I knew it had to end soon, but the clouds drifted over Melbourne yesterday as I ventured out eastwards into newly liveried Teal territory.
Whilst I was raised in Kew, I haven't been out that way in 25 years so decided to check out Kew Junction. Traffic was congested and the sun has disappeared but I was able to get a few photos.
A patch of weak sunshine lights up C1.3006 as it pauses inbound on a Port Melbourne-bound 109 service. What a hopeless narrow tram stop this is with people crowding into the narrow gap between tram and safety barriers. The thick yellow lines guide the tram driver to stay on track but they also generally provide a second traffic lane for the all-important private car traffic. (These yellow lines also guide motorists into driving into the super stop at Clarendon Street Junction (usually weekly), causing delays as they often require a tow assistance to be dragged out again).
In the background you can see the Kew war memorial and Cenotaph at the junction of High Street and Cotham Road with the elegant former Kew Post Office in red brick immediately behind:
https://gallery.steam4me.net/albums/trams/2022/3006_kewjcn_a7r3_20488.jpg
{2,400 x 1,500 pxl; 1.94MB}
Developers are doing their best to turn Kew Junction into a concrete canyon as C1.3013 has rolled up High Street and pauses at the junction. This view looks down High Street towards Barkers Road ~1.7km away and the location of Kew tram depot:
https://gallery.steam4me.net/albums/trams/2022/3013_highst_a7r3_20511.jpg
{2,400 x 1,500 pxl; 1.97MB}
C1.3013 continues outbound on a North Balwyn route 48 service past the (infamous) Junktion Hotel, now a ripe development site for another mid-size skyscraper. This former hotel achieved notoriety during the recent Kooyong tealslide elections as the former excuse-for-a-treasurer had placed his election ads on the high electronic billboard. With permission, volunteers of the (successful) teal candidate, Dr Monique Ryan, painted the walls of the hotel in teal colours but were ordered to remove their colours when the owner inexplicably withdrew permission for the paint job: net result was national coverage instead of a local issue.
https://gallery.steam4me.net/albums/trams/2022/3013_junktion_a7r3_20521.jpg
{2,400 x 1,500 pxl; 1.728MB}
C1.3010 is inbound on a route 109 Port Melbourne service as in the background an outbound A2.293 waits behind important vehicular traffic to turn into Cotham Road and onwards to Box Hill:
https://gallery.steam4me.net/albums/trams/2022/293_3010_kewjcn_a7r3_20552.jpg
{2,400 x 1,500 pxl; 2.79MB}
Yuri.
--
Gallery at https://tinyurl.com/trams4me
----------------------------------------