-----Original Message-----
From: Roderick Smith [mailto:rodsmith@werple.net.au]
Sent: Saturday, 22 April 2017 8:17 AM
To: 'transportdownunder@yahoogroups.com'
Subject: snippets, Tues.12.4.17

Attached:

170411Tu Melbourne 'Herald Sun' - Swanston St tunnel.

Roderick.

Melbourne Express: Tuesday, April 11, 2017.
If Melbourne has been feeling a little crowded lately, it's not just you.
The city is growing at twice the rate as the rest of the country, clogging
roads and public transport and creating a housing crisis.
Read Tim Colbach's special report on Melbourne's booming population here.
7.12 All inbound lanes on High Street have been closed after a smash and
traffic is building in the area.
Route 48 trams are also being diverted [no].
6.38 Route 48 trams in both directions are delayed due to a traffic incident
on High St.
6.54 Route 48: Operating in sections with no trams between Stop 39 Harp Rd
and Kew Junction.
<www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbourne-express-tuesday-april-11-2017-20170410
-gvi6te.html>

April 11 2017 Sydney trains at risk of running late without big investment,
audit report finds .
Sydney's trains will increasingly struggle to run on time unless "sustained
and substantial investment" is made in the existing heavy rail network, the
state's Auditor-General has found.
While a new $20 billion metro rail line and upgrades to the train fleet will
help, the Auditor-General found that rail patronage growth was nevertheless
outstripping both the government's forecasts and the rail system's capacity
to cope.
More videos Sydney tops nation's transport costs.
A report by the Australian Automobile Association reveal the average family
from western Sydney is paying around $22,000 a year in transport costs.
In a report released on Tuesday, the Auditor-General said it was likely that
by 2019 there will be "virtually no scope to run additional trains through
the city", increasing the risk that over-crowded trains will not be able to
run according to their timetable.
When it developed plans for the train system in 2011, Transport for NSW
predicted rail patronage would grow by 3.3 per cent a year. But patronage
has grown by 4.3 per cent per year since then, and for the past two years
has increased by 6.6 per cent.
"If recent higher than forecast patronage growth continues, the network may
struggle to maintain punctuality before 2019," the Auditor-General's report
said.
And while the state's transport agency had considerable work in progress on
strategies to boost capacity and maintain punctuality after 2019, the report
said it remained some way from putting a costed plan to the government.
"There is a significant risk that investments will not be made soon enough
to handle future patronage levels," it said. "Ideally, planning and
investment decisions should have been made already."
The report said the second stage of the metro rail project - a line from
Chatswood to the CBD and on to Bankstown in the city's west - would help
once completed in 2024 but it noted that "sustained and substantial
investment needs to be made into the existing heavy rail network to meet
demand and ensure its ongoing reliability".
The Auditor-General says more needs to be invested in the existing Sydney
rail network. Photo: Nick Moir .
Despite the concerns about the longer term, the Auditor-General said rail
agencies were "well placed" to cope with increases in demand over the next
three years. Projects such as the first stage of the new metro rail link
from Sydney's north west to Chatswood would help to maintain punctuality
until 2019.
Nevertheless, a part of the rail network around North Sydney is creating
problems for afternoon peak services to western Sydney and to Hornsby via
Strathfield, while the on-time performance of East Hills express trains is
significantly below target.
The report said the punctuality of trains departing Central Station on the
Western Line and Northern Line via Strathfield between 5.15pm and 6pm was
"relatively poor".
It also found the on-time running of intercity trains was below suburban
services, noting that NSW Trains "can do little" to directly impact services
running on time because maintenance was carried out by Sydney Trains.
While describing as positive the conclusions about the outlook for the short
to medium term, Transport for NSW rejected the Auditor-General's assertions
about the ability to cope with passenger demand over the longer term.
"This finding is not supported by the facts," NSW Transport Secretary Tim
Reardon wrote in a letter to Auditor-General Margaret Crawford.
"Transport for NSW is currently either delivering or planning rail network
upgrades in Sydney at an unprecedented level to both address current growth
and longer term future growth."
But Greens transport spokeswoman Mehreen Faruqi said the government had
neglected the existing rail network.
"The government can find billions of dollars for privatising multiple public
rail lines, but where is the investment in the Sydney Trains network?" she
asked.
Related Content:
NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance says there is no option but to
temporarily close the train line.
Commuters face six-month closure of major line .
Demand is surging, putting extra strain on Sydney's aged rail network.
Overcrowding on Sydney's trains worsens .
<www.theage.com.au/nsw/sydney-trains-at-risk-of-running-late-without-big-inv
estment-audit-report-finds-20170411-gviflw.html>