Trams - do they support or interrupt commuting?

I love the trams, and without them there would be deadlock on all the roads currently serviced by them. Melbourne needs them, and needs them to be better, such as by having priority at traffic lights.

I strong agree with you on this point, however, i have a questions Why do we have tram only in Melbourne and not other States in Australia?

Just to bring to your attention
Further Disadvantages of Trams:
1) High Infrastructure Cost
2) Speed reduction for other road users especially when it stops in the middle of the road for Passengers to alight and board tram
3) Tram tracks on the road are not good for the tyres of other road use vehicles like Cycle and Car
4) In case of a breakdown or accident, or even roadworks & maintenance, a whole section of the tram network can be blocked

Ahh the age old debate of trams. I think they work well in the CBD, but outside of the CBD, I just find them a nuisance. I guess that's because I'm always driving and never catching public transport though, and they are always in my way :)

Surprisingly there is a while page dedicated to Melbourne Trams on Wikipedia here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melbourne_trams

"By the 1970s Melbourne was the only Australian city with a major tram network. Melbourne resisted the trend to shut down the network partly because the city's wide streets and geometric street pattern made trams more practicable than in many other cities, partly because of resistance from the unions, and partly because the Chairman of the MMTB, Sir Robert Risson, successfully argued that the cost of ripping up the concrete-embedded tram tracks would be prohibitive. Also, the infrastructure and vehicles were relatively new, having only replaced Cable Tram equipment in the 1920s-1940s. This destroyed the argument used by many other cities, which was that renewal of the tram system would cost more than replacing it with buses."

I think it's worth noting that some of the most beautiful cities in the world still have trams...such as San Diego and San Francisco.

AJ

I choose not to drive a car so I find trams quite helpful for commuting... I'm sure people who only drive cars would find them annoying and inconvenient!

Yeah well said their 'Mottey' - I agree with that

Perth used to have trams but got rid of them in the 1940s and 1950s - see http://pets.railpage.org.au/pets10p.html

Wow didn,t knew that bit - you are a champ Brian.
Thanks really helpful

As a Brunswick greenie, I am all for trams! They support those that commute, and more $ need to be invested to support this network - e.g) more super stops, longer clearways to allow the ease of traffic flow for both cars and trams. I believe the Moreland council are doing their part by adopting this on Nicholson St!

Nice update lala81, hope do you know all this? Do you work for council?

On a side note, I had to catch a tram very late at night a few weeks ago, and because I am a total dummy when it comes to trams, I downloaded the 'tram tracker' app on my iphone. Made the trip actually kinda fun:

http://itunes.apple.com/app/tramtracker/id317312510?mt=8

AJ

Dont get me started on trams, personally I hate what they do to traffic. There's a reason major cities dont have them. Keep it all underground.

The Superstops in the city have just caused choas, try Collins St at night now. And in the suburbs they take up a large chunk of the road.

I cant think of too many cities that use trams, other than as a tourist attraction like San Francisco.

I can't live without TramTracker on my phone! Extremely useful for those that catch PT.

AJ - No, while I work in the property industry I don't work for the council, although I do live within the city of Moreland. I totally need this Tram Tracker!!

JVS - Whilst I tend to agree that an underground subway would be more effective, we dont have the population to justify such large expenditure to bring the rail (train and tram) system underground.

I once visited Melbourne on a business trip and I still do not know what I did wrong but the tram driver yelled at me until he turned blue. I think its a great way to get around the city and am waiting until the Gold Coast gets its tram system.

I agree underground would be much better!

Well having been in NYC and using the underground subway system, I don't understand why all transport in Australia is underground. It just works so efficiently, and we wouldn't have to have those unsightly overhead wires everywhere.