Author: Philip Mallis
Who still uses a Melway?
Next month, the iconic Melway street directory will celebrate its 55th anniversary. Despite the almost total shift of casual map use from paper to digital access, this uniquely Melbourne map has continued to operate and bring joy to its users to this day. A recent post on Twitter about this date created a lot of…
5 things that you didn’t know about North Balwyn
Having lived in North Balwyn for most of my life and represented it on the local council, it’s a special kind of place to me. Despite its reputation as ‘North Boring’ there are many interesting things about the area. So, in no particular order, here are five things that you (probably) didn’t know about North…
When the Queen rode a tram
The royal visit of Queen Elizabeth II in 2011 was the latest and one of the few times that she has visited Melbourne. It was also notable for being the only time that she or Prince Philip were on a tram (as far as I can tell from my research anyway). On the day, now…
Walking the Yan Yean Pipeline
The post for this fortnight is a little different – in the form of a video instead. A few weeks ago, I walked the length of the Yan Yean Pipeline from Yan Yean Reservoir to the storage reservoirs at Preston. You can see the video below or at this link here. It’s my first real…
The unluckiest cinema in Balwyn
Picture theatres were once a much more common sight around the middle suburbs of Melbourne. Suburbs that were in development throughout the 1920s and 1940s could have several different venues in close proximity, all vying for customers. Balwyn was no exception. Despite today being best-known for the Balwyn Cinema located on Whitehorse Road at Austin…
From white to grey – a little bit of North Balwyn history
At only 1.6 kilometres, Greythorn Road is one of the shortest main roads in Boroondara. It shares its name with Greythorn, a locality within North Balwyn. There aren’t any fixed boundaries but it’s generally understood by locals to be an area bounded by Balwyn Road, Gordon Barnard Reserve, Belmore Road, Winfield Road and Koonung Creek.…
Why gunzels should want more rail trails
I have been a member of a few rail enthusiast groups on Facebook for several years. Something that happens in these groups almost every fortnight is that someone will post about a dismantled railway somewhere. This will inevitably trigger a wave of comments from many of the resident foamers about: Some try to have a…
How to improve PTV disruption information
Despite some recent changes, I think there is still a lot of work to be done to improve the quality and accessibility of rail disruption information in Melbourne. Consider the main ‘Disruptions’ page on the PTV website, accessible here: https://www.ptv.vic.gov.au/disruptions/disruptions-information/ If you are a passenger looking at this screen, you might thing that all is…
