Is walkable urbanism just for our capital cities?

The idea of the 15-minute city (or neighbourhood) is an important one for reducing carbon emissions, and for making livable, vibrant cities - cities where you can meet most of your daily needs within 15 minutes walk or bike ride from your house, and destinations further away are connected by quality public transport. Unfortunately, it has attracted some conspiracy theories, so the term "15 minute city" itself might be falling out of favour - but the idea is a good one. 

More services for western Victoria

This weekend will see upgrades on trains and buses across a lot of western Victoria, so a quick look at what they'll mean. 

Ten years of the Maryborough line

Friday was the 10-year anniversary of the government reopening the Maryborough line to passenger trains - so now's as good a time as any to take a look at the history of the line, how it works today, and what should happen for the future.

Save the Overland (Part 2)

The Overland leaving Ararat Station

The historic Overland is struggling to survive - dependant on government subsidies that it cannot rely on indefinitely. Yesterday I discussed why the Overland declined, why this mirrored other rail services in Victoria, and how those other services turned things around - with a bold strategic vision, and the funding to back it up. It should by now be abundantly clear to everyone involved with Victorian rail that if you build it, they will come - serious investments will be rewarded with increased passenger numbers, so rather than just small bandaid measures to keep the Overland on life support, we need to treat it with the same seriousness as any other line.

Save the Overland (Part 1)

Vintage poster for the Overland showing the old VR livery (via PROV)

The Overland has a long and storied history. The service began in 1887 with the completion of the Melbourne-Adelaide railway, though it wasn't called "The Overland" till the 1930s. It was originally run jointly by the Victorian and South Australian governments, with the South Australian portion being taken over by Australian National Railways in the 1970s, the Victorian government dropping out in the 1990s and the service privatised and sold to the Great Southern Rail company shortly after (note that GSR has recently been renamed "Journey Beyond"). Originally an overnight service with sleeper cars, it now runs as a conventional daylight service.

N Class Bingo

N465 City of Ballaarat at Southern Cross Station

A bit of a gunzelly/trainspotty post for you today.