rail operator to offer workers a better deal.

The stoppages have not yet had a major impact on the city's train services, but are expected to gradually see more trains being taken out of service — with only "safety critical" work being done on days when maintenance staff take strike action.

There is already a 24-hour strike planned for next week, followed by the 48-hour ban on maintenance in the two days leading up to the Caulfield Cup on October 20.

An Electrical Trades Union organiser said this afternoon that the ban on work being done in the two days before the Caulfield Cup would likely disrupt some services. "All of the safety critical work will continue to be done though," he said.

He said the unions involved did not want to hurt passengers, but instead wanted Metro Trains to make them a better offer.

The four unions involved are the ETU, the Rail Tram and Bus Union, the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and the Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers Australia.

Metro Trains and these unions have been negotiating over a new pay deal for several weeks. The unions say the rail operator's executive in charge of train maintenance has repeatedly threatened to outsource much work to external contractors if a deal cannot be reached with existing staff.

A spokeswoman for Metro Trains, Geraldine Mitchell, said this afternoon that the operator had been advised by the union of the planned strike action ahead of the Caulfield Cup.

"We're now seeking clarification that all safety critical work and emergency work will be covered throughout the planned 24-hour stoppage next [week]," she said.

"We've managed to keep the network operating during previous stoppages and we intend to keep this railway running provided it doesn't affect safety," Ms Mitchell said.

She said negotiations over a new Enterprise Agreement with the four unions were continuing, and that Metro Trains was committed to reaching a fair agreement.

[Golliwog]

http://twitter.yfrog.com/kjn74pgj

Because what we need is more gambling.

[HappyTrainGuy]

And harder to see outside windows.

[Fares_Fair]

http://twitter.yfrog.com/kjn74pgj

Because what we need is more gambling.

Bet you we don't ...

[Golliwog]

http://twitter.yfrog.com/kjn74pgj

Because what we need is more gambling.

Bet you we don't ...

Haha, you're on.

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Commuters going loopy on Altona railway

[ozbob]

Major disruption on the FKN line in Melbourne this evening.  Two fatalities ..

Details Melbourne Age --> Rail chaos in south-east

[ozbob]

Twitter

6m Brendan Donohoe ‏@BrendanDonohoe7

Terry Mulder announces 90 new train services and welcomes Sunbury to metro system from dec 18

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Poster boy Robert Doyle goes off the rails

[ozbob]

Twitter

Marcus Wong ‏@aussiewongm

This morning I realised how hopeless Melbourne's Sunday train service is: ...

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Push for Flagstaff to open 7 days

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> City Loop safety slammed

[ozbob]

Melbourne Age --> Train, truck collide at level crossing

[ozbob]

Twitter

FlemingtonRacecourse ‏@MelbCupCarnival

Trains will depart Flinders St Stn for #Flemington at an average of every 4mins today! Take a train & avoid traffic congestion! @MetroTrains

============

Melbourne is in  the grip of the annual horse racing extravaganza but at least they know how to move the punters ...

[ozbob]

Twitter

Metro Trains ‏@metrotrains

Trains to Flemington are leaving every 4 minutes. Just head to platforms 8 & 9 at Flinders and platform 14 at Southern Cross

[ozbob]

http://metrotrains.com.au/extra-service/2012/oct/29/extra-services-melbourne-cup-day

Extra services for Melbourne Cup Day

The first train will depart Flinders Street at 8:15am and then as follows:
8:15am – 8:30am every 15 minutes
8:30am – 10:05am every 5 minutes
10:05am – 12:30pm every 4 minutes
12:30pm – 1:00pm every 5 minutes
1:00pm – 1:30pm every 8 minutes
1:30pm – 3:00pm every 10 minutes

From Flemington
2:00pm – 3:00pm every 10 minutes
3:00pm – 4:00pm every 5 minutes
4:00pm – 8:00pm every 4 minutes
8:00pm – 9:00pm every 7 minutes

[ozbob]

Twitter

3AW Melbourne ‏@3AW693

Metro say that at midday more than 46,250 people had arrived at #Flemington by train

[somebody]

How's it work for fares?  Do you need a myki valid for Zone 1, or is a ticket to the races good enough?

[ozbob]

How's it work for fares?  Do you need a myki valid for Zone 1, or is a ticket to the races good enough?

myki ...  $3.30 flat (holiday in Melbourne)  travel all day all over for that ... 

http://ptv.vic.gov.au/news/service-alterations/metropolitan-general/public-transport-for-emirates-melbourne-cup-day-tuesday-6-november-2012/

[somebody]

How's it work for fares?  Do you need a myki valid for Zone 1, or is a ticket to the races good enough?

myki ...  $3.30 flat (holiday in Melbourne)  travel all day all over for that ... 

http://ptv.vic.gov.au/news/service-alterations/metropolitan-general/public-transport-for-emirates-melbourne-cup-day-tuesday-6-november-2012/

So not quite as good as it would be in QLD, where it would probably be free with an entry ticket to the event.

[ozbob]

But people not actually going to the cup at Flemington can still travel for $3.30 flat all day ...

[somebody]

True.  A flat fare system in a city the size of Melbourne is quite radical!  Atlanta has that too.

[ozbob]

Melbourne's trains in chronological order: Hitachi, Comeng, X'Trapolis and Siemens. A rare lineup, captured at Newport. twitter.com/vicsig/status/...

— Vicsig (vicsig.net) (@vicsig) November 10, 2012

[SurfRail]

I'll nitpick and say that both flavours of Comengs are not represented, and the Siemens set is probably older than the X-trap shown.

[somebody]

Ninety new train services on way

Date
    October 15, 2012

    Comments 84

Adam Carey
Transport Reporter for The Age

Mixed reaction to Metro timetable shake up

Melbourne's public transport is in for a timetable shake up next month with 90 new train services, but not everyone is happy.

Ninety new train services will be added to Melbourne's metro rail network next month, mostly along the Sunbury line, when a new timetable commences on November 18.

But V/Line passengers travelling beyond Sunbury to Bendigo, Echuca and Swan Hill face an extra five to 10 minutes' travel time from that date, to make way for the extra Metro trains travelling on the line.

A handful of extra peak-hour Metro services will also be added on the Craigieburn and Upfield lines, as well as new peak-hour V/Line trains for Melton and Bacchus Marsh.
Next month's new Metro train timetable will add 90 new services.

Metro chief executive Andrew Lezala said the timetable change, the third for Melbourne in 18 months, marked "another step towards providing a genuine metro-style service for Melbourne".

"With this change we're a step closer to a turn-up-and-go service, where customers won't need to know the timetable because they'll know it's only a few minutes' wait for the next train," Mr Lezala said.

Under the new timetable, trains will run from Sunbury at 12-minute intervals in the peak, and at six-minute intervals from Watergardens station in Sydenham. Off-peak, trains will run to Sunbury every 40 minutes.

Craigieburn trains will run at six to eight-minute intervals in the peak, and Upfield trains at 18-minute intervals. But journey times along those two lines will be extended by one to two minutes. Mr Lezala said this was due to passenger growth.

Travel times will be reduced by one to two minutes on the Frankston line, after they were extended by three minutes in a previous timetable change in May last year. Mr Lezala said that change had led to too many trains running ahead of schedule.

In other changes, passengers on the Altona loop will have to wait four minutes instead of seven for a connecting inter-peak train to Newport, and extra carriages will be added to some V/Line services to reduce overcrowding.

Forty-six bus routes in Melbourne's north-west will also have their timetables changed next month, to better connect with the Sunbury line.

Ian Dobbs, the head of Public Transport Victoria, said that running Metro trains to Sunbury and Diggers Rest for the first time following the $270 million electrification of the line would make for a slightly slower journey for V/Line passengers travelling further along the line.

"There's a slight slow-down of services on that particular corridor with this timetable, because we're putting more metro services in the mix," Mr Dobbs said.

"So that's led to a short-term increase in journey time of between five and 10 minutes roughly. The reason for that is we've got a lot more trains on that line. The regional rail link, when that comes in in a couple of years, is going to allow us to go back and significantly improve those times."

The $5.3 billion regional rail link is due to be completed in early 2016, and will separate Bendigo, Ballarat and Geelong line trains from Metro lines, removing train bottlenecks in the western suburbs.

Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder said the timetable change would boost services to Sunbury by 64 per cent.

He also denied claims the Baillieu government's plan to put protective services officers on every railway station in Melbourne after 6pm was wasteful, saying that more people would use trains after dark once they felt safer doing so.

"When we get these stations manned right across the network, I'll absolutely guarantee that you will not find anyone asking for us to take them off," Mr Mulder said.

"I believe it's the best possible approach to drive patronage into the late hours of the night."

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/ninety-new-train-services-on-way-20121015-27m43.html#ixzz2CFZ962hz

Bolding mine.  Imagine something like that happening in NSW or QLD!

Media release: http://ptv.vic.gov.au/news/news-promotions/new-train-and-bus-timetables-will-begin-on-sunday-18-november-2012/#promo

Herald sun version: http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/timetable-overhaul-to-provide-more-trains-in-melbourne-suburbs/story-e6frf7kx-1226496204256

[ozbob]

The regional rail link is going to give things a real lift along down south. The additional platforms at Southern Cross are nearly done as well.  Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo are growth, growth and growth. 

Vics were pretty smart I reckon in getting IA funding for RRL, made mugs of the mob up here with their procrastination, and still goes on  ..

Metro are doing a good job overall from my observations, as are V/Line.

[ozbob]

http://video.news.ninemsn.com.au/video/?videoid=56916855-b5b6-46ca-b4dd-24bf2364671e


Melbourne train fury

November 24, 2012: Melbourne's train network was thrown in to chaos today, after workers accidentally cut through cables in the CBD. Buses were replacing trains across several metropolitan and regional lines.

[ozbob]

From the Melbourne Age click here!

Peak-hour rail crisis coming, Metro warns

Peak-hour rail crisis coming, Metro warns
November 26, 2012 Adam Carey

TRAIN passengers in Melbourne's north and west can expect chronic peak-hour congestion within two to three years after the government rejected a proposal to use two idle platforms at Southern Cross station.

The two platforms were built last year at a cost of $23.1 million but are expected to sit unused until trains are running on the regional rail link in 2016.

Metro and V/Line approached the Department of Transport last year with a proposal to share the two platforms, which are at the western end of Southern Cross Station.

Metro said it was approaching the limits of its ability to run more trains into the city to meet passenger growth from the northern and western suburbs.

It warned the department that without access to those platforms, commuters on the northern group lines - which include Werribee, Williamstown, Sunbury, Craigieburn and Upfield - faced increased overcrowding and a potential drop in reliability.

Those five lines were paralysed for six hours on Saturday after a track worker mistakenly cut a major communication cable near Southern Cross Station during regional rail link works. It is the second time in the past month that a cabling bungle during regional rail link works has shut down part of the network.

A briefing from the Department of Transport to Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder, obtained under freedom of information, reveals the department rejected the joint Metro and V/Line proposal as too costly.

It is instead investigating an alternative plan of letting Metro terminate trains at platform eight at Southern Cross - which is now used by V/Line - as a stop-gap solution until the proposed multibillion-dollar Melbourne Metro tunnel is built.

''The potential to run more trains through to Flinders Street is limited and city access for northern group trains is expected to reach that limit within the next three to four years,'' former director of public transport Hector McKenzie wrote to Mr Mulder, in a briefing dated September 1, 2011.

''The Melbourne Metro is designed to address that problem in the longer term. Any initiatives to terminate trains at Southern Cross Station would be only interim in nature.''

Mr McKenzie said giving Metro and V/Line shared use of the platforms would require construction of a new rail overpass across the Sunbury line, new V/Line train stabling yards and new overhead electric wires.

''A full economic evaluation of the [Metro] proposal was carried out, which showed the reliability benefits were not justified given the cost and passenger disbenefits,'' he wrote.

A spokesman for Public Transport Victoria said the authority was working with Metro to find ways of increasing rail capacity using existing infrastructure.

''This includes proposals for the use of platform eight at Southern Cross Station, particularly at times of increased demand such as special events such as Oaks Day and the Royal Melbourne Show,'' the spokesman said.

Metro and V/Line have previously advised the department that platform eight was a poor option because it would result in Metro trains running across tracks used by V/Line trains.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/peakhour-rail-crisis-coming-metro-warns-20121125-2a1ki.html

It is good how Metro will challenge the status quo publicly, something missing from operators in SEQ ...