Re: My opinion on all night trains in Melbourne

["Michael Walker" <walker@hotkey.net.au>]

>Over the last five or so  years when I've lived in Richmond, Fitzroy
>and Parkville I've caught a night bus ONCE due to the cost.
>
>On the other hand tthe Night Trams were wonderful! A regular fare
>means that it's a reasonable cost and there's greater usage in the
>inner city.
>
Actually an interesting anomaly in the system occurs between the NightRider
service and National Bus service to Latrobe University. They follow more or
less a similar route to Latrobe along much of the way but the services are
as follows (or were, haven't seen the new timetables, assume the extra
services are still there on Friday and Saturday nights):
12.30am NBC service to Latrobe (Met fare / NBC fare)
12.30am Nightrider to Eltham via Latrobe ($5 fare)
1.20am NBC service to Latrobe (Met / NBC fare)
1.30am Nightrider to Eltham ($5 fare)

I must admit to being a little surprised when the first NBC timetables came
out at them being allowed to compete with the Nightrider for much of its
route. Was great being able to use the previous days' daily too instead of
buying a $5 ticket. I know which service I prefer using!

In relation to the all night trains, I would prefer to see the money spent
subsiding later private bus services or Sunday private bus services than all
night trains, I think they have more potential to get revenue back and
attract people to the system as a whole - trains included. It really sucks
not having any buses leave most places after 7.30pm. In my case if I missed
the 7.31pm from Greensborough to St. Helena West, it meant an hour walk to
Diamond Creek instead of just getting off at the stop next to my house and
having a minute walk. Which occurred all too frequently when the 6.39pm  up
Hurstbridge/Eltham was late. Whilst serving a lesser role to commuters
travelling to their station than station car parks, there would be much more
use of a bus system that reliably got you to and from the station when you
wanted rather than when it was operationally convenient for the bus company
to do so. In my case, I drove to Macleod knowing if I worked late and caught
the train home, I could get home quite easily when I wanted rather than
every 40 minutes during the peak hour and not at all after 7.30pm.

All night trains wouldn't serve too many people I would think and not many
of those would be new revenue attracted to the system (how many people paid
their fares on the Night Trams?!)