Author: Philip Mallis
A farewell to Twitter
A final farewell to Twitter to stop my content being used without my consent (and how you can too!)
Which were the least and most used stations in Victoria in 2023-24?
I recently posted about the updated data that has been released for metropolitan and regional station usage in Melbourne and Victoria. From this new information we can look at which stations were the most used and least used during the 2023 – 2024 financial year. Most used stations in Melbourne For the metropolitan network these…
Something good is happening to Melbourne’s cycling levels
The Victorian Department of Transport & Planning maintain a very useful dashboard that compiles data from most of the permanent bicycle counters in Melbourne. If you haven’t seen it before it’s available on this page under ‘Bicycle Speeds and Volumes’. In the years since the end of the COVID-19 lockdowns there was a noticeable dip…
Railway station patronage for Melbourne and Victoria 2008 – 2024
Since 2019 I’ve been keeping abreast of patronage data for the train and tram network in Victoria. While previously I have had to lodge specific requests I am pleased to report that the open data situation has improved significantly. Most of this information is now publicly available on the data.vic.gov.au portal. With the release of…
How many people live within walking distance of frequent public transport in Melbourne?
Recently I presented this project at Transport Camp Melbourne 2024. This post is a version of that as well as more information and background data. There is a link to the presentation and code at the bottom of this article. Frequency of public transport is one of the most important determiners of its usefulness. It…
New tram stops on La Trobe Street
Last week PTV and Yarra Trams finished building six new level access platform tram stops on La Trobe Street in Melbourne’s CBD, together with some complementary improvements. Details of the $68 million project were first announced in November 2023. Unlike LXRP and other ‘Big Build‘ infrastructure projects, it seems these were opened to almost no…
PTV disruption information & extreme weather
Victoria’s public transport has been affected by recent storms. This needs to be communicated to passengers but the current setup leaves a lot to be desired.
Fruit and nuts in North Balwyn
Eagle-eyed visitors to the northern reaches of Boroondara may have noticed a couple of street name patterns near Doncaster Road and Greythorn Road. There are two areas with related names here. The first is a group of three streets running west off Greythorn Road that have a fruit theme: Lemon Road, Lime Avenue and Citron…
Melaka’s abandoned monorail
Exploring abandoned things is always fun. One of the most niche and interesting ones that I’ve come across is the former monorail system in Melaka (or Malacca) in Malaysia. We have our fair share of abandoned monorails here in Australia. Sydney stopped using theirs in 2013. This left two monorail systems on the Gold Coast…
Announcement: new Supporters Portal
A few days ago I announced a new website – what I’m calling a ‘Supporters Portal’. Basically you can sign up for a small monthly amount ($5 or $10) and receive access to some bonus features. These include early video access, work in progress updates and extra footage / photos. There is also a free…
