A 2017 sexual assault on an 87 year old? It may have happened on a railway
station, but I question its relevance for TDU.
On Friday, 23 October 2020 at 18:28:24 UTC+11 Roderick Smith wrote:
> ----- Forwarded message -----
>
> To:australiant...@... australiant...@...>
> Sent: Friday, 23 October 2020, 06:20:07 pm AEDT
> Subject: Fri.17.7.20 daily digest
>
>
> Roderick
>
> "171107Tu-Melbourne'Age'-DerbyDay-a-ss.jpg"
> "171107Tu-Melbourne'Age'-DerbyDay-b-ss.jpg"
> "171107Tu-Melbourne'Age'-DerbyDay-c-ss.jpg"
> "171107Tu-Melbourne'Age'-three.car.Xtrapolis-ss.jpg"
>
> "200717F-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-transport.disruptions.jpg"
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> "200717F-'SMH'-bikes-Melbourne-ss.jpg"
> Fri.17.7.20 Metro Twitter
> Buses replace trains on sections of the Frankston line and to Stony Point
> until the last train of Sun 19 Jul (level-crossing works). [New earlier
> finish]
> 15.00 Alamein line: Major delays (a track-equipment fault between
> Camberwell and Riversdale).
> - 15.22 clearing.
> 18.33 Mernda line: Buses will replace trains between Reservoir and Epping
> due to a person hit by a train. Buses have been dispatched but may take
> over 60min to arrive, consider alternate transport options.
> - 19.00 Buses are en route but may take up 40min to arrive,
> - 19.16 Buses are in operation with more en route. Link to details of
> alternatives.
> - 19.51 All buses are in operation. Extended journey time of approx. 25min.
> - 21.24 Train services have now resumed
> Buses replace trains Newport - Werribee from 20.25 until 6.10 Sat 18 Jul
> (works).
> Buses replace trains Dandenong - Pakenham from 0.30 Sat 18 Jul until the
> last train of Sun 19 Jul (level-crossing works).
>
> Melbourne Cup 2017: Train network to be put to test after Derby Day
> debacle. November 7, 2017
> Racegoers flocking to the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday will be relying on a
> well-oiled train network to help them get to and from the races safely and
> on time.
> But just days after a major blunder on Derby Day saw six packed trains
> grind to a halt for 40 minutes, resulting in passengers jumping off
> carriages and one hospitalisation, commuters want an assurance that the
> system will operate smoothly on Cup Day.
> video Derby Day panic on Melbourne train. Melbourne train chaos
> Fairfax Media can reveal that the rail safety watchdog is also concerned
> about the network's capacity to carry about 100,000 people on race day, and
> has launched an investigation into Saturday's debacle.
> A spokesman for the Office of the National Safety Regulator confirmed the
> watchdog investigation, and said they "will continue to monitor issues of
> this kind".
> The spring racing carnival is testing Metro's capacity. CREDIT:PENNY
> STEPHENS
> "MTM [Metro Trains Melbourne] has assured us of its intention to take
> proactive steps to minimise the likelihood of issues such as this affecting
> racegoers at tomorrow's Melbourne Cup meeting," he said.
> But it's not just Cup Day that will test Metro's capacity this week, with
> Oaks Day on Thursday and Stakes Day on Saturday drawing many thousands of
> people.
> Metro Trains has promised the public that they will have "safe and
> reliable service ... for the rest of the carnival".
> The company is "leaving nothing to chance," spokesman Marcus Williams said
> on Monday.
> More than 300 extra services to Flemington will be added to the network
> and authorised officers and security surveillance teams will be beefed up
> for the rest of the carnival and deployed along the Craigieburn line.
> But commuters remain frustrated over Saturday's screw up, which trapped
> passengers inside six trains for more than 40 minutes between Newmarket and
> Kensington stations.
> Passengers jumping out of a train that ground to a halt for 40 minutes on
> Derby Day.
> At least 50 passengers forced the train doors open and jumped out in
> panic, an observer said. The doors on the Comeng trains are designed to be
> opened in an emergency, either manually or by an emergency release.
> The delay kicked off after one city-bound train departing Flemington
> Racecourse stopped around 6:15pm due to a train fault.
> Metro claims the fault was able to be fixed quickly, but all other trains
> from the racecourse were subsequently held up under orders from Victoria
> Police, as trespassers were on the tracks. These trespassers are understood
> to not have been train passengers.
> Passengers jumping out of a train that ground to a halt for 40 minutes on
> Derby Day.
> Commuters have complained that they were not properly informed about the
> incident as it was unfolding.
> They are now calling for compensation over the incident, which resulted in
> one woman in her 50s being taken to hospital with a knee injury, Ambulance
> Victoria confirmed.
> "If this was the fault of Metro, some compensation should be considered,
> like a free day's pass," said Tim Ryan, an avid racegoer who was caught at
> the station after 6pm, where a crowd swelled to several hundred people.
> He said there were very few Metro staff at the station, and no
> announcements could be heard over the speakers for at least half an hour,
> causing widespread confusion.
> When the train finally arrived at the station, people jumped over a cordon
> outside the platform, and pushed through the doors. He saw one elderly
> woman injure her shoulder.
> "It was really a shemozzle," he said.
> "Normally in the past, there are quite a number of Metro staff holding
> megaphones directing people; this time there was virtually no one manning
> there at the gates, and no announcements for at least 30 minutes.
> "If someone's providing you with a service and they're charging you for it
> ... and they don't provide the service in the timeframe that you expect,
> then there should be some compensation."
> Metro must pay compensation to eligible passengers when punctuality falls
> below 88 per cent and less than 98 per cent of services are delivered in
> any given month. Saturday's incident will affect this month's performance.
> However, it was not all doom and gloom for those trapped inside the
> trains, with one commuter, Kim, sending Fairfax Media a video showing merry
> passengers singing along to Bon Jovi's Livin' on A Prayer and Oasis'
> Wonderwall to pass the time.
> "Group karaoke passed the time," said Kim.
> "The ones jumping off were hardly panicked – another word starting with p
> would be more apt."
> Police confirmed that they were called to the Showgrounds train station in
> response to reports of two people trespassing after 6:30pm.
> "The train was stopped for a short time for safety reasons while police
> searched for trespassers," a spokesman said.
> Metro spokesman Marcus Williams said: "We sincerely apologise to our
> passengers who were delayed getting home from Flemington on Saturday and
> understand how frustrating this was.
> "We communicated regularly to passengers through all available channels
> including train and station announcements from drivers and station staff,
> as well as remotely from the control centre, our website, Twitter and the
> metroNotify app.
> "We've had feedback that some passengers found it difficult to hear
> announcements on busy trains and platforms and understand this was a
> challenge."
> <
> www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbourne-cup-2017-train-network-to-be-put-to-test-after-derby-day-debacle-20171106-gzfwbi.html
> >
>
>
> November 7 2017 Aspendale station attack: Man charged over sex assault on
> 87-year-old woman
> A man has been charged with sexual assaulting an elderly woman at a train
> station in Melbourne's south-east.
> The 87-year-old woman was on the platform at Aspendale about 11am on
> September 22 when a man asked her if she wanted money.
> When she declined, the man kissed her on the cheek and allegedly sexually
> assaulted her, a police spokeswoman said.
> The woman, who had a walking frame, managed to break free and boarded her
> train.
> It's believed the man got on a Frankston-bound train, disembarking at
> Carrum Station.
> A 40-year-old Frankston man was arrested on Tuesday morning and charged
> with sexual assault.
> He was bailed to appear at the Melbourne Magistrates Court on December 15.
> More Articles: Elderly woman with walking frame sexually assaulted at
> station.
> <
> www.theage.com.au/victoria/aspendale-station-attack-man-charged-over-sex-assault-on-87yearold-woman-20171107-gzgkv0.html
> >
>
>
> Is the boom in bike lanes riding on the pandemic? July 17, 2020
> “When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark,” wrote Sir Arthur
> Conan Doyle, of Sherlock Holmes fame, “just mount a bicycle and go out for
> a spin.”
> In recent months, a great many Australians have taken this advice. We have
> bought, borrowed and rented bikes in unprecedented numbers, using them to
> escape the low spirits and dark days of COVID-19. According to counts
> performed by the Bicycle Network, a national cycling network, bike use in
> some areas of Melbourne has increased by as much as 300 per cent.
> A cyclist on Sydney's Anzac bridge. Fears about using public transport
> have fuelled a spike in cycling's popularity.CREDIT:PETER RAE
> But where have we been riding? Well, in some cases at least, on paths less
> travelled – or indeed, never travelled before at all. In NSW, more than 10
> kilometres of brand-new pop-up bike lanes were announced in May by the City
> of Sydney, including six temporary lanes in key commuter areas in the CBD.
> The idea is to give people new pathways through the city while also
> offering an alternative to reduced-capacity public transport.
> And in Melbourne, the city has fast-tracked some 40 kilometres of bike
> lanes within the CBD. These lanes, which were originally planned for
> installation during the next decade, will now be completed in two years.
> “I think a lot of the [lanes] were already on long-term strategic
> transport plans,” says the Bicycle Network’s Alexander Miller of the work
> in both states, “but it’s great to see it happening more quickly.”
> The question is, will such temporary lanes last, or will they be torn away
> from cyclists once the pandemic passes? “Around the world, the data shows
> that bike lanes are being used more than ever,” says Miller. “So I think
> there’s a good chance that if they’re siphoning off traffic and reducing
> vehicle use, they will stay.”
> Bike paths in Melbourne's CBD. The city has fast-tracked some 40
> kilometres of bike lanes.CREDIT:SIMON SCHLUTER
> Of course, the myriad benefits of cycling – for the environment, and for
> physical health and mental wellbeing – have been known for years; let’s
> hope the pandemic finally prompts permanent change.
> So far, with so many people discovering the value of “keeping your
> balance” on a bike, as Einstein put it, the signs are good.
> “It’s not quite as simple as ‘Build it, and they will come,’ ” says
> Miller, “but if the paths are in good spots, they’ll get used.” Just not by
> MAMILs, we hope. Middle-aged men in Holmes-style deerstalkers, of course,
> are welcome any time.
> <
> www.smh.com.au/national/is-the-boom-in-bike-lanes-riding-on-the-pandemic-20200604-p54zm1.html
> >
> *Hopefully the temporary cycle lanes prove to governments and drivers
> alike how important quality, safe cycleways are for an efficient city
> Good cycleways to be installed will demonstrate the huge latent demand of
> people who want to ride
>
>
> Rail pain on the Upfield line
> Fri.17.7.20 Melbourne 'Herald Sun'
> A construction 'blitz' on the Upfield railway line will begin in two
> weeks, with a section of the busy corridor to be shut for three and a half
> months.
> From July 28 to November 15, train commuters will be forced onto
> replacement buses for every stop north of Anstey station while more than
> 1000 workers remove four level crossings.
> The shutdown is expected to affect a third of the commuters living along
> the line but trains will continue to run between Anstey station and the
> city over this time.
> Huge concrete pieces are currently being trucked to Coburg and Brunswick
> to build a 2.5km rail bridge above the current tracks.
> Transport Infrastructure Minister Allan said the project would help
> support construction and manufacturing jobs: “It is using thousands of
> tonnes of concrete products from local suppliers to support Victorian jobs
> through the pandemic. Our level crossing removals are heating up in the
> North — by 2022, both Bell Street crossings, the most dangerous in
> Melbourne, will be gone for good.”
>
>
>