Tag: broken promises

Maroondah Journal: No funding pledged for Ringwood Station

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As part of its public transport election coverage the Maroondah Journal has focused on the lack of political commitment from the State political parties towards the redevelopment of Ringwood Station:

Maroondah councillor and Public Transport Users Association spokesman Alex Makin said he saw the station as a “cornerstone commitment” needed for Maroondah.

The redevelopment of Ringwood Station is a crucial project to encourage a vision of public transport usage and urban amenity as envisaged as part of the part of the Ringwood Transit City concept.

“Neither party has committed to funding the project,” he said. “Labor just seems to be dragging its feet in Ringwood in preference to Dandenong. In Ringwood it seems as if every year it is just us standing there with our cap in hand waiting.”

Unfortunately, with the exception of Dandenong, the Government has failed to provide a long-term funding stream for the designated Transit Cities (such as Box Hill, Ringwood or Footscray) meaning that there is little, other than rhetoric, to the State Government’s Transit City program.

“It is difficult to utilise for people with a disability,” Cr Makin said. “We aren’t asking for a redevelopment for the sake of a redevelopment; we need it just to meet essential public transport requirements.”

Ringwood Station currently fails to met federal accessibility requirements as prescribed in the Federal government’s Disability Discrimination Act of 1992 meaning that Ringwood Station is largely inaccessible for people with a disability.

In addition Ringwood Station is also perceived to be largely unsafe and its dilapidated appearance hampers the potential of the surrounding area.

It is time that the Bracks Government showed respect for the Ringwood Transit City program and pledged to deliver both the redevelopment of Ringwood Station and a multiyear investment program for Ringwood. Plans for the redevelopment of Ringwood Station have existed since 1999 and it is now time for the Government to commit to the project rather than deliver nothing but rhetoric.

Maroondah Journal: Are we stuck in first gear?

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As part of its State Election coverage, Fairfax Community News (which owns the Maroondah Journal) has reported on a series of election issues. The Maroondah Journal, along with the other Fairfax Community Newspapers, has reported on the issue of public transport.

Better public transport would result in a lower level of car dependence, thus mitigating rising traffic congestion and the burden of higher petrol prices.

Unfortunately rather than provide a vision, the government chose instead to neglect its earlier promises, such as the Rowville feasibility study and the South Morang and Cranbourne rail extensions, and instead has released a plan that contains spin rather than actual substance.

The Public Transport Users Association was so unimpressed with the plan that it called on Mr Batchelor [The Transport Minister] to resign.

Vice-President Alex Makin said the document did not tackle the root of Melbourne’s transport tangle – its fragmented make-up.

The State Government has neglected to provide Melbourne with much needed train and tram extensions or to overhaul the bus network to ensure a frequent, direct and readily available bus network.

Ultimately there has been a failure to integrate transport and planning meaning that Melbourne is not being provided with a frequent, reliable and readily available public transport system.

The PTUA wants a single controlling body and a rethink on buses – the only transport most Melburnians have access to – to better co-ordinate the system.

“Melbourne’s bus servies are likened to a tangled mess of spaghetti,” Mr Makin said. “The more frequent services are, the easier it is to coordinate with other services and the easier for people to use.”

The Government seems content to tell two-thirds of Melbourne to wait up to an hour for bus services. The Opposition which has stated that “public transport can be vote-changer” must pledge to deliver a comprehensive public transport system that actually delivers the broken promises of the Bracks Government.

Victory: Zone Three to be abolished

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This morning the Baillieu Liberal Opposition pledged to remove zone three public transport fares if elected into government. Four hours later Steve Bracks copied this announcement and said it too would scrap zone three.

As reported in The Age:

Public Transport Users Association vice-president Alex Makin welcomed the latest announcement, saying he believed it would encourage more people in Melbourne’s outer suburbs to use trains and buses.

“It has merit in that it tackles one of the biggest inequities in Melbourne’s public transport system,” Mr Makin told theage.com.au.

The existence of zone three, is an oddity that has existed only within Melbourne’s eastern suburbs and as a result meant that residents in Ringwood, Croydon, Scoresby and Dandenong were forced to pay more for public transport than residents in suburbs such as Hurstbridge, which are located further away from the CBD.

“At the moment you have lots of people driving to Heatherdale station from Croydon, Ringwood and Lilydale to avoid paying the higher fare,” Mr Makin said.

While the removal of zone three is a welcomed and one that groups such as the Eastern Transport Coalition have requested, the announcement must be reinforced by policies that improve public transport services. Ultimately people will not use public transport if services continue to be infrequent, unreliable and inefficient.

But Mr Makin said reducing fares for people in Melbourne’s outer suburbs had to be accompanied by policies that improved services, saying there was no point reducing the cost of tickets if there weren’t enough trains and buses to service demand.

This announcement has demonstrated the power of combined community and council advocacy. As recently as last week the State Government claimed that zone three could not be abolished due to apparent capacity constraints. The fact that the Bracks Government has now been forced to act has demonstrated the so-called ‘capacity constraints’ that have prevented rail and tram extensions is nothing more than a complete fabrication.

ABC 774 on public transport

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This afternoon Lindy Burns from ABC 774 interviewed me at an outside broadcast located at Southern Cross Station to discuss public transport issues in the lead up to the November state election.

Lindy stated that public transport and transport in general were major issues for the November State Election and highlighted the improvements that are required to ensure a frequent, reliable coordinated and readily available public transport system. As an example, in 1992 the frequency of trains were improved on the Sandringham line and overall coordination was increased. Due to these service improvements patronage increased by 38% demonstrating how crucial frequency improvements are to improving public transport modal share.

Unfortunately, over the last seven years the State Government has delivered nothing more than just tokenistic public transport improvements and nowhere is this more apparent than the bus network, which still fails to provide frequencies comparable to the train or tram network.

The $10.5 billion that was allocated over the next decade through the Transport and Liveability Statement (known as Meeting Our Transport Challenges) is more than enough to solve Melbourne’s transport woes but grossly misallocated. Rather than petty gestures priorities should have included rail network expansion in areas such as South Morang and Cranbourne East, both of which were promised rail extensions back in 1999. Instead the State Government is forcing the people of South Morang to now wait at least 10 to 15 years for their promised line and yet Whittlesea is fortunate compared to Cranbourne East, where the government has decided to neglect Melbourne’s fastest growing urban corridor by failing to plan or deliver the Cranbourne East rail extension.

While rail extensions are crucial for Melbourne’s growth areas, there is also a need to enhance the level of bus services to a standard comparable to the well-patronised tram network. Currently, most of Melbourne’s bus network is very confusing due to highly convoluted routes that are in a dire need of being overhauled.

The success of Perth, which has prioritised public transport projects, through doubling its rail network and providing frequent bus services, has allowed enhanced mobility and demonstrates just how far behind Melbourne is when it comes to international and national best practices.

With just over four weeks to the next State Election it is imperative that our political parties commit to securing the economic, social and environmental success of Melbourne by pledging to deliver real public transport improvements. After seven years of rhetoric Melbourne’s public transport system needs urgent action.

Stringybark Festival: Community support for better public transport

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Stringybark is a weekend-long annual community festival organised by Knox City Council and held at the Rowville Community Centre. Like previous years, the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA), like other community groups such as the Knox Environment Society (KES) and Environment Victoria (EV), held a stall at the festival to engage the community in the call for better public transport.

Alex Makin at the PTUA stall at the Stringybark Festival (October 2006)

Each year the momentum for better public transport continues to build with the PTUA focusing on the much-needed Rowville rail line and the broken promise of the tram extension to Knox. Stickers calling for the funding of the Rowville rail line were distributed as well as copies of the PTUA’s Rail for Rowville factsheet.

Fund Rowville Rail Now Sticker

With a state election due in five weeks time there has never been a better time to show your support for the Rowville rail line. Stickers can be acquired by emailing me at alex@alexmakin.com.au.

Rail for Rowville FactsheetIn addition to the stickers, the Rail for Rowville factsheet clearly states the economic feasibility of the Rowville rail line and the reasons why it is required within the next five years. While the government was keen to trumpet the Wellington SmartBus service, the fact is that only a rail line will meet the needs of residents, students and businesses by ensuring a fast and efficient public transport option.

Eastern Transport Coalition: Evaluating the Fair Fares Campaign

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Tonight’s Eastern Transport Coalition meeting focused on evaluating the results of the Fair Fares Campaign and on preparing to speak to candidates in the upcoming election about the ongoing public transport issues facing Melbourne’s outer east.

While final results are still being prepared, it appears that approximately 60% of all commuters surveyed are driving substantial distances to avoid paying zone three fares. The avoidance of zone three fares results in an unnecessary increase in traffic congestion and detracts from the local amenity of neighbourhoods near stations due to excessive car parking. Furthermore the existence of zone three detracts of residents catching nearby bus services to access stations due to the excessive cost of the additional zone.

The survey results vindicate the Eastern Transport Coalition’s stance on fare reform and the calls to seek a restructuring of the fare system concurrently with the introduction of the new ticketing system next year.

The outer east deserves fair public transport fares.

Manningham sees the 'End of Suburbia'

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This evening the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA), in conjunction with Manningham City Council, held a screening of the End of Suburbia to supplement the Destination Doncaster Launch.

Chris Trikilis, the PTUA’s Doncaster Coordinator, accompanied myself as Vice-President and Manningham City Councillor Grace La Vella in providing an overview of the film and highlighting the ramifications of continued public transport neglect within Doncaster and Manningham.

Manningham is the only municipality in Melbourne that lacks any form of rail access. The extension of tram 48 with a restructuring of the bus network would not only provide greater transport choice but would also spur much needed investment within Doncaster Hill. As demonstrated in Box Hill, the extension of tram route 109 to Box Hill rejuvenated the town centre, extending tram 48 for Doncaster would provide a similar effect for Manningham.

Chris Trikils and Alex Makin presenting the Doncaster End of Suburbia screening

In the longer term heavy-rail via the Eastern Freeway is the only viable alternative to ensuring quick and efficient journeys into the CBD and inner suburbs. Manningham has a similar population density and size to Glen Waverley and yet its needs are constantly being overlooked.

It is time for all political parties to deliver urgent public transport improvements to Manningham.

The Age: Rail line 'would replace 10,000 cars'

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PTUA launches Destination Doncaster

Public Transport Users Association launches the Destination Doncaster Campaign

This afternoon the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) launched its Destination Doncaster campaign, calling on all political parties to commit to the delivery of a plan to provide transport choice to Manningham, the only municipality in metropolitan Melbourne that lacks any form of rail or tram access.

The Age reported exclusively on the Destination Doncaster campaign:

The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) is calling on all political parties to commit to a future rail line before next month’s election and invest in sustainable transport.

Due to continued transport neglect, public transport patronage in Manningham is just 7.3 per cent, below the Melbourne average of 8 per cent and less than the neighbouring municipalities of Banyule (10.6 per cent) and Whitehorse (11.6 per cent), which have fixed rail.

PTUA vice-president Alex Makin said Doncaster, the hub of the City of Manningham, was the only municipality in Melbourne without any rail or tram access.

“As a result, public transport patronage in Manningham is depressingly abysmal and will forever be minimal unless fixed rail infrastructure is provided immediately,” Mr Makin said.

The PTUA is calling on all political parties to support the immediate extension of tram 48 through to Doncaster Shoppingtown and the construction of heavy-rail along the Eastern Freeway by 2010.

Ringwood Precinct Plans on Display

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Tonight Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC – the owners of Eastland) and Maroondah City Council presented the precinct plans for the Ringwood Town Centre to the Ringwood Chamber of Commerce.

The precinct plans are intended to provide a strategic framework for the Ringwood town centre, which is the area north of Maroondah Highway and bound by Ringwood Street and Warrandyte Road. The precinct plans envisage the transformation of Ringwood into a pedestrian friendly and vibrant suburban centre lined with much needed hospitality and entertainment such as cafes and restaurants.

The revitalisation of Ringwood is long overdue and it was encouraging to see the members of the Ringwood Chamber of Commerce supportive of the concept. While most of the community appears eager for the revitalisation of Ringwood to begin it is unfortunate that the State Government is still dragging its feet by failing to provide a solid commitment to the redevelopment of Ringwood Station. The station forms a centrepiece the new urban centre and it is imperative that the existing facility, which fails disability compliance legislation and is perceived to unsafe, is redeveloped into a modal interchange fitting of the new image for Ringwood.

To view the precinct plans please visit the Maroondah City Council Website. Submissions commenting on the plans need to be received by the 10th of November.

Maroondah Leader: Transport lobby puts case for zoning zap

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The Maroondah Leader has reported on the Eastern Transport Coalition’s survey and continued campaign to seek the abolition of zone three public transport fares.

Commuters from as far as Lilydale are driving to Mitcham to avoid paying zone three prices.

As part of the Eastern Transport Coalition’s campaign for fair fares, I surveyed people at Heatherdale Station least Tuesday.

Maroondah coalition representative Cr Alex Makin reviewed consumer behaviour at Heatherdale railway station in Mitcham, which is the last zone two station on the Lilydale line.

Cr Makin said the results further strengthened calls for zone three to be abolished.

“People are driving to Heatherdale from as far as Chirnside Park and Lilydale, just to avoid the extra costs,” Cr Makin said.

Due to the abstract nature of the public transport zoning system many commuters are driving excessive distances to park at Heatherdale Station causing traffic congestion through the centre of Ringwood and chaos at car parks.

“Ringwood is 23km from the CBD but is closer to the city than other stations in zone two,” Cr Makin said. “The ETC will continue to lobby for a revamp of the system in the lead-up to the November state election.”

Cr Makin said the fact that Ringwood was in zone two under the previous system showed revamping the zones was viable.

Ringwood as well as suburbs such as Dandenong, Lilydale and Belgrave were in part of zone two in the first zoning system that was introduced between 1981 and 1983. The fact that Ringwood was previously within zone two demonstrates that the abolition of zone three is not only possible but also entirely feasible.

Rather than continue to excessively burden outer eastern residents with the cost of zone three fare, all political parties must pledge to reform the current inequitable zone structure.