Rail, Tram, Ferry & Bus Network Australia

[Mara]

The map shown is for Melbourne, but if you look on the left of the map there are buttons you can click on for the other major cities in Australia.

http://www.railpage.org.au/railmaps/melbourn.htm

Pretty useful, I think.

Mara

[Stranded]

Mara thanks for the link, whilst on the Topic, I have noticed that on the Forum most people seem to make use of private transport to work and back.

Why not the public transport system?

Is something amiss with it?

Stranded

[Riekie]

Mara, thanks for that - it's very helpful!

On the question of why ppl don't use public transport - the quick answer is: they do. The longer answer is: some people don't live close enough to a railway and does not want to bother with a bus then train scenario (such as in my case). When we lived close to a railway line, that's the only transport we used, except for when we needed our car for practical reasons (eg: grocery shopping). We still use public transport when we attend major events or going for a night out. Another reason is that people have their whole family with them (babies in car seats, strollers in the boot etc.) and it is too much of a hassle to drag the whole family through railway stations, up & down escalators etc. Some people driving to work in their own cars need their mobility during the day. Others simply don't want to mingle with the ordinaries (have a company paid for car, with company paid for petrol and a company paid for covered parking 10 steps away from the office....) or they may even be a bit snobbish. Doctors and other important people need to be on the move at a snap of a finger and cannot wait for the next bus or train to take them to the next medical emergency. Parents drive to work in their cars, 'cause they drop the kids off at school and collect them again on their way to & from work. A lot of ppl use their cars (aka Utes) for their businesses (plumbers, electricians, etc). No matter how good your transport system is, you'll still have people using their own cars as it often is simply more practical. The further ppl live from the city (eg, suburbia), the more they tend to use their own transport as the further apart the railway stations are. We know a number of ppl who don't even own a car, or who co-own cars with other family members for when they do need a car, but for the rest of it, they only use public transport.

On the flip-side, I do think Australia has a lot to learn about an effective public transport system if compared to countries such as Singapore, Japan etc. I think we pay too much for what we get and services could be more frequent & faster. In my opinion they found something that worked and sort of stagnated a few years ago, not keeping up with the growth & demand or with technology. I believe the new Labour Government is going to fix that in a jiffy (if we can believe their election promises). That said, Australia is still centuries ahead of other countries and at least on a day that I do need to use public transport, there is one! It's safe, clean (although the older trains can now really be retired...) and I can get from and to almost anywhere in Australia with it!

[Stranded]

Thanks Riekie for making it so clear to me, I was just concerned that something may be wrong with the system. My job (if I get the same one in Aus) requires own vehicle aswell. So hubby and I talked and said, maybe this time we would only buy one car. And if transport system is safe and reliable, he will make use of it is Ausie. Love this map Mara gave as it can assist with deciding where to stay. Still the BIG one

[Mara]

Hi Stranded

Good to see that you have found the map helpful and glad that Riekie has already answered you!

[matman]

Thanks Riekie for making it so clear to me, I was just concerned that something may be wrong with the system. My job (if I get the same one in Aus) requires own vehicle aswell. So hubby and I talked and said, maybe this time we would only buy one car. And if transport system is safe and reliable, he will make use of it is Ausie. Love this map Mara gave as it can assist with deciding where to stay. Still the BIG one

Stranded

not sure if you have tried this yet, but it is a great tool - go to Google Maps

Double Click on an area in the map to drilldown.

Click on the URL Get Directions - Helps give you directions from point a to point b and estimated time to get there - so you can see how long or the distance between 2 points

Click on My Maps tab - this has some great utilities - ideally drilldown as close to the area you are interested:

Places of interest - Allows you to checklist place of interest like churches, atms, hospitals, schools

Browse Popular Maps - Plots popular items on your map for your location

Distance Measurement Tool - measure distance between points

This is so cool because you can select an area and then have a look and see which schools, public transport routes, places of worship etc are in that area

Rgds

matman

[Stranded]

Thanks Matman

Every now and again I realise that it is a good thing the process takes so long, it just helps one to make an informed decisions. Will try it out.

Stranded