Melbourne on track for a connie comeback

["David Lindstrom" <D_Lindstrom@Bigpond.com>]

In today's Age at:
http://www.theage.com.au/news/20000923/A13007-2000Sep22.html

Melbourne on track for a connie comeback
By SUSHI DAS
TRANSPORT REPORTER
Saturday 23 September 2000

Melbourne will get 100 new tram conductors at the end of the
year, but nobody knows what they will wear, how they will
operate or where they will be stationed.
And with just 100 to serve the city's enormous tram network,
passengers might have to take a very long ride before they see
one.
Yet the return of the beloved "connies" is a small victory for
Melburnians who never got over losing the human touch on their
tram system in the 1990s.
Connie supporters say the new taxpayer-funded tram conductors
should wear traditional uniforms (the green of the 1980s or the
brown of the 1970s), complete with leather bag, and perform the
traditional roles of bell-ringing, ticketing and passenger
assistance.
They should roam from tram to tram selling tickets using
hand-held machines, or they could sell the popular daily ticket
and a new one-way fare priced at around $1.50.
"Passengers will be met with the familiar sounds of conductors
calling `fares please' and they will have the assurance that the
friendly tram conductor will always be there to offer assistance
and advice," says a submission to the Victorian Government from
the Public Transport Users Association, the Rail, Tram and Bus
Union and the I Prefer a Tram Conductor Coalition.
But with fare evasion a serious problem, private transport
operators would like to see the new connies cracking down on
fare evaders by checking tickets and collecting the names and
addresses of fare dodgers so they can be fined $100.
Months of intense negotiations between the government, operators
and lobby groups will end soon with Transport Minister Peter
Batchelor expected to make an announcement next month.
Tram conductors were part of Melbourne's tram system for 112
years. Now they are set to return, albeit in diminished numbers.
They may not look like they used to, nor do what they used to,
but many people will welcome them back.



--
Regards,
David Lindstrom