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Comengs
Chief Commissioner
Joined: May 21, 2005
Last Visited: Dec 1, 2008
Location: City of Hume
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Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 3:15 pm
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From the Herald Sun. Tuesday 2nd September 2008.
| Quote: | Death rattle on tram tracks
Mary Bolling public transport reporter
September 02, 2008 12:00am
MELBOURNE'S historic W-class trams could be off the rails after claims the ageing rattlers are in disgraceful condition.
Concerns about rotting wood and peeling paint have prompted the Rail Tram and Bus Union to demand the State Government save the antiques or see them taken out of service.
RTBU tram division acting secretary Doug Brady said the trams could become a safety hazard.
The Department of Transport needed to commit to a rescue plan to keep the trams on the road, he said.
A department spokesman said a revised approach to maintenance of the W-class fleet was being investigated.
"However, no formal commitment has yet been made in this regard," he said.
Yarra Trams operates the W-class fleet, which were retired in 2000 after a string of braking problems, with 53 returned to service in 2004.
Yesterday, Yarra Trams spokesman Colin Tyrus said all the W-class trams were up to maintenance standards.
"There's nothing on the road that isn't fit for service," he said.
The fleet, which rattle along routes 78 and 79 on Church and Chapel streets and the route 30 extension to Docklands, were recognised on the National Trust heritage list in 1990.
And growing numbers of Melburnians are getting on board, with the 78 and 79 routes seeing the biggest patronage increases of all trams last year, up 10 per cent.
Melbourne tram historian Norm Cross said the condition of the W-class trams was disgraceful.
"Every major city has got a landmark, and the W-class have always been one of the symbols of Melbourne," Mr Cross said.
"Yet, anyone can see, the paintwork is very much faded on a lot of the trams, and they do have that unloved look about them."
When the W-class returned to service, Yarra Trams agreed to maintain the fleet.
Mr Tyrus said yesterday that while Yarra Trams was meeting its maintenance agreements, keeping the 60-year-old vehicles looking young was a challenge.
"We'd welcome any injection of funding to help with that ongoing maintenance problem," he said.
"Because the trams are wooden, and some of them are over 60 years old, they do require more maintenance and upkeep than the rest of Melbourne's tram fleet."
About 180 more W-class trams are in retirement in Melbourne workshops. |
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24279972-2862,00.html
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route14
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Dec 28, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 4, 2008
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Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 3:42 pm
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They have been stuffed up since the Alstom modifications.
Not the black cat
nor the white cat
but the right cat
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bramt
Chief Train Controller
Joined: Aug 30, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 4, 2008
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Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:36 pm
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| route14 wrote: | | They have been stuffed up since the Alstom modifications. |
Seriously, who cares if they can only do 35/40km/h, most of the time traffic limits them to that speed anyway. I understand this makes them more awkward to drive, but who cares from anywhere other than the driver's point of view.
Their physical presentation is far more important than how easy they are to drive. A lot of them do look terrible, they should be continuing the same maintainance scheme re bodywork now that they had for the past 50 years.
some of them are a safety hazard, I bet some people have gotten very nasty splinters from the windowpanes!
Its great that some of them now have had their desto rolls updated/replaced, to include Docklands and St Vincent's Plaza. Pity most of them still show a blank canvas tho.
Ones in new all over advertising look good, particularly 1020 in that nice green Zoos Victoria theme.
On another note, did you notice the photo in the printed article is straight from here: http://tdu.to/msg/msg75402.html ?
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574M
White Guru
Joined: Mar 15, 2006
Last Visited: Nov 30, 2008
Location: Shepparton
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Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:49 pm
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I was actually thinking about this yesterday watching dirty W's go past, grotty destos, grotty desto boxes, wrong destos, blank destos and all that. These cars have been left in the too-hard tray for a long time, probably on the prextext that "money is not available". Most are used for City Short, and if they are going to go out in either revenue service or tourist service, then they should enter traffic with exactly the same standards of presentation and exterior pleasant appearance (sans advertising) as the remainder of the fleet has. They should have exactly the same high standards of maintenance as the rest of the fleet.
They are trams.
People use them.
Passengers should not be at risk when they use the service, and crews should not be at risk of the desto box falling on them etc., etc., etc., when they are used in service.
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bramt
Chief Train Controller
Joined: Aug 30, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 4, 2008
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Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 11:32 pm
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But even some of the Zs are looking pretty grotty at the moment. Some have gross carbon streaks down the sides, and one Z1 has massive rust holes in the windowframes. They really could look a lot sharper.
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lakeyboy
Chief Train Controller
Joined: Mar 31, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 2, 2008
Location: Melbourne, Australia
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 9:03 pm
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If only they were all up to this standard:
Image opens in a new window
I reckon some people have forgotten how good they can look if they are given a little TLC.
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574M
White Guru
Joined: Mar 15, 2006
Last Visited: Nov 30, 2008
Location: Shepparton
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Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:45 pm
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As much as I detest pantos on W classes, that is one darn good pic of a W.
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Westernport
Junior Train Controller
Joined: Nov 02, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 3, 2008
Location: wherever Westernport takes me
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Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2008 8:21 pm
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SW6.907 hasn't re-entered service since the W withdrawrals in 2000... so its looks fresh and beautiful because it hasnt set one foot outside of preston yet...
by the time it get back out there, it'll look as bad as 932 in no time...
| 574M wrote: | | As much as I detest pantos on W classes |
yeah... i hate them too.. they look god awful and since they got the pantos, all the carbon and crap collected on the roof has almost doubled...
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LordPhobos
Locomotive Fireman
Joined: Nov 05, 2006
Last Visited: Sep 27, 2008
Location: Bendigo, Vic
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Posted: Sat Sep 06, 2008 11:51 pm
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They should've at least used the Austbrack pantos like on the Z/A/B's... They don't look as ugly as the Citadis ones IMO.
Note to self: trams are slippery when wet... and very scary to drive when slippery.
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route14
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Dec 28, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 4, 2008
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Posted: Sat Sep 06, 2008 11:53 pm
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Yes, and they apply less pressure on the overhead, which could lengthen the life of the roof.
Not the black cat
nor the white cat
but the right cat
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cookie930
Chief Train Controller
Joined: Sep 09, 2007
Last Visited: Dec 1, 2008
Location: Spencer Street Stration (Not SCS)
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Posted: Sun Sep 07, 2008 8:57 pm
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If the W's were taken out of service what exactly does Rail Tram and Bus Union expect to replace them with in the short term untill more trams arrive?
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MelbourneCity
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Jan 22, 2003
Last Visited: Dec 2, 2008
Location: Melbourne
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Posted: Sun Sep 07, 2008 11:12 pm
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Buses probably.
Wouldn't surprise me if Yarra Trams get a fleet of buses to boost services in peak until new trams arrive.
The Age today claimed 100 trams have already been ordered. News to me.
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alstom_888m
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Aug 26, 2007
Last Visited: Dec 3, 2008
Location: Craigieburn Suburban Railway Line, Melbourne
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Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 9:00 am
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| LordPhobos wrote: | | They should've at least used the Austbrack pantos like on the Z/A/B's... They don't look as ugly as the Citadis ones IMO. |
Nah they should have used Metrovick, double-arm pantos. Old panto, old tram. Citadis pantos look too new for the tram.
Reliable, Economical, Safe, By Rail.
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route14
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Dec 28, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 4, 2008
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Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 2:02 pm
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| MelbourneCity wrote: | Buses probably.
Wouldn't surprise me if Yarra Trams get a fleet of buses to boost services in peak until new trams arrive.
The Age today claimed 100 trams have already been ordered. News to me. |
Buses will have problems at termini.
Not the black cat
nor the white cat
but the right cat
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trolleybusracer
Deputy Commissioner
Joined: Dec 12, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 3, 2008
Location: St Albans Sydenham Watergardens Line
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Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 7:02 pm
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yeah just borrow some transdev buses from sydney, there already in the YT Livery 
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