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Subject: Wed.26.5.21 daily digest

Roderick

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Wed.26.5.21 Metro Twitter
Aircraft: No ramp access to platforms until late 2021 (pedestrian-underpass works).
Flinders St: still with a lane closed for tunnel works.
Buses replace trains on sections of the Werribee line until the last train of Sun 30 May (level-crossing works).
Remember to wear a fitted facemask when travelling on all trains, trams and buses in Victoria or you may face a $200 on-the-spot fine as police enforce face masks. 
Work on transport projects continues this winter. Critical maintenance will also take place on rail, tram and road networks. There'll be disruptions while this work takes place.
15.17 Werribee/Williamstown Lines: Major delays (a vehicle striking Napier St bridge). Trains may be held/altered.
- 15.50 clearing.
- Again! Ffs
- 3 BRIDGE STRIKES IN JUST 5 DAYS - of overheight trucks hitting Napier St bridge. Each time this happens, the train line shuts down creating big issues. As elected members/bodies for Footscray:  CAN YOU PLEASE FIND SOLUTIONS?
- I suppose those downstream would be affected as well - Williamstown , Altona and Werribee lines.  Whole load of electorates impacted.
- also the state gov plans to reintroduce Geelong line services via the Newport route, so that's also in play. You can't keep having this happen, and simply no action to find solutions - It seems to have fallen in the "too hard" basket.
- Sounds like a whole lot of trains going through Spotswood level crossing.
- It's the new "Geelong fast rail project" - all details here: https://bigbuild.vic.gov.au/projects/geelong-fast-rail/about ; They're returning Geelong services via the Newport route as its "shorter". Geelong Fast Rail will deliver faster services between Geelong and Melbourne’s CBD with a travel time of around 50 minutes enabled through a major investment to the Werribee corridor. bigbuild.vic.gov.au
- We'll see if "shorter" translates to "faster" I suppose.
16.25 Glen Waverley line: Buses to replace trains Burnley - Darling (serious level-crossing equipment issues at Kooyong). Buses have been ordered, but may take over 60 minutes to arrive.  Consider alternatives.
- 16.36 See http://metrotrains.com.au
- 16.42 Trains continue to operate between Flinders Street  & Burnley and Darling & Glen Waverley.
- 16.57 Outbound passengers for East Richmond, alight at Richmond and catch tram 70 along Swan Street.
- 17.04 Limited buses in operation; journey time extended by 40 min.
- 17.05 Trains have resumed, with delays of up to 30 minutes.
16.29 Lilydale/Belgrave/Alamein lines: Major delays (an equipment fault near Richmond). Trains may run direct between Flinders Street and Richmond.
18.18 Lilydale line: Major delays (police attending to a trespasser near Croydon). Trains may be held/altered.
- 18.40 Consider alternatives between Ringwood and Lilydale.
- 19.06 Trains have resumed.
19.09 Craigieburn line: Major delays (an equipment fault near Pascoe Vale and police near Glenroy). Trains may be held/altered.
- Delays up to 40 min with the equipment fault (police now clear).  Trains may be altered/cancelled.
Frankston line: Buses replace trains Richmond/Burnley - Frankston from 20.20 until the last train (maintenance works).  Take any train to Burnley for express buses to Frankston.
Pakenham/Cranbourne lines: Buses replace trains Richmond/Burnley - Caulfield from 20.20 until the last train (maintenance works).  Take any train to Burnley for express buses to Caulfield.
20.28 Mernda/Hurstbridge lines: Delays up to 20 minutes (police in the Jolimont area).
- 20.32 Delays up to 15 minutes, clearing.
- What’s with the constant trespassers and police 'requests'?  Who runs the service, Metro or police?
Sunbury/Upfield lines: All trains terminate/originate at Southern Cross from 21.00 until the last train (maintenance works).  From Flinders St, take a train from pfm 1, 2 or 3 to Melbourne SC.
Craigieburn line: All trains run direct to/from Flinders St not via the loop from 21.00 until the last train (maintenance works).  From loop stations, take a Flinders St train from pfm 1.
Passengers travelling to Wattle Glen and Hurstbridge, check http://metrotrains.com.au for alterations to the last three trains tonight.

MAY 26 2021 ACT government electric bus deal in the works. Peter Brewer
Transport Canberra has trialled electric buses previously in Canberra.Picture: Rohan Thomson
The world's largest electric bus manufacturer is prepared to offer the ACT government a "circuit breaker" deal which will take the territory's highest-emitting diesel buses off the road by October, and deploy 30 of the world's most proven electric buses as immediate replacements.
<www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7267909/electric-bus-deal-could-have-diesel-buses-replaced-by-october>
* No thanks - I'd rather have anything else other than sell out to a Chinese entity controlling supply of our transport infrastructure.
* Sounds like common sense so unlikely to go ahead.
* so that's where all our rates/taxes are going - everything in the way of infrastructure is falling apart - but we get to have electric buses. How nice for those who ride buses. So tell us Mr Barr - what happens to the batteries when they die? We keep getting promises of recycling - but it is never any better than mincing up the nasty chemicals and burying them somewhere.
* yes rates and if not, just put them up some more, it’s great to have all this , but you can only milk so much
* Oh no, I don't ride buses so I don't want to contribute to them. It's the same tired old "I don't have kids so why should I pay for education" argument or "I don't use X, so why should my taxes go towards X?". Electric buses don't require diesel/petrol so there is not the cost of extracting, refining and transporting the fuel. They don't produce noxious exhaust to our air will be cleaner with fewer health impacts. They are cheaper to maintain along with various other benefits. As for what to do with batteries? Electric vehicle batteries can be recycled already. And as more and more electric vehicles come into service the processes for recycling batteries will become cheaper and more accessible - like with any new technology.
* Despite asking this same question in many venues - nobody has presented details of any organisation that does proper recycling (i.e. extracting the chemicals so that they can be used in new batteries). Many claims are made - however when reading the small-print the recycling is strictly of the large lumps of metal that form the electrodes and casings - not the chemicals that form the actual storage part of the battery. I would be interested to know the identity and the volume of batteries processed by any such organisation, plus the waste-products from the process that extracts the chemicals and the disposal processes. Meanwhile - we continue to pay for the extracting, refining and transporting the raw-materials used in the production of the fraudulently-named "renewables" - as well as burying the failed units in land-fill.
* I have been told that electricity produced using solar panels creates enormous problems when the solar panels need to be replaced. The cost of recycling the panels is so great they just bury them in the ground. I suspect it would be the same with batteries.

Wed.26.5.21 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' ALL READY FOR A KNIGHT ON THE TOWN. CHARLOTTE BRUNDRETT
IT’S the battle of the big country hot spots as Bendigo and Ballarat dial up their old rivalry and chase the title of Victoria’s Top Tourism Town.
The friendly foes are just two of the 22 municipalities vying for the award.
“We’re delighted to be nominated in this category and it all comes down to the friendly and welcoming nature of our community,” Bendigo Mayor Jennifer Alden said.
Bendigo is a cultural destination, and visitors are flocking to Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary, the latest exhibition at Bendigo Art Gallery.
On the flip side, Ballarat is big on tradition. Just 90 minutes from Melbourne, its heritage as a gold rush town is on display at Sovereign Hill but there’s much more to the town, which boasts bars, breweries, restaurants, boutiques and Lake Wendouree.
For world jousting champion and Ballarat resident Phillip Leitch, the top town in Victoria is no contest. “The arts, entertainment and food culture are well represented here and on top of that you have attractions like Kryal Castle and the wildlife park,” he said.
The awards are hosted by Victoria’s Tourism Industry Council, and the winner will compete for the national award in August. Voting closes at noon on Thursday and voters go into a draw to win a Melbourne getaway for two.
Vote at vtic.com.au/toptourismtown

Wed.26.5.21 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' Australia’s mission is hydrogen. Focus on cheaper production.  PERRY WILLIAMS [with ATN]

Wed.26.5.21 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' Proposed Integrated Development Opportunity — Rosanna Station
The Minister for Planning received a request for a combined planning scheme amendment and planning permit application for the following site:
Beetham Parade, Rosanna Station
Draft changes to the planning scheme (Amendment Cl 60bany to the Banyule Planning Scheme) and the planning permit application (P384/2021) have been prepared to facilitate development of surplus land created by level crossing removal works at Rosanna Station:
* Rezone the site from Public Use Zone 4 (Transport) to Commercial 1 Zone (C1Z).
* Permit application for:
 - two-lot subdivision to create the new lot.
 - Development of the land for a 7-storey commercial and residential building, plus basement parking.
 - Reduction in development carparking requirements
 - Removal of two trees.
The Minister for Planning, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, has referred the proposed changes to Victorian Transport Projects Integrated Development Opportunities Standing Advisory Committee (Advisory Committee) for advice.
You can make a submission to the committee about the proposed planning scheme provisions and planning permit application.
See www.engage.vic.gov.au/vtpsac/rosanna.
Submissions close at Spm, Friday, 2 July 2021.
Customer Service Centre: Phone 136 186

Wed.26.5.21 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' Letters:
* If masks are required on public transport and at the airport, why is it not a requirement at the football? I wear a mask as there is no social distancing with the seating. Isn't the rule if you can't social distance, wear a mask?
* Police should've started fining people without a mask last week — 80 per cent on the VLine from Melton to city on Saturday. Glad I wore one.
* With all the infrastructure projects about to start, it's only catch-up by the government because it's so far behind.
* How much money has been recouped by the Victorian government for the costs from the public purse for recladding the numerous dangerous high-rise buildings throughout Melboume?  The premier promised that rogue builders would be brought before the courts to repay their relevant amounts. I reckon is itjust another misuse of public money to keep sweet with developers.