Why wouldn’t you just catch a train?
Brian
From:TramsDownUnder@... [mailto:TramsDownUnder@yahoogroups.com]
Sent: Monday, 13 April 2015 10:41
To:TramsDownUnder@...
Subject: Re: [TramsDownUnder] Elizabeth into Flinders
Amongst all these considerations is a real need to link Flinders St and Spencer St railway stations with a Tram service. As a VLine user I always seem to find myself unable to travel between these two stations in Single move. I have limited on foot capacity and changing services for such a short distance travelled is a challenge. The newly sited tram stations mean at least half a block walk at most "interchanges". The Metro trains always seem to go in the wrong direction or need a between platform change at Richmond.
In all a loop terminus at Elizabeth St that follows Flinders, Spencer and LaTrobe in both directions could help.
Greg in Maldon
Sent from my iPhone
On 13 Apr 2015, at 10:13 am,prescottt@... mailto:prescottt@ymail.com [TramsDownUnder] TramsDownUnder@... mailto:TramsDownUnder@yahoogroups.com > wrote:
The "grand city terminus" rarely works on tram systems (or bus systems for that matter) and is a prolific waster of ground space and confuser of users.. The best method is to run routes through the centre and out into the suburbs either side where they can have their layovers/recoveries/turnarounds. Elizabeth St is an anachronism and should be put out of its misery asap, one way or the other.
Meanwhile, in Sydney, they're building a grand city terminus for the first time ever at Circular Quay (doh). The old system simply looped trams through this congested area and sent them quickly on their way. Melbourne could also learn a lot from Sydney (old system that is). Sydney will never learn - even from itself.
Tony P
---InTramsDownUnder@... mailto:TramsDownUnder@yahoogroups.com , <matthew@... mailto:matthew@... > wrote :
On 13/04/15 08:09, Mal Rowe mal.rowe@... mailto:mal.rowe@... [TramsDownUnder] wrote:
>
> The idea is to put in an extra terminal track so that the three routes
> terminating (19, 57 and 59) get a track each.
> However, that was not seen as adequate - still no spare capacity.
> So the latest proposal (AFAIK) is for curves into Flinders St towards
> the East and at least one of the routes being extended to terminate in
> Wellington Pde at the Simpson St shunt.
>
> That would in fact leave only one track in Elizabeth St that is not a
> running track, so it may be that two of the routes would have to go
> around the corner.
I know people have screamed it's impossible, but they really should just
'bite the bullet' and run a loop around the block. Unless they fill the
entire length of Elizabeth street with a Melbourne Uni style 'first free
shunting neck' automatic system, it's always going to be a mess. And the
trouble with a 4 or even 5 slot terminus as no one will actually know
where the next tram to their destination will leave from. You can bias
it to attempt to keep the same routes in the same slots, but the moment
things get out of order....
Melbourne have gotten lazy by routing most tram routes straight though
the city and out the other side, avoiding the mega busy terminal issue.
With loops off the table, the only long term solution for 19, 57 and 59
will be to through route them back out into the suburbs and a quiet
suburban terminus, as that's something they know how to do.