Extending Melbourne’s Free Tram Zone - Parliamentary Enquiry

Thespottedcow on 11/10/2019 - 09:45

This should be interesting for many OzBargainers trying to save on transport costs.

There is currently a parliamentary inquiry into expanding the Free Tram Zone and to make public transport across the network free for students.

The extension to the free tram zone would include access to The University of Melbourne, It will provide better access to RMIT University, currently on the fringe of the current free tram zone. It will also include some of the fantastic research institutes highly regarded at an international scale. The extension of the free Tram zone will take in all the major hospitals, Universities and Tourist attractions within Melbourne CBD and surrounding suburbs.

Help make this a reality by signing the petition today here: https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/council/petitions/electron…

freetramsmatter #transportmatters

Travel

Comments

  • djones145 on 11/10/2019 - 09:57
    -8

    ain't Melbourne transport system so delayed there's no point catching it hehehe

    sorry had to give Melbourne a dig from sydney

    ain't it better to pay a bit and support fixing up the system!

  • holdenmg on 11/10/2019 - 11:21

    Hi,

    It seems from the wording of the Parliamentary Petition you link to that only residents of Victoria can submit.

    If so, it is a pity because lots of Tourists travel to Melbourne and use Trams other than the Free City Circle service.

    • Thespottedcow on 14/10/2019 - 11:10
      +1

      yes only for vic residents unfortunately.

  • [Deactivated] on 11/10/2019 - 12:43
    +2

    It's a trick to get the arts students to stop protesting.

  • lolz112 on 11/10/2019 - 13:39

    I don't this should be a major priority. To be honest if you live close in the city you could you could walk to Melbourne Uni. You're just congesting the rail links for people who have a longer travel time. I think the real priority should be looking at reducing fares as a whole. The current cost of a ticket is 8.80 for a daily. At that price it's often cheaper to just drive into the city and find parking, especially if you're not travelling alone.

    • cloudy on 11/10/2019 - 14:58

      8.80 forpetrol and parking? Where? Meter parking in the city is 4.80 per hour you can get 2 hours parking for that money, let alone the cost of petrol etc. $8.80 is not cheap, but it isn’t as expensive as driving and parking in the city.

      • lolz112 on 13/10/2019 - 01:00

        Well 17.60 if you're driving 1 other person it will be significantly cheaper. Plus there's free parking on the outskirts of the city if you're not going there peak times. I don't feel 8.80 discourages people from driving. I feel 6ish for a daily is about the right price

  • Reppunkamui on 11/10/2019 - 14:44
    +2

    I believe the free tram zone was originally introduced to help tourists, particularly with the frustration of MyKi usage. Trying to pitch this proposal as a way to discourage vehicles in the CBD is silly, most of us still need to pay for a train or bus to get to the city and our MyKis would be valid for use in the city even if the trams weren't free.

    It really should be removed rather than be expanded. Most Victorians do not live in the CBD and are effectively paying for this service. It lowers housing affordability in the CBD and increases congestion. Trams are now dirtier and packed to the brim, making them less practical for office workers happy to pay for tram usage on their lunch breaks. Australia is toping obesity levels globally and TBH it is not a long walk from one end of Melbourne to the other. Lastly, I don't think Victorians compensating students for CBD transport is a good thing. I could be wrong, but a large proportion of CBD students are international and students are concession fare anyway?

    About the only good thing with the free tram zone is attracting tourists, and I am not sure it is something all Victorians support… After all wasn't that what the free City Circle trams were designed for?

    • cloudy on 11/10/2019 - 14:59
      +1

      Original pitch was not for tourist, it was to encourage people not to drive into the city and look for parking. So the pitch is still the same, and your belief, I believe is wrong.

      But again, it’s what I believe, and I may be the who is wrong.

      Additionally, I walked one end of Melbourne to the other, takes around 30ish mins brisk walking. I would say, that is a long time, but each to their own in defining what’s reasonable.

      • Reppunkamui on 11/10/2019 - 17:33

        I feel like I addressed this in the original message. But to better explain why I think the argument that it helps with vehicles in the city is silly:

        Most Victorians do not live in the CBD, and TBH, the upside to living in the CBD is not having to own a car in the first place.
        If you are outside the CBD, you still need a bus/train/tram to get to the CBD (Assuming car/uber/cab are the vehicles we want to avoid).
        Once you get to the CBD, you already have a valid MyKi for public transport thanks to your bus/train/tram, you do not need a free tram service.
        How does the free tram help?

        "encourage people not to drive into the city and look for parking"

        If you plan to drive to the CBD, the free tram does not help you avoid looking for parking. You still need a CBD park to use the free tram. If you park outside of the CBD, you still have to pay for public transport to get to the CBD.

        Maybe I am missing something obvious…

        • cloudy on 11/10/2019 - 22:26

          I am a regular drive to fringe of city and use free tram zone. So naturally biased. But this free tram zone has really changed the way I use the city and move in and out of it.

          So I think its drastically reduced traffic flows of the actual streets in the city and also where the flow occurs. For example, its more palatable to drive into the spring and spencer street ends during the weekends, as spots are plentiful (nothing is open that end) and use the free trams to head into bourke st malls.

          I certainly feel like the peeps I know its shifted behaviour and reduced (our) traffic into the city, during Fridays, and shifted where in the city I drive on weekends.

  • try2bhelpful on 12/10/2019 - 00:50

    if they extended a few stops it would probably make a difference.
    One stop more to the arts centre.
    One stop more to the Museum.
    One more stop to Casino/Exhibition Centre.
    Extend to the Interchange outside St Vincent’s Hospital to provide access St Vincent’s and the Eye and Ear. This also would mean the 30 tram will be free along all its route.; at the moment it has one paid stop. It would also provide access to ACU.

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