> Tad harsh on Melbourne's system here.
>
> > No memory timetable
> On most lines trains run every 15 or 20 mins off peak with 30 mins at night
> (except Sandringham which is every 20)
> Saturdays - every 20 minutes until 7pm then every 30 minutes (Sandringham
> excepted - 20 mins)
> Sundays - every 30 or 40 minutes during day, 40 minutes after 7pm.
Compare this to Sydney, where there is a train every 30 minutes at small
stations, except in the peak where there is one every 15 minutes, based on the
same times.
> eg Greensborough station - trains to city between 9.30am and 3.30pm depart
> on the 08,28,48 Mon to Sat. Trains back depart 07,27,47 via loop or 16,36,56
> direct until 1pm weekdays.
Does the loop direction change happen at the same time on all lines?
> As for your XPT experience, at Spencer Street where you got off to change to
> a suburban service to Glen Waverley, I would be interested to hear about your
> experience to see where you
> think information is lacking in respect to the above.
It is a long story.
The XPT arrived about 3 minutes early. I had no idea when the next train to
Glen Waverley was due, so I bought a Zone 1+2 2 hour ticket and headed straight
for the platform. The VDU said the next train was 40 minutes away. I waited
patiently. 5 minutes after it was due, we were told to catch the next train to
Flinders Street and catch the train from there. I caught the next FSS train,
but we sat on the flyover for about 5 minutes, only to see the Glen Waverley
train leaving as we arrived. Another 20 minutes till the next one. Waited
patiently. The next one arrived on time from the yard. Everybody got on (There
were quite a few of us by now). Doors closed, and we moved forwards about three
metres. The train stopped and the doors opened again. This happened three
times. Then MET workers walked up and down the train a couple of times. We
were then told that the train was defective and there would have to wait for the
next one, now 10 minutes behind us. So we all got off. 10 minutes later, the
next Glen Waverley train arrived, but the VDU was displaying Alamein, and the
destination Roll was showing Special. We were told over the PA that this train
would be stopping at Richmond and Glen Waverly only. I was going to Syndal, so
it didn't suit me. So I waited again. When the station staff were approached
by an angry mob, totalling nearly 200 people, they made a PA announcement to say
that an all stations train would be along shortly. Indeed, 5 minutes later, a
train finally turned up for Syndal. So, nearly 2 and a half hours after getting
off the XPT, I finally completed the 30 minute journey to Syndal. What a great
introduction to the MET. This one incident probably has the largest impact on
my impressions of the Victorian public transport system.
> Having lived in Sydney for 5 months, I would find the info provided there is
> much lesser than Melbourne. The trains have no destination on the front
> until recently when you guys started to install them, your on train
> announcements are better though.
They used to have destination marker lights until around 1990. Even Cabramatta
residents knew which train was theirs!
> I find Sydney's train
> timetables large and slightly bulky to carry vs. Melbourne's slimline design
> and yet the writing is smaller.
>
The new Sydney timetables are nearly identical to the QR ones. Much smaller
than the old ones (about 50% smaller). They do have a much larger number of
trains to display, however, so they are quite thick.
-- David Johnson CityRail Guard trainman@ozemail.com.au http://www.ozemail.com.au/~trainman/