[publictransport] Meedya coverage from today

[Labyrinth]

Hi all,
one step backwards has been reversed by Minister Kosky . Thank you  
minister.   Nice bit of lobbying work.

Even better another step forward has been promised with fold up  
bikes  being allowed on trams and buses.
However a possible  rule that the bike must be boxed or bagged and  
not merely folded is not a very
practical suggestion as any survey of existing owners of a fold-up  
bike know would reveal how  dificult
it  is too buy a suitable bag and few existing user have them. There  
are lots of fold up bikes for sale
but very few come with a bag. How many bike shops sell them not one  
of the six I have visited.
Hopefully this restriction will not eventuate.

Another problem is still to be resolved is too have a proper vehicle  
parking policy for the rail network.
Based on need. This means of having a target  of 1 secure bicycle  
parking space for 9 car parking
spaces as they have in Brisbane. And travel smart scheme targetting  
able bodied bike/car commuterd
and promising them a free and secure bicycle parking space.

The cost of the cages is a worry they are likely to be  twice the  
price of the standard double sided
locker per parked bicycle.  It mostly depends on the capacity of the  
cages and some element of
component standardisation to provide flexible layouts for different   
stations .
  Where they put the cages and what construction work is needed to  
install them  (concrete plinths
and drains) swipe card locks and surveillance systems.
$1 million would buy 20 Cages (plus plinths etc,) that each store 20  
bikes.  This  would provide
for 400 bikes or $2500 per bike. However if the average bike cage  
only provides for ten bicycles it
will cost around $5,000 each.

Will the first cage be properly monitored, that I doubt  based on  
past performance.
Somebody needs to go and inspect the WA lock up cages and bring back  
photographs and talk to
  WA cyclists who have been  using  them. A email link up would be  
helpfull so that we can get  better
information. How they manage  these lockers and their suitability for  
use on stations that are not staffed.
Have there been any cases  of theft or vandalism?

We may need both bike lockers and bike cages and the  cost issue  
needs to be taken seriously.
At It costs around $1,000 to manufacture a bike locker because they  
are only made in small batches.
Around $200 is needed to make a  concrete plinth and on stations with  
not staff lighting and Lighting
and surveillance equipment would also be needed for groups of 20 more  
bike lockers.
It is noted In the BV report that the existing lockers will be  
audited and we need to know specifically
what does that mean. As the reason for having lockers is to reduce  
bicycle theft and vandalism it
  would be wise police records of reported bicycle  theft  data at  
railway stations for the  last five years
is collated and surveys by BV of existing users and their experience  
of both theft vandalism estimated.
  Once this data is available it will be possible to estimate the  
ratio on reported thefts ( police data)
  to unreported  thefts (BV data)  to estimate how big  the theft  
problem is.

It costs around $10,000 for a car parking space as access roads and  
drains being required and because
car parks take up so much space that the 'opportunity cost'  of the  
land has to be taken into account
  which would increase the cost of a paved car park to around $18,000  
each.

As 40 % approximately of station car parking spaces ( around 8,400)  
are taken up by able bodied
  commuters who drive less than 2 km to a station it would make sense  
to provide a lot more free
lockers and encourage short distance car/train commuters to use them.
Connex and before them the MET have wasted $millions on car parks for  
around 2,500 of car
commuters whom come from less than 1 km away which is easy walking  
distance.

Unlike Brisbane railways Connex  do not employ an engineer with  
specific responsible responsibility
for design and development of secure bicycle facilities.  Some  
drawings showing what is proposed
is needed aand they need to be studied and approved.

After all bike theft is much worse in Victoria than WA or is it ?


Bye Alan


On 15/02/2008, at 8:17 PM, cfsmtb wrote:

> Feb 15: Media Coverage of bike ban reversal
>
> http://modernthings.org/binthebikeban/2008/02/15/feb-15-media- 
> coverage-of-ban-reversal/
>
> Big thanks to MiTH for the meedya stuff. ;)