Re: New Yard at Camberwell Station

["Michael Alexander" <malex@bigfoot.com>]

> Burnley - 3 sidings each with 2 trains
> Camberwell - 3 sidings each with one train
> Baswater - 3 sidings each with one train and a light repair centre
> Westall - not sure but has a light repair centre
> They are all for overnight and off peak staibling
> Flem Races - four trains off peak (day time) only.

Don't we keep hearing in the media that there are 50 or so trains stored in
Jolimont yards. The above numbers don't add up to anywhere near that many,
so where are they going to store the rest of them? Or have I heard wrong?
But looking at the yards, there seem to be a whole lot more than 15 trains
there at any given time.


> They also say on the list of changes that the direction of the Burnley
> loop will change.  I realy don't know if that part is right or not.

The way the loop runs at the moment is totally confusing for anyone not
familiar with it. They really need to spend a whole lot of money and add
some flying junctions or extra tunnel entrances so that the two loops from
Spencer Street to Richmond can always run in opposite directions to each
other. The extra tunnel entrances / flyovers would be required so that
Caulfield trains could reach the Burnley Tunnel, and vice versa without
crossing other tracks. Simply changing direction, as mentioned above, will
not make many people happy, as it will mean all Burnley loop passengers
having to change at Richmond in the morning, and all Caulfield loop
passengers having to change at Richmond in the evening.

Of course if you mentioned combining the Caulfield and Burnley trains into
one tunnel, the PTC would bleat about how the loop is "stretched to
capacity" as it is. Maybe they should go and have a look at some overseas
metro systems, where 30 to 40 trains per hour are achieved. I'm not
sugessting that every Burnley & Caulfield train would use the one tunnel
during the peak (as this would probably exceed 30 tph), but they could end
the imbalance of trains direct to Flinders St vs. via the loop. After all,
with the casino & Southgate there are now a whole lot more people who want
to go to Flinders St. again.

And of course, after the Burnley and Caulfield loops had been combined,
they could make a start on combining the Northern & Clifton Hill tunnels;
one in each direction, all day.

If only the money was available!!!

Regards,

Mike Alexander
(malex@bigfoot.com)