----- Forwarded message -----

To:australiantransportnews@... australiantransportnews@...>
Sent: Saturday, 21 November 2020, 10:53:37 pm AEDT
Subject: Sat.15.8.20 daily digest

What shows in nearly all war reporting is the youth of the volunteers: 18-21 dominates, even in pilot ranks.  Lots of 16 yo lads signed up: in that era they did feel like men, and not suppressed schoolboys.  It wasn't patriotism as such, it was the sense of adventure: just like heading off to play a rival football team.  I visited the beautifully-tended war cemetery at Kanchanaburi (Thailand): very few buried there were over 21.  Now that we are interpreting WWII in politically-correct terms, it is worth noting the pioneering nature of tram systems: conductresses for the first time.  Women also took on a lot of work at munitions factories, and tram routes were extended to serve them, and trams ran at shift-change times for three shifts per day.  Not mentioned in the current crop of articles: with the young men away, women had to take on a greater share of farm work, helping their husbands.
I've downloaded only a selection of the Sat.15.8.20 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' special-supplement articles marking the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII.

Roderick

171212Tu~-MetroTwitter-981208Tu-123011-FlindersSt-7008-WestonLangford-ss.jpg

 "181111Su-'BrisbaneTimes'-c-troop.train-reenactment-ss.jpg"
 "181111Su-'BrisbaneTimes'-d-troop.train-reenactment-ss.jpg" 
"181111Su-'BrisbaneTimes'-e-troop.train-reenactment-ss.jpg"
 "181111Su-'BrisbaneTimes'-f-troop.train-reenactment-ss.jpg"
 "181111Su-'BrisbaneTimes'-g-troop.train-reenactment-ss.jpg"

"181120Sa-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-energy-a.jpg" with ATN

 "181124Sa'SMH'-(Sydney)population.growth.jpg" 

"181125Su-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-83xxBourkeStMall-Christmas.shopping-ss.jpg"
 "181125Su-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-8211-BourkeStMall-opened-ss.jpg" 

"181127Tu-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-SurreyHills-Xtrapolis-ss.jpg" 

"200815Sa-Fairfax-Domain-Yarraville-RailwayHotel-ss.jpg"

 "200815Sa-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-WWII-75th-c-women.working.jpg"
"200815Sa-Melbourne'HeraldSun'-WWII-75th-g-USA.in.Australia.jpg"

Sat.15.8.20 Metro Twitter
Buses replace trains on sections of the Upfield line from until the last train of Sun 15 Nov (level-crossing works at Coburg and Moreland). 
Buses replace trains Newport - Werribee from until 6.10 (works).
Buses replace trains Dandenong - Pakenham until 6.45 (works).
Buses replace trains Mordialloc - Frankston until the last train of Sun 16 Aug (level-crossing works).
Mernda/Hurstbridge/Lilydale/Belgrave/Alamein/Glen Waverley lines: All trains run direct to/from Flinders St all day (maintenance works).  From loop stations, take a Flinders St train from pfm 3.
14.35  Hurstbridge line: Major delays (police near Rosanna).
- 14.43 clearing.
14.35  Glen Waverley line: Major delays after police attended to trespassers near Tooronga.
Buses replace trains Newport - Werribee from 20.30 until 6.10 Sun 16 Aug (works).
Buses replace trains Dandenong - Pakenham from 20.40 until 7.00 Sun 16 Aug (works).
22.49 Mernda line: Major delays (police). 

Troop train from Brisbane to Cleveland remembers fallen heroes 11 November 2018.
More than 300 veterans joined a commemorative "troop train" from Brisbane CBD to Cleveland in honour of more than 62,000 Australians who lost their lives in World War I.
Transport Minister Mark Bailey said he was honoured to join service personnel, including soldiers from the Gallipoli Barracks and the Light Horse Brigade, plus members of Redlands RSL and staff from Queensland Rail, for the ride on board the specially chartered train, and listen to their stories.
Service personnel on board Sunday's Remembrance Day troop train.  Credit: Twitter/Queensland Rail.
“During the Great War, troop trains played an integral role in transporting troops travelling to or returning from conflict, as well as horses and equipment and those who were sick or wounded," Mr Bailey said.
“The regional areas of Toowoomba and Warwick became major centres for train movements during World War I, carrying up to 400 soldiers at a time to Central station, where they were then transported by motor cars to the military hospital at Kangaroo Point," Mr Bailey said.
“Troop trains also travelled to regional areas including Wallumbilla, Warwick and Barcaldine to assist with recruitment activities, encouraging locals to sign up and serve their country.”
By June 1917, Queensland Railways (now Queensland Rail) recorded that 2473 of its own employees had enlisted, of whom 91 were tragically killed and another 105 injured.
By the war’s end, 25 per cent of the train fleet was in need of repair. However, work had to be postponed because of shortages of materials and workers to do the work.
<www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/troop-train-from-brisbane-to-cleveland-remembers-fallen-heroes-20181111-p50fcj.html>

AUGUST 14 2020 Light rail contracts won't be signed before ACT election, Barr confirms
Artist impressions of the light rail's second stage.
The ACT government won't sign a contract for the construction of the next stage of light rail before the October 17 election, Chief Minister Andrew Barr has confirmed.
<www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6878896/light-rail-contracts-wont-be-signed-before-act-election-barr-confirms> [paywalled]

Partial backflip on free parking in city
Sat.15.8.20 Melbourne 'Herald Sun'
Sat.15.8.20 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' letters
* The council has also issued a further 5000 temporary parking permits to frontline emergency workers.
* WHY don’t the hotels, bottle shops, milk bars, and takeaway food outlets all close at 8pm so the temptation for these curfew breakers can be eliminated?
* IS the 5km travel limit during stage four lockdown “as the crow flies” or actual distance travelled? It certainly can make a big difference in some areas.

A VICTORY WE WILL NEVER FORGET
Sat.15.8.20 Melbourne 'Herald Sun'
On August 15, 1945, Prime Minister Ben Chifley announced the end of World War II. That milestone date would become Victory in the Pacific Day and, 75 years on, remains one of the most pivotal moments in history. Commemorations may be a little different this year but whether you are isolating or social distancing, here are some ways to mark the occasion.
VISIT vic.gov.au/world-war-2-75th-anniversary to view all exhibitions online

WOMEN READY TO DO THEIR BIT
Sat.15.8.20 Melbourne 'Herald Sun'
Women Work for Victory in World War Two exhibition, Old Treasury Building, August 15, 2020 to June 27, 2021
This fascinating exhibition explores the part women played during the war and how their role in the workforce changed in the face of adversity.
As the men left for the trenches, women stepped into what were previously considered to be masculine roles when the government launched a recruitment campaign to encourage women to sign up for “victory jobs”.
Women Work for Victory in World War Two shares the stories of Australian women who left their old lives behind to do their bit for the troops — from manufacturing weapons, enlisting in auxiliary services and providing labour to farmers by joining the Women’s Land Army.
The exhibition also reveals how the war sparked a push for equal pay for female workers.