LaTrobe street tram stop upgrade
In Melbourne CBD, LaTrobe street tram stops are finally getting an upgrade.
I took the liberty of getting there and having a look at what is going on.
The current stop design of all stops along LaTrobe street (also omnipresent in the suburbs) offers minimal protection to people getting off the tram from the traffic by creating a tiny boarding area fenced off and kerbed off from the car lanes.
These designs are even more inaccessible than stops with no design at all, i.e. where boarding takes place directly from the driveway. The fencing is so close to the tram that there is no space available to deploy a wheelchair ramp, therefore a wheelchair user will not be able to get on or off at such a stop even with assistance.
Many of these designs are still present in inner and outer suburbs of Melbourne.
However, for LaTrobe street, this is now getting fixed.
The upgraded, properly designed tram stops are coming.
During the disruption, as usual, Melbourne’s tram system enjoys the operational advantages offered by using only bi-directional vehicles: this allows the turnback facilities be as simple as this crossover.
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Located strategically, they allow to keep the service running in sensible patterns where it is not affected by the works, and wherever there isn't one in place, a portable crossover can be easily installed. No need for turning loops!
The new tram stops’ design features wide platforms offering complete level boarding, with shelters for the passengers waiting for their trams. Similar solutions are already commonplace almost everywhere else around the CBD.
As can be seen in this photo, bicyclists will now get a properly sized lane, one fully protected from the traffic, extended all the way along the tram stop and towards the junction. This critical safety improvement became possible through decreasing the number of car lanes at the junction approach from 2?to?1.
The new plan also brings in stop consolidation which is important for speeding the tram service up through the CBD. King St and Spencer St stops which used to be only 200 metres apart will now be consolidated into one Spencer St stop, similarly to how it’s done at Collins St near Southern Cross station.
After LaTrobe St tram stop upgrade project is over, there will still be few tram stops left requiring similar improvements.
These are:
Outside of Melbourne CBD, these tram stop designs remain very widespread and will all require similar upgrades so as to make the entire tram network in Melbourne fully accessible.