Inner: Swanston St
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Bicycles are part of a successful and bustling Swanston Street
Swanston Street tourist buses to linger longer
19 November 2008. The plan to move the tourist buses out of Swanston Street next week has struck a hurdle and faces further lengthy delays.
The buses are to move to Federation Square but the date of the move is now up in the air.
The commercial entity that runs Federation Square, Federation Square Pty Ltd, has apparently agreed to host the tourist base and the buses, yet the agreement has still to be finalised only days from the proposed move date on November 24, which can no longer be met.
Negotiations between the bus operators and Federation Square will continue over the next few weeks.
The parties are remaining tight-lipped on the sticking point in the negotiations.
As soon as agreement is reached, Melbourne City will embark on a series of traffic alterations and infrastructure works in Flinders Street. The kerb in Flinders Street will be indented for bus parking and changes to tram pole positions will be required
Whether these changes will have an impact on bike riders and bike parking in Flinders Street is yet to be revealed.
The City is still developing a schedule for the works, so a date for the bus move from Swanston Street is still not known. But the complexity of the infrastructure works, and the slow pace of negotiations, seems to indicate that a date several months into 2009 in most likely.
The Federation Square location is favoured by the Council and the bus operators because of its proximity to Flinders Street station, safety factors, and access to facilities for tourists.
Bus relocation switches direction
3 October 2008. The City of Melbourne has switched its preferred temporary tourist bus relocation site to Federation Square.
Previously it had announced a move to St Kilda Road, across from the Arts Centre. Now, subject to agreement from Federation Square management, the Russell Street Extension will be the new home.
There will be no change to the deadline on the move date.
The latest council statement:
The City of Melbourne, in partnership with tour bus companies and Federation Square management, will work together to determine if the Russell Street extension (at the rear of Federation Square) is a feasible location for tour bus parking in the CBD.
At its meeting on Tuesday 30 September 2008, Council requested the City of Melbourne administration and tour bus operators prepare a business case within two weeks for Federation Square management’s consideration.
Council agreed that subject to negotiations with Federation Square management, the City of Melbourne and the bus companies would progress planning towards relocating to the western side of Russell Street between La Trobe and Victoria Streets (adjacent to the Old Melbourne Gaol) as a fall-back position.
The previously imposed eight-week relocation period remains, all buses will be moved from Swanston Street to an agreed location by 24 November 2008.
The agreed interim location will remain in place until the completion of the Southern Cross 2 Tower building in Bourke Street where the buses will have a permanent facility, in line with the July 2007 Planning Committee resolution. It is anticipated the Southern Cross 2 Tower development will be completed by mid 2009
Swanston Street bus bloat to linger eight weeks
23 September 2008. The decision to finally rid Swanston Street of the tour buses was rapid, but regrettably, the execution will be prolonged.
Lord Mayor John So has now publicly committed to the move (see release below), but not until November 24.
Although this is far from ideal, it seems to be the best that the Council can achieve, given the complexity of the issue.
The key will be the quality of the traffic management during the next two months.
Since last year the buses have supposedly been subject to a traffic management plan designed to control their movements and reduce risks to bike riders. We understand that there is evidence that suggests that this protocol was flouted.
The Council and the bus operators cannot afford to be anything less than stringent in the management of the buses during the wait until the move to St Kilda Road.
Furthermore, it is time that the Council took a good, hard look at the commercial vehicle parking along Swanston in peak periods. As many riders can attest these vehicles have been increasingly hazardous to navigate through, and have significantly contributed to the Swanston Street anxiety.
The possibility of a peak hour cleaway zone should be put on the table for consideration.
Statement from Lord Mayor John So:
Swanston Street tour buses to be relocated by November 24
“The City of Melbourne today met with Melbourne’s tour bus operators to establish a date by which they will move from Swanston Street to an alternate CBD location.
It was agreed by 24 November that Melbourne’s tour bus terminal will temporarily relocate to the east side of St Kilda Road, south of Princes Bridge (adjacent to Alexandra Gardens).
This interim measure will remain in place until the completion of the Southern Cross 2 Tower building in Bourke Street where the buses will have a permanent facility, in line with the July 2007 Planning Committee resolution. It is anticipated the Southern Cross 2 Tower development will be completed by mid 2009.
Under the conditions of the tourist bus permit arrangements, the City of Melbourne was obligated to give operators a practical timeframe within which to move from Swanston Street or make alternate arrangements.
Tour bus operators today agreed to the eight week period and were also given the opportunity to propose an alternative location to the St Kilda Road terminus. The City of Melbourne will consider any alternate proposals put forward by the bus companies, providing these meet all safety requirements and can be implemented and fully operational within the imposed eight-week timeframe.
The City of Melbourne will work closely with the tour bus operators to expedite the relocation process and to assist them in mitigating any impact on their business or customers as a result of the stops being moved.
Council will consider a report at its meeting next Tuesday 30 September, proposing a number of measures to assist this process including: constructing a temporary kiosk and toilet facilities at the interim St Kilda Road site, providing necessary signage to redirect customers from Swanston Street to St Kilda Road, and providing financial assistance to produce new marketing materials and updating customer information.
Coaches to move
19 September 08
The Melbourne City Council's Chief Executive Officer Kathy Alexander has given notice to the coaches that use Swanston Street that after "a reasonable notice period" they will have to move the base of operations to St Kilda Road, opposite the Arts Centre.
We have reviewed this section of road and recommended some changes to the City Council to facilitate rider movements past the new drop off zone.
Fatality
19 September 08
The coach company involved in yesterday’s incident called this morning to express its regret and sadness at the incident yesterday and asked us to pass that on to the bike riding community.
It was disappointing to hear that company had decided to close down their call centre as they had received many abusive phone calls from people who identified themselves as cyclists and called the call centre staff ‘murderers’ and similar.
Neither Bicycle Victoria nor the coach company think that Bicycle Victoria members made these calls. Since they have occurred we want to say why we think these calls are inappropriate in this other similar situations.
First it is a rush to judgement. We need to wait for the Coroner’s report before we can understand what occurred. Sometimes even the Coroner struggles to piece the story together. The legal system will follow up if someone has broken the traffic regulations. We can watch this process to ensure that it is thorough and appropriate.
Second it is understandable but thoughtless to phone up and abuse people when you are upset. Opinions and emotions, we believe should be put in writing and as much as possible expressed in temperate language.
Third the response is disproportionate. This is not a case of a drink driving, hit and run. It is very sad and very unfortunate. What is even more upsetting is that it was preventable. But the coach company and staff are not ‘murderers’.
Fourth it undermines the culture we are trying to build around bike riding.
As riders we don’t like to be abused – we are legitimate road users. We recognise that not every rider all the time follows the rules or rides sensibly. We don’t like it when all bike riders are criticised when one person does something stupid or careless.
If that is how we want people to view us, then that is how we should view others.
I am sure members will agree with these views.
18 September 08 This morning a rider was killed in a collision that involved a coach as she rode south along Swanston St. A number of riders gathered at the site this evening in memory of her.
This is a very sad incident and we have been working today to see what we can do to prevent it happening again.
As you can see below there was an agreement struck with the coach operators in July last year. This included a traffic management plan not to store buses on Swanston but to use a just in time system that radioed a coach in to load. The plan included a commitment to move to the Southern Cross tower in Bourke Street when it was completed. Unfortunately this move to Bourke Street did not occur soon enough to prevent the fatal collision today.
We have asked the City Council to move the buses out of Swanston Street to an interim location until their new base is ready. We will report on their response.
We will also ask for the lane to be remarked past the Arts Centre near Princes Bridge where the lane is marked under a bus parking bay.
Riders may be wondering about the risk of using Swanston Street and the chance of being in a fatal collision while riding a bike. The TAC publish data on their Road Safety website.
For the first six months of this year there had been no fatalities in Victoria. However up until today there have been four, including the woman who was killed today. Last year six people were killed while riding their bikes and fourteen in 2006. The five year average is 8.
There are collisions from time to time on Swanston Street as there are many users. In general these have been more likely in the section from Princes Bridge to Flinders Street. This is one reason the bike lanes have been marked out in green.
However you might rate the route today, it will be better without the coaches.
Melbourne's cycling spine to flow
Jul 07 Melbourne City Council have resolved to move coaches from Swanston St to a new home on Bourke St. This is a great win for cyclists.
Riders should notice an immediate improvement as Council will develop an interim traffic management plan, in conjunction with the Tour Bus operators that limits the number of buses that use the current Swanston location at any one time, thereby improving the conditions for cyclists
Longer term Melbourne City Council will permanently relocate the tour bus stops to Bourke Street, south side, immediately west of Exhibition Street, adjacent to the Southern Cross 2 tower buildings, following completion of the second tower in approximately two years.
There has been a steady increase in the volume of cyclists using Swanston Street. The number of cyclists travelling north and south along Swanston Street, in 1999 between 7am and 7pm was 1,294. The same count performed in April this year (after the end of daylight savings) indicated 2,585 bicycles using Swanston Street, between Lt Bourke St and Bourke St.
You can thank them by email here
MCC votes to find a new home for Swanston St Coaches
Apr 07 Melbourne City Council voted unanimously to investigate a new location for the coaches that currently cause major problems for all users along Swanston St.
Swanston St carries the highest number of riders in Melbourne, making it the city's cycling spine, with a growth rate of 700% over the last 15 years. Carrying over 1,400 bikes in the 7-9am peak (that is an average of a bike every 5 seconds) and one tram per minute, there is a pressing need for adequate space for freely-flowing traffic.
Coaches also cause problems for trams and pedestrians due to the crowded roadspace and lack of clear sightlines. Yarra Trams have expressed their support for an alternate location.
We believe there are a number of alternate locations that could satisfy all stakeholders needs, making Swanston St a safer riding experience and help make Melbourne an even more attractive city to ride in.
Swanston Street has become a commercial vehicle carpark
Mar 07 Currently Swanston St is ugly. It is crowded most hours by commercial vehicle parking and tour buses. Pedestrians on the footpath are hemmed in by the large vehicles and their sightlines are obscured when crossing the road.
Cyclists are forced onto the tram tracks as they can't fit between the parked vehicles and the trams. Parking restrictions are not enforced and private vehicles flout the traffic management restrictions. The reintroduction of private motor vehicles would be a step backwards, not forward.
A first step would be to enforce the current restrictions on vehicle access and parking. The next step would be to find an alternative space for tour buses to park. Flinders St or opposite the Arts Centre are two options.
Tour buses and trucks should not be allowed to park on the city's spine. They blight the streetscape and obscure views to the Cathedral and the Shrine.
2004 Bicycles are part of a successful and bustling Swanston St. All around the world friendly, bustling streets like Swanston St are successful because they attract more people, who stay longer and spend more.
Trams, pedestrians and cyclists help make Swanston a successful street with a unique Melbourne flavour.
In 2003 the City of Melbourne considered changes to Swanston St - including reintroduction of cars and tram super stops. Bicycle Victoria prepared a position paper on the issue.
