Re: Melbourne's Icons (was Melbourne's Anti-tram Lord Mayor)

[David Langley <del@ancc.com.au>]

David McLoughlin wrote:

> You may already know this, Ian, but the parallel in Melbourne is the old
> W-class, the old trams built from 1923 to 1956 and all but replaced by
> the post-1975 Z, A and B classes. Many of the Ws, especially the oldest,
> the W2s, were sold to cities in various countries, especially in the US,
> as they were replaced by the Zs after 1975. Then the Victorian National
> Trust declared the W-class a national treasure which could not be
> disposed of.
>
> Therefore, as further Ws were replaced by new trams, they were
> mothballed at tram depots and in a huge warehouse at Newport in
> Melbourne, where there are now several hundred of them, gathering dust
> but unable to be used, even by the many cities which would gladly pay
> for them to use on heritage lines and the like.
>
> About 50 Ws remain in service, much rebuilt. They are used on five
> routes, the City Circle and the 8, 16, 12 and 69. The other 25 routes
> use the post-1975 trams.
>

It's interesting to note advertising in recent times all over Melbourne
proudly suggesting that Melbourne's trams put you within finger reach (or arms
reach) of many Melbourne tourist attractions. The photo is of a hand reaching
for a bell cord in a tram. What type of tram, yep you guessed it, a W class.
The very tram our state govt is trying hard to remove in favour of modern (and
I use the word extremely loosely) trams.

Makes you wonder, doesn't. They don't know the treasures on their doorstep.

Also until recently, advertising inside the tram timetables suggested that
when chartering a tram "for your special outing" you could ring up Essendon
Depot or Camberwell Depot an hire a W class car. I think I even saw a vintage
four wheeler in one TT.

The new Melbourne Lord Mayor should be made to sit in his office with the
window open when the traffic resumes and take in the odours from the cars.
When traffic was previously in Swanston Street, when dining in any of the
restaurants there, you sat up the back of the place as far from the bloody
noise as possible. Nowadays it's a joy (in good weather) to sit at tables
located on the former street alignment. If Swanston Walk didn't help the city
rejuvenate, then noisy traffic isn't going to either. Costigan has been got at
by the road element that think that they have a right to drive down every
street in the place. A bit like smokers eh, but that's another debate.

DEL