Olympic bid promises fast Coast rail link
Bill Hoffman
Bill Hoffman | 27th Jul 2016 8:03 AM Updated: 11:44 AM
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A fast rail service from the Gold to the Sunshine Coast are carrots the region's mayors will offer when they announce today a bid for the 2028 Olympic Games.

A FIX for South East Queensland's increasing congestion and transport woes including a fast rail service from the Gold to the Sunshine Coast are carrots the region's mayors will offer when they announce today a bid for the 2028 Olympic Games.

In good news for Sunshine Coast commuters the report has found the fast rail link would first require a commitment to duplication of the North Coast rail between Beerburrum and Landsborough to ensure two 45-minute commutes between the capital and the big satellite regional centres.

The South East Queensland Council of Mayors will release detail of a pre-feasibility study for the bid including benefits that would be the 2028 Olympic legacy.

Australia has not hosted an Olympic Games since the Sydney Olympics in 2000 but Queensland's south east corner is expected to be well on track if it successfully hosts the 2018 Commonwealth games on the Gold Coast.

The needs of that event, still two years off, have helped drive the Gold Coast Light Rail project now entering its second stage.

The joint Olympic Games bid could provide fix for SEQ transport woes.
The joint Olympic Games bid could provide fix for SEQ transport woes.
Getty Images News - Oli Scarff
News Limited overnight released key details of the Olympic Pre-Feasibility Analysis Report which has found the region has the capacity and capability to host the Games.

The study has assessed the infrastructure needs to support a Games bid finding that big ticket items like a fast rail link between the two Coasts would better help meet future growth challenges regardless of the success or otherwise of the Olympic bid.

A key finding was that even the exercise of bidding for the Games may result in improvements to public transport links.

Sunshine Coast mayor Mark Jamieson will be in Brisbane this afternoon for the report's release.

South Australia launches biggest solar + storage trial to defray network costs

SA Power Networks has announced the biggest trial of rooftop solar and energy storage of its type in Australia, in a bid to prove that the new “distributed generation” technologies can avoid the need to build additional network infrastructure, and so save customers money.
The trial by SAPN – the monopoly network provider in the state – will install around 100 Tesla Energy and Samsung batteries at deep discounts and install software from Canberra-based Reposit Power.

SA Power Networks has announced the biggest trial of rooftop solar and energy storage of its type in Australia, in a bid to prove that the new “distributed generation” technologies can avoid the need to build additional network infrastructure, and so save customers money.
The trial by SAPN – the monopoly network provider in the state – will install around 100 Tesla Energy and Samsung batteries at deep discounts and install software from Canberra-based Reposit Power.

Customers wanting to buy an entire system of 3kW of rooftop solar and the 6.4kWh battery storage package will pay just $6,150. If they already have solar and just need the battery, then the cost is just $3,600 – a vast discount on current prices.

Another option is for customers to buy a 3kW rooftop solar system for $2,550, and rent the battery for a $500 upfront bond and a $18.50 fortnight payment over three years. The battery will remain the property of SAPN.

There may be other costs associated with meters (if installing solar for first time), additional electrical works that may be required to support the installation of the system, and an ongoing monthly fee for the monitoring equipment if customers want to use it.

The customers will be guaranteed a minimum $500 saving on their electricity bill.

SAPN chose Tesla and Samsung batteries after an open tender, and SAPN decided they met their specifications. Both will be offering 6.4kWh systems that are currently available in Australia – considered to be the leading battery market in the world.

The trial will also use energy management software provided by Reposit Power, which will help determine the best option for customers in utilising power being generated by their PV panels or stored in their battery, and potentially for trading with the wholesale market at peak times.

The trial – and the buy-in by the network operator – is significant because it helps change the rhetoric about rooftop solar; particularly in a state which recently closed its last coal-fired generator and is leading Australia, indeed the world, in the integration of wind and solar resources.

Instead of being demonised in some quarters as a cost to consumers – courtesy of over-generous feed in tariffs, and despite some obvious network benefits – the combination of solar and storage is seen as a big benefit to individual and other consumers, due to savings on networks costs and wholesale markets.

Roberts says the combinations of solar PV, battery storage and grid connections are the “future of energy provision”. Indeed, studies suggest that up to $400 billion will be invested by customers over the next few decades in rooftop solar and battery storage.

“With the right settings and approach they will provide benefits for customers and to us as managers of the network and also help contain long–term network costs for customers,” he said.

“We are excited about the future and the opportunities due to advancements in solar and storage technology. We think our distribution network will be a vital component in helping our customers and our state to derive the greatest benefit from investment in these technologies.

“The trial gives us an opportunity to explore the customer, technological and capability impacts on our regulated network business.”

But the trial also has broader implications, both for the design of new energy systems and for the uptake of solar and storage, and for the management of networks and the future of current business models, both for those networks and for the operators of centralised fossil fuel generators and the retailers.

One issue is around the ability of networks to access the “consumer” market and make offers to customers on solar and storage to help defray costs. A recent study by Victoria’s network operator Ausnet found that the benefits of rooftop solar and storage were about equal for consumers and networks.

Roberts said the trial in Salisbury – like the tender it has put out for Kangaroo Island, where a cable to the mainland could be replaced by localised storage and generation – is about management of the regulated network.

“This is absolutely about management of the regulated network, and exploring how we can be using customers to avoid the need for network investment, and to address capacity issues in the network,” Roberts said.
“The rules encourage us to look at long-term options. We should explore opportunity for customer integration. We believe this is what managing networks into the future will be about.”

But new rules being discussed by regulators, and pushed hard by retailers, want the networks to be restricted through “ring fencing”, to only using the “de-regulated” part of their business to address customers. It is going to be an interesting battle.

http://reneweconomy.com.au/2016/south-australia-launches-biggest-solar-storage-trial-to-defray-network-costs-32268

3 years to get from Sydney to Melbourne on the high speed rail? I could walk between the two cities faster :lol:

The Prime Minister has announced a new high speed rail that will connect the country’s two largest cities once every three years,

[size=7]Germany had so much renewable energy on Sunday that it had to pay people to use electricity[/size]
Michael J. Coren
May 10, 2016


On Sunday, May 8, Germany hit a new high in renewable energy generation. Thanks to a sunny and windy day, at one point around 1pm the country’s solar, wind, hydro and biomass plants were supplying about 55 GW of the 63 GW being consumed, or 87%. Power prices actually went negative for several hours, meaning commercial customers were being paid to consume electricity.



Last year the average renewable mix was 33%, reports Agora Energiewende, a German clean energy think tank. New wind power coming online should push that even higher.

“We have a greater share of renewable energy every year,” said Christoph Podewils of Agora. “The power system adapted to this quite nicely. This day shows again that a system with large amounts of renewable energy works fine.”

Critics have argued that because of the daily peaks and troughs of renewable energy—as the sun goes in and out and winds rise and fall—it will always have only a niche role in supplying power to major economies. But that’s looking less and less likely. Germany plans to hit 100% renewable energy by 2050, and Denmark’s wind turbines already at some points generate more electricity than the country consumes, exporting the surplus to Germany, Norway and Sweden.

Germany’s power surplus on Sunday wasn’t all good news. The system is still too rigid for power suppliers and consumers to respond quickly to price signals. Though gas power plants were taken offline, nuclear and coal plants can’t be quickly shut down, so they went on running and had to pay to sell power into the grid for several hours, while industrial customers such as refineries and foundries earned money by consuming electricity.

[size=7]Sky rail a done deal - contracts signed, work to start soon[/size]
April 22, 2016 - 3:51PM
Richard Willingham
State Political Correspondent for The Age


Work on the controversial sky rail project along Melbourne's busiest train corridor will begin in weeks and should be finished in time for the next election.

The state government on Friday announced that the $1.6 billion project had been contracted to an alliance of companies to build the elevated railway as part of its plan to remove 50 level crossings across Melbourne.


An artist's impression of what sky rail could look like.

The project has been met with anger by some locals who argue that an elevated rail line will destroy their local community, by creating an eyesore and dropping property values.

Nine level crossings in the south-east will be removed and five stations rebuilt including Murrumbeena and Clayton.

Public Transport minister Jacinta Allan said there would be minimal disruption on Melbourne's busiest train corridor, with train line shut-downs limited to weekends and two longer shut-downs towards the end of construction in 2018.

These two line shut-downs would last for 19 and six days.

"This is in stark contrast to the alternative approach that has been proposed by some … to take an open trench approach which would see this line shut for eight months and require 2.3 million people being moved on buses which would cause significant disruption." Ms Allan said.

There has also been inquiries about voluntary property acquisitions Ms Allan revealed, although she declined to say how many.

Following consultation, Ms Allan said more car parking would be added as well as better integration between stations and buses.

The first works will include erecting construction fences and trimming trees.

Ms Allan said the project would create 11 MCGs of new public space.

She also said the design would not prohibit extra lines being added by a future government.

Quizzed on community fears that sky rail may be replicated along the Frankston, Ms Allan said that line presented a very different scenario.

"The approach to be taken on this corridor is not necessarily the outcome that will be taken on the Frankston corridor, and I think its wrong to assume it will be," Ms Allan said.

The alliance includes Lend Lease, Aurecon, Metro Trains, CPB contractors and WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff.

Residents' advocate Edward Meysztowicz said a sense of community betrayal remains over the unveiling of the sky rail project.

"A lot of people living in this community are deeply upset and dismayed by the way this project has been bulldozed through," Mr Meysztowicz said.

The recent announcement by the Andrews government of voluntary home acquisitions was "hollow", he said, given many residents whose homes directly back onto the rail line are not eligible.

"The process is convoluted and certainly not clear," he said. "There are four stages of approval to go through and no one has clarity about their future," he said.

Shadow Planning Minister David Davis said Victorians had been hoodwinked by Labor and that the process was a "travesty" with a lack of proper planning and environmental studies.

"Victorians did not want this," Mr Davis said. "Nobody voted for this sky rail monster through the suburbs."

Mr Davis warned that graffiti and other anti-social behaviour would be rife under sky rail.

[size=7]New High Speed Rail Will Run Between Sydney & Melbourne Once Every Election Year[/size]
By The Shovel on April 11, 2016




The Prime Minister has announced a new high speed rail policy that will connect the country’s two largest cities once every three years, or more frequently when there’s a double dissolution.

Mr Turnbull, who discovered the policy in a folder marked ‘For Election Years Only’, said the new train would provide a quick link between the Government and innovation.

“This is the fastest, most convenient election policy we’ll see, until it’s next released in 2019,” he said. “I can jump on this policy at 9am in Sydney, and then get off it by lunchtime”. He said all the mocked-up map graphics and stock photos of bullet trains on a blurred background were ready to go.

But Opposition Leader Bill Shorten was scathing of the policy. “Malcolm Turnbull likes to talk about train platforms, but where’s his platform for jobs?” he said.

:lol: having moved from Sydney to Melbourne i have to laugh at the outrage over Melbourne's comparatively decent PT system. What Sydney siders would do for what Melbourne already has

Edited by scotch&coke: 11/2/2016 02:36:29 PM

Sky rail isnt new. Richmond and a few stations are already that. Pity there seems to be nimbys down in the s.e

[size=7]Sky rail more an eye opener than an eyesore[/size]
February 11, 2016
Julie Szego


The announcement of a major infrastructure project, in this instance the state government's sky rail proposal, is overshadowed by "angry" protesters (can protesters ever be moderately agitated?), politicking from the opposition and an overarching poverty of imagination. Welcome to Melbourne: where bold ideas are immediately torn down and the selfish and small-minded have right of way.

The government proceeds on its election promise to remove the railway crossings that bring gridlock to suburban streets, cripple the capacity of trains to run more frequently and cost the economy billions. But according to some local petitioners, the plan to replace the level crossings on three sections of line from Caulfield to Cranbourne/Pakenham with elevated rail is an outrage.

According to the objectors, a rail tunnel is the only acceptable option, thus rendering any other option a cynical manoeuvre. I'm yet to hear a convincing argument why the new line must go underground. Admittedly, the government could do a better job explaining why it need not do so — why tunnelling this stretch of line would be too disruptive, expensive or restrictive from an urban planning perspective.



But let's not pretend this would persuade the protesters thundering "No sky rail." Their chant leaves me dubious about suggestions the Andrews government might have prevented this barney with "proper consultation".

Ambitious building projects invariably impact people living closest to the site. These residents should not be permitted to hijack public debate. They are, however, entitled to voice their displeasure. And the No Sky Rail president, who lives one metre from the rail corridor, deserves some sympathy; when frustration and fury overtake us we tend to throw everything at an argument, without sifting the outlandish from the reasonable.

It is reasonable to complain, as she does, that the nine-metre structure will likely block her northern sun. It is outlandish to evoke a hypothetical disaster scenario, such as a derailment causing "80,000 tonnes of fully laden freight" to come crashing down on homes. Yes, and planes can fall from the sky but we still have flight paths above residential areas. And the less said the better about her concerns paedophiles can peer down into her backyard pool when the kids are swimming. (Besides, the government says barriers will be erected on the viaduct to protect the privacy of nearby residents.)

The protesters cluster around the themes of the viaduct devaluing property prices (when arguably proximity to modernised public transport boosts the value of nearby homes) and being an "eyesore" that divides the community and invites undesirables to shelter in "ghettos" underneath. With depressing predictability, the opposition has endorsed their cause. It is what oppositions of all persuasions do — pander to local disaffection, even as it sets them up for charges of betrayal once in government. And even when the cause is less than deserving.

"Eyesore" is a subjective assessment and as in love, beauty in urban structures is in the eye of the beholder; we look admiringly on that which works for us. When Tony Abbott described wind farms as ugly his aesthetic preference reflected his indifference to their function. In my stomping ground, Carlisle Street, Balaclava, the elevated rail bridge carries our beloved emblem of place, the sculpture of the schooner Lady of St Kilda, tossed on a sea of mermaids and starfish.

"Nobody voted for a sky train way up in the air cutting a swathe through densely settled suburbs," said opposition transport spokesman David Davis in comments so dim they offend settled principles of physics. How can a structure "way up in the air" cut a swathe through a suburb on the ground? And don't existing railway lines divide communities? Isn't that why our ancestors referred to undesirables as coming from "the wrong side of the tracks?"

The government says the sky rail frees up "11 MCGs' worth" of public space for public benefit. A seductive propaganda video shows carpets of greenery, car parking spots, netball courts, civic plazas, a 12 kilometre pedestrian and bike path, revamped stations with seamless connections between trains and buses, footpaths sprouting in all directions. Connecting suburbs in other words — not dividing them.

Ian Woodcock, urban design lecturer at RMIT, has emerged as an advocate for a well-executed sky rail. He suggests concentrating our energies on holding the government to its "cutting edge" vision, ensuring the new stations come equipped with the best disability access, multiple entrances, user friendly transport connections, pleasing retail space.

Elevated rail delivers net benefits for communities around the world, he says. In Paris a market thrives under the metro viaduct at the Barbes-Rochechouart station. A project in Miami aims to retrofit the space beneath an elevated metro for public parks. Berlin plans to create a new nine-kilometre cycle route, replete with bike repair workshops, rest stops, cafes and beer gardens, under part of the city's U1 line. The viaduct would give cover, enabling cyclists to use the path all year round. Inspiring, no? Less an eyesore than an eye opener.

And I reckon there are also benefits for rail passengers, assuming they're not all paedophiles. On a recent trip to Bangkok, I travelled from the airport by sky rail, enjoying an expansive view of the city's vibrant chaos, the old districts nudging the gleaming skyscrapers, the jumble of freeways, concrete towers, footpaths bursting with life. It made the metropolis legible and gave me some perspective.

We could use some perspective in Melbourne. The kind that helps us see the big picture.

Daniel Andrews getting shit done. =d>

Huge improvements for the main South-East Melbourne lines:

[youtube]SYT5F-gcr40[/youtube]

Edited by paladisious: 7/2/2016 10:06:30 PM

Sky rail isnt new. Richmond and a few stations are already that. Pity there seems to be nimbys down in the s.e

1200 people on a train is 50 per cent too many: rail overcrowding getting worse


More than half of Melbourne's railway lines are consistently overcrowded in the morning peak, with some trains carrying hundreds more passengers than they are meant to.
In the worst case, on the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines, trains built to carry just under 800 passengers are crammed with more than 1200 people before they reach the city, data shows.
The data, obtained through freedom of information laws by the Victorian Greens, reveals the system is failing to cope with passenger growth.
Between May 2014 and May 2015, an extra 4500 commuters joined the Dandenong rail corridor crush in the morning over a four-day survey period, but just one extra morning peak service a day was added to the timetable.
The situation was mirrored on six other lines that experienced rapid patronage growth in the morning peak last year but were given few or no extra services.
The Frankston, Sandringham, Craigieburn, Upfield, Sunbury and Werribee lines all grew by between 5 and 12 per cent in just a year, yet only the Sunbury and Werribee lines received extra services to handle the swelling load.
Barely any peak-hour services have been added to the metropolitan rail timetable since 2014, because the Andrews government rejected a planned timetable upgrade that had been drawn up under the former Napthine government.

Meanwhile, Metro is progressively increasing the capacity of each train from 798 to 900 passengers, by ripping out seats near the doors to increase standing room.
The Greens obtained the unfiltered patronage data from Public Transport Victoria's most recent passenger load survey, completed in May 2015.
PTV conducts twice annual counts of passenger numbers at stations just outside the City Loop to determine if crowds are within the load standard of 798 per train, as agreed in Metro's franchise agreement with the state.
The count is done on four weekdays and patterns of overcrowding are meant to trigger extra services on affected lines.
However, the survey excludes services that are affected by cancellations or late running, because these are held to distort a typical day of operations. These excluded services are often overcrowded, meaning PTV's survey results contain fewer load breaches than the raw data.
Greens leader Greg Barber said the true picture was worse than PTV's survey indicated, with 199 of a total 464 services having breached the load standard. About 10 per cent of those services carried more than 1000 passengers.
"Raw data shows the government has been caught understating how overcrowded trains are," Mr Barber said.
"This problem has been getting steadily worse for years. This problem hasn't snuck up on the government, but their only response has been to rip out seats to squeeze more people in."
Mr Barber said the data supported the Greens' call for an investment in high-capacity signalling, which would enable trains to run more frequently.
Tony Morton, Public Transport Users Association president, said it was unfortunate that rail overcrowding was getting worse in the west and north of Melbourne, given billions had been spent to remove bottlenecks between Metro and V/Line trains on that part of the network.
"This is what the Regional Rail Link was meant to deal with and we haven't done the timetable upgrade that was meant to follow naturally on from that project, which was the rationale for spending $4 billion on a new rail line," he said.
Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan pointed to the planned Melbourne Metro rail tunnel and the multibillion-dollar upgrade of the Cranbourne-Pakenham corridor as evidence the government was "investing more in major capacity-building projects than any government in Victoria's history".
"We've added extra services to Sunbury, and to the Werribee/Williamstown lines, and extra services will be considered across the network with the next metropolitan timetable change later this year," Ms Allan said.
The raw data presents a contrasting picture for Melbourne's northern and eastern suburbs, where rail patronage has shrunk.
Peak-hour patronage on the Alamein line, Melbourne's quietest, dropped a further 14 per cent in the year to May 2015.
It went backwards by eight per cent on the Glen Waverley line, and by five per cent on the Belgrave/Lilydale lines and the South Morang/Hurstbridge lines.


http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/1200-people-on-a-train-is-50-per-cent-too-many-rail-overcrowding-getting-worse-20160126-gmecgy.html

[size=7]10,000 use night trains, trams and buses on first weekend of 24 hour services[/size]
January 8, 2016
Richard Willingham
State Political Correspondent for The Age


Nearly 10,000 Victorians used new 24 hour train, tram and bus services in the wee hours of Saturday and Sunday during the first full weekend of the Night Network.

Last weekend saw the beginning of a 12 month trial of 24 hour trains, trams and buses on some routes on weekends.

New data shows that 9862 people touched on with their myki last weekend outside of regular services during the Night Network debut run.

The Labor government says the data is only preliminary because it does not take into account people fare evading, using trams in the free zone or people using myki passes.

The government says the number of people shows a good take up of late night public transport with the nearly 10,000 people representing more than a 300 per cent increase in patronage, compared to NightRider bus services in October 2015.

Before the launch of the Night Network, which was previously known as HomeSafe, a survey of 1000 people found 91 per cent of people were likely to use 24 hour service during the year long trial.

The survey also found 90 per cent of respondents saying that affordable late night transport was the biggest benefit of Night Network.

It has not been all smooth sailing for the start of the Night Network with residents along train lines complaining about trains using their loud horns all night, keeping people awake.

Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan said all-night travel put Melbourne at the forefront of big cities around the world

"Initial myki touch on data from the first weekend has shown three times as many people used Night Network compared to NightRider services – but we want to see even more Victorians taking advantage of this great new service," Ms Allan said.

"I'd encourage everyone get out there and enjoy what Melbourne has to offer at weekends knowing they can take the Night Network home."

The government expects to have more accurate data available in February when surveys and myki data are combined, which is the normal way usage is calculated.

I see that and raise you the 901 Bus in Melbourne. Orbits around the end (or close to the end) of each train line (excluding the West) and ends up as my tightarse route to the airport from its penultimate stop at Gladstone Park Shopping Centre (or alternatively Broady train station) to avoid Skybus fees. Technically you could catch it all the way to the airport from Frankston, if you have a spare four hours!