Cycling in Melbourne Australia
Cycle route into Port Melb - from Portarlington?
I don't work in the city anymore, but I've spotted a murmur that may help cycling commuters - maybe, if you want it, and if you jump aboard to lobby for it.
Some folk are investigating whether to start a ferry service from Portarlington to Port Melbourne. As you can see from the map below, this would create a shortcut avoiding Geelong and the Westgate freeway. For people with a bike, landing in Port Melbourne, there'd be a no waiting for light rail, no reliance on public transport routes, and you'd be in easy range of St Kilda Road and the CBD. Seems to me it might suit Bellarine cyclists nicely.
So far, the news reports have not mentioned bikes. I don't know whether the proponents like bikes, or dislike bikes, or whether they've even thought about bikes at all. Maybe they'll never ever think about bikes, if they don't get questions from interested cyclists.
I don't know anything about the ferry, apart from what I've read in the paper. Anyone else have knowledge or thoughts about it?
Some folk are investigating whether to start a ferry service from Portarlington to Port Melbourne. As you can see from the map below, this would create a shortcut avoiding Geelong and the Westgate freeway. For people with a bike, landing in Port Melbourne, there'd be a no waiting for light rail, no reliance on public transport routes, and you'd be in easy range of St Kilda Road and the CBD. Seems to me it might suit Bellarine cyclists nicely.
So far, the news reports have not mentioned bikes. I don't know whether the proponents like bikes, or dislike bikes, or whether they've even thought about bikes at all. Maybe they'll never ever think about bikes, if they don't get questions from interested cyclists.
I don't know anything about the ferry, apart from what I've read in the paper. Anyone else have knowledge or thoughts about it?
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by ChrisS on -
Ask a few folks down there, like Russell or Peter at Barwon BUG, Geelong CC, Geelong Touring Cyclists or even Ted and Maree at Wilcare?
-
Permalink Reply by RobE on
-
Excellent Idea!!..in fact it seems to me that Melbourne and Geelong have for far too long ignored the fact that Port Phillip offers the most direct route for commuters to get to and from the city of Melbourne. Linking them by water plus adding in routes to Sorrento Portsea, Dromana, Mornington Frankston, Mordialloc, Black Rock, Sandringham Brighton, Queenscliff, St Leonards, Portarlingtom all of which offer connectivity directly to each other and to the City of Melbourne, will reduce reliance on the motor car and huge expenditure on building freeways . The emphasis on roads and rail has clouded this and successive Governments, so they have not gone there... why, maybe because its too easy... their mates in industry, the roads and car builders and the train and free way operators would lose out on their monopolies.
Any city on this earth worth its salt as visionary and in touch with its assets and attributes with a waterway such as this makes the best of it for its people, the environment and the widening of opportunity for its residents. I guess some residents in a few of these places may poo poo the idea as they have a NIMBY desire to keep their place closeted from the world, but in cities I have lived in across the world where the waterway is a feature of the city, they have ferries to enhance the liveability of the place and simple necessity of getting around in a direct and less costly manner than reliance on massive infrastructure for dinosaur freeways and traditional slow rail on complicated cluttered under-resourced networks.
Fast catamaran style ferries can move large numbers of people, cheaply, efficiently and smoothly at a very low cost to the environment an in almost all weather conditions. Cities like Seattle and the Washington State Network, Sydney's huge ferry system, Hong Kong links all populated Islanda and New Territories and mainland China with fast ferries, Vancouver Island to Vancouver is part of the Huge British Columbia Ferry system, linking communities, river and Zee ferries are widely used across the Netherlands, as in Denmark, Sweden, New York City, San Francisco.
Metrolink Queensland operates 21 passenger ferries on behalf of Brisbane City Council, 12 being single-hulled ferries and 9 CityCats (catamarans), along the Brisbane River from the University of Queensland through the city to Brett's Wharf.
Port Phillip to my mind is not embraced enough as a waterway and left to the shipping interests... greater advocacy for domestic passenger and utility access to the Port by commuters will lower the emphasis on the Port as a bulk port, and too many that would be a good thing.
I may have a bias as I grew up in Sydney and took every opportunity I could to catch a ferry to places, to the Zoo, to Manly, Rose Bay, Hunters Hill, Balmain, Roselle, Drummoyne... why... because I could, and it was much more peaceful, very beautiful and superbly interesting, the folk on board interacted and YES they took their bicycles along... bicycles would enhance patronage and widen the catchment area for ferry services just as they do for trains and buses ... Ferries are great... bring it on...
I read this too "09Apr08
A FLEET of 10 custom-built hovercraft could be transporting thousands of commuters between Geelong and Melbourne daily.
The air-cushioned boats could be built and tested locally, with a Victorian manufacturer said to be considering moving to Geelong.
The move would bring millions of dollars to the region and create hundreds of jobs, city leaders say.
Sustainable transport consultant Stephen Ingrouille has almost finished a feasibility study to run the ferries between Geelong, Port Melbourne, Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula.
"Hovercraft are perfect for the bay because it's shallow,'' Mr Ingrouille said.
"I'd be keen to see hovercraft built in the city because it's an excellent way of replacing some of the manufacturing industry jobs.''
He said the new-generation hovercraft would be ef
-
-
oh yea... I don't think Hovercrafts will get a guernsey, they are too noisey, need special berthing and are just not any quicker than fast catamaran ferries which carry more for a lower operating cost and better return to the users, environment and business...
When I was in Hong Kong as a resident I often needed to use ferries, and found the fast cat type much better as a user, saw they had less impact and seemd much quicker to turn round, load, and navigate with.... and carried more people in greater comfort, and they have more room FOR BICYLES, Hovers have to be compact internally, full enclosedand have reduced available space as they have to be light and any excess weight from hull dimensions has to be compromised to get lift, so I doubt they will work out for us (I could be wrong, but I'd take some convincing on a hover over a cat).... I guess the guys mooting Hovers for Port Phillip have an interest in that they probably make them and want their product to fly... self interest again I guess..maybe not... but when ideas get floated they first have to have a brainstorm ... not just someone's commercial or self interest agenda ( hmmm sound familiar...BV??)..
(sorry about all the puns... they just seemed to fit ...hah!!)
bye...
© 2013 Created by DamianM.
