Session 1: Small Transport Wins in Regional Victoria: Support Properity

Session: 1

Room: Supper Room

Session Title: Small Transport Wins in Regional Victoria: Support Properity

Format: Presentation and Group Discussion

Presenter Name: Benish (DoT)

Summary

• When transport is funded, the geographic disadvantage is not considered.

• Elderly populations are recognised, but not appropriately. Overall, we need bus services to capture these gaps in regional areas.

• Emphasis on systemic interventions, and single projects are not viable.

• Regional connections are often from direct A-B links to the CBD. This does not reflect the complexity of individuals’ transport needs. Consider medical services, do they need to travel to the CBD for these services? How can this be localised?

• Regional buses: Often only run in the morning and afternoon, but there is a gap in the middle of the day. The absence of a holistic timeframe means the service only services a small group of the community. Buses during just 'school-time' peak hours limit the capability of the service.

• Hyper Local, Flexible, Frequent, Integrated Towns and Cities are arranged as a 20-minute neighbourhood, but the infrastructure does not support these short, quick, and active trips.

• Consider old regional towns, these were established before cars and therefore inherently were pedestrian spaces. We can revisit this approach. We can look to the future, but sometimes we can look to the past.

• Responsive transport / On Demand: This is a new innovation. Barriers to access can affect the elderly. A case study (unnamed) moved away from fixed services, and the ridership decreased by 80%. Good in theory but needs to be carefully implemented. If additional care is focused on people with special needs.

• Challenges: The regional centres have services, but what about people who live in more rural areas. How can transport serve people who live "in the sticks"?

Session 1: Congestion Pricing

Session: 1

Room: Yarra Room

Session Title: Congestion Pricing

Format: Discussion

Presenter Name: Harry Barber

Summary

• What is congestion? How & where congestion should be priced?

• Car parking can have congestion prices.

• Congestion should be priced when vehicle load is within acceptable limits of the road capacity

• Data is a critical factor for analysing congestion and the optimum level needs to be established.

Session 1: Money Revenue Generation

Session: 1

Room: Portico Room

Session Title: Money Revenue Generation

Format: Discussion

Presenter Name: Simon and James (Stantec)

Summary

• The focus of the discussion is how to increase revenue from transport facilities. Public transport will be assisting movement for people and be free to use.

• Public transport expenses are significant for operation and maintenance.

• The primary opportunity lies in congestion pricing, proper pricing for parking, and fare payment encouragement.

• The City of Melbourne receives a significant proportion from on-street parking, and shared car facilities. Encourage Public transport use has been provided by reducing discounts on particular days of the week, and discounts for a group of people.

• Maximising asset utilisation.

Session 1: Car Dependency

Session: 1

Room: Melbourne Room

Session Title: Car Dependency

Format: Discussion

Presenter Name: Sebastian Aurisano

Summary

• Main Problems: Traffic jams, pollution, climate change. 25% of emissions come from transport.

• How to tackle it? Public transport, active transport, infrastructure. The pedestrian-oriented built environment is most critical. Autonomous and electric vehicles should also be considered. Electric vehicles tend to tackle pollution and climate change, but congestion will still remain.

• AVs might improve traffic jams but they may encourage urban sprawl.

• Car dependency has a gender impact, mothers need cars to take kids around. We can only use happy wheels if the urban built environment supports it.

• Minimum parking requirements based on floor area ratio should be reconsidered.

• Car sharing is important to diminish the parking issues related to autonomous vehicles.

• Private e-scooters should be allowed and encouraged in Melbourne.

Session 1: Transport strategy for Non-human and sustainability

Session: 1

Room: Regent Room

Session Title: Transport strategy for Non-human and sustainability

Format: Discussion

Presenter Name: Hayley Timmers (RMIT)

Summary

• How do we identify the key species or understand local biodiversity as one neighbourhood?

• How can we plan for non-human connectivity?

• Community advocacy reclaiming streets: Consider how people reclaim nature strips. Gorilla street trees on the upfield line.

• Community planting VicTrack: tracking which species pass which route in their everyday lives to reflect on the transport planning.

• How do we tackle KPI while making enjoyable connectivity for humans and non-humans?

• How should we assess possible environmental impacts on the site when we plan the strategy?

• There are important grasslands along the Sunbury line, these narrow strips of vegetation should not be managed without engaging Traditional Owners.

Session 2: Better Buses: The Future Frequent Network

Session: 2

Room: Yarra Room

Session Title: Better Buses: The Future Frequent Network

Format: Presentation

Presenter Name: Peter Parker (Melbourne on Transit)

Summary

• Better Bus Network: Sustainable Cities Campaign, better buses for Melbourne's West with a particular focus on the West. We need a top-level service. Perth was looked at as a precedent, noting most other states have a much higher frequency.

• Why is bus advocacy so challenging? The goal for 2030, is how can we shift the focus away from the high-income areas within Melbourne's southeast. The community is interested and political instability provides an opportunity for change.

• After the recent election, there may no longer be any safe seats. https://melbourneontransit.blogspot.com/2022/07/un-135-future-frequent-network.html This will not only support the suburban rail loop but will serve more people. Every ten minutes and seven days of the week.

• The Principle Public transport Network: Gave birth to smart bus routes, these run every 15 minutes. However these smart services are in the East (10) only one of these services is in the inner west, in Sunshine.

• The Useful Network: Every 20min service. Blog by Peter Parker. https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1eIBtYp3YqK7VDYkbcJW-XanMUHUIl2NE&ll=-37.8103655796008%2C145.02267822356933&z=9

• Laura: Images and maps are helpful. But to advocate consider how people may not need to own multiple cars, these messages are important. Improving people's lives. The future frequent network connects people to jobs. Local community benefit is integral.

• Route alignment has been discussed. How will this be branded?

• Question: How will these services align with the existing services? Ten-minute service to align with trains and trams. Look at the network coordination framework, this has not been applied to buses but there is an opportunity to apply this theoretical understanding.

• Focus on a small number of routes, done well.

Session 3: Victoria Transportation Integration Plan

Session: 3

Room: Yarra Room

Session Title: Victoria Transportation Integration Plan

Format: Presentation

Presenter Name: Catherine McNaughton

Summary

• Call on the Victorian government to work with councils and communities to develop metro and Victoria regional transport and land use plans.

• Create the places communities want.

• Assess infrastructure proposal to demonstrate maximum community and environmental benefits.

• Prioritize equity and people.

• Achieve net zero greenhouse gas emission transport and land systems.

• Include traditional owners’ perspectives, knowledge and country plans.

• Include full community engagement. As required under the transport integration act 2010 and climate change act 2017.

• Ad hoc projects have demonstrated limited community benefits, lack of integration, and limited linked benefits.

• Consider the scales of challenges that arise with population growth; changing commuting and living patterns, technology, climate and biodiversity emergencies.

Session 4: Public Transport Data Collection

Session: 4

Room: Yarra Room

Session Title: How can we reduce parking with car sharing?

Format: Discussion

Presenter Name: Josh (Infrastructure Victoria)

Summary

• Good data will be received if the service is simple.

• Ticketing data is very difficult to use as fewer touch on and off in Victoria.

• Train myki data is much better for touch on and off in Victoria compared to the other states.

• Queensland trip data is complete and open to the agencies.

• VISTA data is scarce and time-dependent.