Bendigo and Geelong in Australia consider developing light rail
In Bendigo, Australia, the Bendigo Heritage organisation has proposed creating an approximately one-kilometre tram route in the city centre. It would connect the railway station with the shopping district, Bendigo Art Gallery and the Queen Elizabeth Oval precinct, ABC News Australia reports.
The proposal also provides for trams to run along Barnard Street to the hospital precinct. One traffic lane each on Mitchell Street and View Street is planned to be allocated for laying tracks and establishing stops. Trams operated on these streets until 1972. Bendigo Heritage proposes using battery-powered trams.
Returning to the tram idea
Nearly 20 years ago, sustainability professor Peter Newman advised Greater Bendigo authorities to turn heritage trams into public transport. After three trials, city authorities did not continue the initiative, saying residents preferred cars.
In 2005, the city also abandoned a plan to expand the heritage tram network around Lake Weeroona due to community opposition. Three years later, trams ran every 20 minutes during a week-long trial, but the project was not continued.
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A request for a feasibility study into a new tram route was sent to the Department of Transport and Planning as part of a review of Bendigo's bus network. Paul Westcott, a representative of the Public Transport Users Association Victoria, stressed that trams should run much more frequently than the current heritage service, which operates hourly along Pall Mall.
Corridor between Geelong and Surf Coast
In Geelong, the G21 conference has launched a campaign to secure $12.5 million for planning and designing a rapid transit corridor between the city and the Surf Coast. At present, a 23-kilometre bus journey between these destinations takes 53 minutes.
Greater Geelong Mayor Stretch Kontelj said that trackless trams or a dedicated lane for rapid buses had already been named among possible options. Surf Coast Shire Mayor Libby Stapleton noted that the Surf Coast Highway is already congested during peak hours, while studies have shown that the usual car-dependent approach will not work.
