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2008/06: Should bikes by banned during peak hours on Connex and V-Line trains?<BR>

2008/06: Should bikes by banned during peak hours on Connex and V-Line trains?


What they said ...
'To all you detractors up in arms over the fact that bicycles have been banned on peak hour trains, have you ever had trousers ruined because they got caught on a bike pedal as you were exiting the train?'
From a letter to The Age published on January 4, 2008

'It smacks of blaming the passenger for the failings of the system. We should have enough trains to cope with bikes during peak hour'
Mr Daniel Bowen, the president of the Public Transport Users Association

The issue at a glance
From January 1, 2008, a ban was imposed by Connex prohibiting bicycles being taken onto trains passing through Zone 1 (the innermost Melbourne zone). This ban applies to peak hour services in the direction of heaviest use.
Similarly it was announced that V/Line would only allow country train travellers to take bikes on trains during off-peak periods.
The bans were justified in terms of increasing commuter pressure on train services and the need for greater comfort for the majority of train users. Many cyclists have written to newspapers and called talkback radio programs to indicate their distress and oppose the ban.

Background information
Part of the background to the banning of bikes on peak hour trains has been a marked increase in the number of commuters travelling by train.
Commuter train use increased another 12 per cent in the past financial year from June 2006 to June 2007. There were a record 178 million trips made across the network to June 2007. Connex has claimed this is in part the benefit of 200 extra weekly services added in September.
There is the possibility that further evening peak-hour services could be added to train timetables at some point in 2008 in response to the dramatic rises in the patronage of trains.
Connex has claimed it is proposing new services and improvements to its existing timetable and has submitted them to the State Government for its consideration.
However any change to services and timetables will not be immediate. A spokesperson for Lynne Kosky, the Public Transport Minister, has stated that a comprehensive review of the timetable would occur sometime in 2008.
Connex met its performance targets for November with 98.9 per cent of its 52,548 scheduled services running, and 92.3 per cent running 'on time'. However, services on the new Craigieburn line have not meet targets. Punctuality has fallen to 87.2 per cent. Connex blames signal failures and infrastructure problems.
A spokesperson for Connex, Mr John Rees, has said that the growth in patronage contributed to delays, because a greater number of passengers took longer to board and leave trains.
The ban on taking bikes on trains during peak hour periods is part of an attempt to reduce the delays caused by passengers, including those with bikes, being slow to board and exit trains.

Internet information
On December 31, 2007, Connex announced on its Internet site, 'New Bicycle Laws for Metro Trains'. The information bulletin included the statement, 'Bicycles will not be permitted on services travelling through Zone 1 that arrive in Melbourne between 7.00 am and 9.00 am and depart Melbourne between 4.00 pm and 7.00 pm from Tuesday, 1 January 2008' and the further information that 'This is in direct response to increased patronage and supported by Connex'.
The full text of this announcement can be found at http://www.connexmelbourne.com.au/news.php?newsid=150

VicLink is a public transport information service. On January 3, 2008, VicLink issued a public information statement titled, 'New bicycle guidelines for metropolitan train services'. This included the same information supplied on the Connex Internet site three days before.
The full text of this statement can be found at http://www.viclink.com.au/news/media_releases/metropolitan_trains/new_bicycle_guidelines_for_metropolitan_train_services

The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) is a consumer organisation representing passengers of all forms of public transport. It is a non-profit, voluntary organisation, with no political affiliations.
On December 21, 2007, PTUA published the details of the bike bans. It also expressed its opposition to the bans. The full text of these documents can be found or linked to from http://www.ptua.org.au/2007/12/21/bicycle-peak-train-ban/

Bin the Ban is a lobby group formed to oppose the banning of bikes on trains during peak hour. The site gives six reasons for the group's opposition to the ban. These can be found at http://modernthings.org/binthebikeban/why-fight/

On January 2, 2008, The Bendigo Advertiser published an article titled, 'V/Line bike ban "makes no sense"'. Despite its title, the article gives a range of opinions both supporting and opposing the ban. The full text of this article can be found http://bendigo.yourguide.com.au/news/local/general/vllines-bike-ban-makes-no-sense/1154312.html

Bicycle Victoria is a self-funded community organisation, owned collectively by its members. Its aim is to protect and advance the interests of Victorian bike riders.
As reported in the print media, Bicycle Victoria initially reluctantly accepted the ban on carrying bikes on peak-hour Connex trains. In a later media release, while still recognising the reason for the ban, it appeared to have shifted position and opposed the ban. The organisation's most recent media release on the topic can be found at http://www.bv.com.au/bikes-and-riding/41038/

Bicycle Victoria never supported the ban on the carrying bikes on V/Line trains. It has encouraged its members to lobby V/Line and the Minister for Public Transport, Lyn Kosky, to indicate their opposition to the ban. Bicycle Victoria's position on the V/Line ban and their campaign against it can be found at http://www.bv.com.au/bikes-and-riding/41039/

Arguments supporting the ban on bikes on trains
1. Even prior to the bans passengers were asked not to take their bikes on peak hour trains
Those who support the current ban stress that it does no more than formalise the pre-existing situation. Passengers have always been asked not to bring bicycles onto trains during peak hours.
Connex Customer Service manager, Geoff Young, has stated, 'We've always discouraged bikes on trains. This formalises that policy into law.'
Thus, it is argued, there is little essential difference between the current situation and that which existed prior to the introduction of the new regulation. Bike riders may now feel more reluctant to take their bicycles on trains during periods of high level train usage but there were never, in fact, supposed to have done so..
It has also been noted that no fines have been put in place to punish those who take their bikes on peak hour trains. It appears that the most likely action what will be taken is that any available Connex or V/Line employee will request that the bike owner remove his/her bike at the next station. A state government spokesperson, Dan Ward, has indicated that the government expects Connex and V/Line to take a common sense approach when dealing with this issue.
It has been claimed that a total ban is necessary because the more informal previous arrangement was not working. Mr Daniel Bowen, the president of the Public Transport Users Association, has stated, 'Most V/Line trains have capacity for bikes, but they need a blanket rule because making a discretionary rule was going to be too tricky to administer.'

2. Increased train patronage has made it less appropriate to take trains on peak hour trains
As noted in the background information, there has been a significant increase in train patronage in the past twelve months and this has contributed to the decision to ban the transport of bikes on trains during peak hour.
In the twelve months to June 2007, train usage has increased by 12 percent. Though arrival times have generally been on target, this has not been uniformly the case. One of the reasons suggested for delays is that passengers are slow to get on and off trains. Bicycles stored near train doorways are seen as part of the problem as are the cyclists themselves who take longer than the average commuter to board and exit a train.
A Victorian Government spokesperson, Mr Daniel Ward, has stated that the aim of the ban was to reduce stopover times at stations and improve passenger comfort.
Mr Ward has claimed, 'At peak times when it's hard to get bikes on and off trains we want to improve the comfort and punctuality of services by getting more space.'
Opponents of the new proposal have claimed it simply indicates that the transport network is not coping.
Bicycle Victoria, the state's largest cycling organisation, has supported the new rules claiming they are necessary to maximise space for people and ensure passenger comfort and safety during peak periods.
A spokesperson for Bicycle Victoria has stated, '[Though] the new ban on bikes on Zone 1 peak hour, peak direction trains will inconvenience some riders ... congestion on trains has already been deterring some people from riding as travelling on peak hour trains is not always practicable due to congestion and lack of comfort for fellow users.'

3. The bans only apply to peak hour trains travelling in one direction
It has been noted that the ban on taking bikes on trains is not total. It applies only during peak hours and then only in the direction of highest passenger usage. Thus many bike-riding users of both country and urban trains will be able to take their bikes on trains and those that are unable to do so will be barred from taking their bicycles with them only at certain times and in certain directions.
Vic Link, a guide to public transport in Melbourne and Victoria states, 'Bikes can still be carried free of charge on all other metropolitan train services, including trains travelling in the counter peak direction (e.g. outbound in the morning peak and inbound in the afternoon peak). For example, this means that if you are travelling from Flinders Street Station to Brighton Beach Station at 7.30am or from Yarraville Station to Melbourne Central Station at 5pm, a customer can carry a bike on a train.'
V/Line will carry bicycles on the following scheduled off-peak train services: trains travelling on weekdays in a counter-peak direction (including those departing Melbourne before 9.00 am or arriving in Melbourne between 4.00pm and 6.00pm);
trains travelling at off-peak times on weekdays (9.00am and 4.00pm) and trains departing Melbourne after 6.00pm. Bicycles will also be carried on V/Line trains at any time on weekends.

4. Bikes on peak hour trains are a significant inconvenience to other train travellers
It has been claimed by those who support the ban that bikes are a significant inconvenience for other train travellers. It has been suggested that there relatively small number on trains is not the issue. Their opponents claim that every single bike on a peak hour train is an inconvenience.
The problems bicycles cause are said to include making it harder for passengers to get on and off trains; slowing down train arrival and departure times because bicyclists themselves take longer to get on and off trains; taking up space that could be occupied by three or four passengers and creating the risk if injury or other harm to fellow commuters.
In a letter to the editor published in The Age on January 4, 2008, Ian Sequeira stated, 'To all you detractors up in arms over the fact that bicycles have been banned on peak hour trains, have you ever had trousers ruined because they got caught on a bike pedal as you were exiting the train? I have, and it was not a cheap experience. Have you ever had to pay for dry cleaning because someone's dirty bike wheel brushed against the suit you normally wear to work? I have, and had to suffer the indignity of having to wear a muddied suit all day. Have you ever been unable to get on a crowded peak hour train because bikes occupy spaces where people might stand? I have. I've paid for my ticket, but the cyclists had their bikes on the train free of charge.
To those people who complain about the ban, could you possibly see things from the passenger's point of view, rather than the cyclists'?

5. The Department of Infrastructure and Connex are trialling improved bike parking facilities
Bicycle Victoria and others have stated that for most bike riders a far better solution is to be able to leave their bikes securely at railway stations. A spokesperson for Bicycle Victoria has stated, 'It is our belief that due to their limitations, bike parking facilities across the metropolitan network are not being utilised effectively and therefore we are currently working on a pilot with the Department of Infrastructure and Connex to establish a secure bicycle parking cage at Eltham Station. If the pilot is successful as we expect it to be, then we can look forward to a roll out of cages around the train networks. This will be a first in Australia."
Connex currently has 838 individual bike racks at 119 stations and 933 individual bike lockers at 85 stations. Lockers can be rented at stations and booked at the nearest Premium Station (staffed from first to last service) with a bond deposit payable.
On January 12, 2008, The Age published a letter from Geoff Noblett in which he stated, 'Surely the solution to the problem of bicycles on trains centres on providing improved lock-up facilities at outer suburban and country stations. Amsterdam and Rotterdam in Holland both provide exemplary examples of this approach. To encourage commuters to keep bikes off trains, Connex and V/Line should then consider subsidising the cost of hiring a bike at the other end.'

Arguments opposing the ban on bikes on trains
1. Some commuters are unable to get to their destinations without their bikes
It has been claimed that the bike ban will be a major inconvenience for some commuters. Mr Daniel Bowen, the president of the Public Transport Users Association, has stated, 'There are some people who genuinely need to use their bike at both ends of their train journey, so a total ban doesn't make any sense.'
The print media has reported on the problems being faced by a number of commuters who would be without a means to get to work if bikes were banned from trains during peak hours.
On January 8, 2008, The Age published a story which referred in part to the plight of Mr Toby Rushford from Gisborne, who rides five kilometres to the railway station each morning, and then, after arriving in Melbourne, rides three kilometres from Southern Cross Station to where he works in St Kilda Road.
Mr Rushford has said the bike ban left him with a choice of buying a car or changing jobs. He was reported as claiming, 'I have an alternative, but it isn't a workable alternative.
The same article also outlined the position of Mr Craig Fleming who rides his bike five kilometres from his home in West Melton to the Melton station and rides the 5.18am train 27 kilometres to Ardeer and rides for another 25 minutes to get to work. There are no other public transport options available to him. Mr Fleming has stated, 'We are a one-car family, and with two people working I have no real alternative to get to work other than this existing method.'

2. Bikes are not a major inconvenience on trains
It has been claimed that bicycles are not a major inconvenience on trains as relatively few bicyclists take their bikes on trains.
In a letter published in The Age on January 3, 2008, Sarah Rodgers wrote, 'The removal of bikes on trains will not reduce overcrowding significantly. The time frame for the current ban (4-7pm) is unreasonably long and allows no flexibility to the bike commuter. In my experience most cyclists avoid trains between 4.30 and 6pm because this is when they are most crowded. Outside these hours, the inconvenience to other passengers could be better managed by mandating the first five carriages as bicycle-free with the last carriage open to cyclists.'
It has been noted that a system similar to that proposed by Sarah Rodgers operates in some other countries. In Germany, where bike riders have had to pay the price of another ticket to take their bikes on trains, along with the class designation and the smoking or non-smoking designation, cars designed to take bicycles will have a pictograph of a bicycle next to the door outside the car.
On January 3, 2008, The Age also published a letter from Phil Bourke in which it was stated, 'Just what problem is the Government trying to solve by banning bikes and cyclists from peak-hour train services? No data is offered to substantiate this ban. I doubt if there are more than 100 bikes on all peak-hour services - averaging less than one per train.'

3. Country trains make provision for bike storage
It has been claimed that the ban on taking bicycles onto trains during peak hours is particularly unnecessary with regard to country trains which have special provision to carry bikes.
Mr Laurie Whelan, a former Bendigo councillor has noted that the new velocity regional trains have specifically allowed room for bikes.
Mr Whelan has stated, 'It's a step backwards in the sense that people are using that combination of cycling and public transport because you can get around a lot quicker and easier when you use that combination.
There is a strong case for country services to be excluded from the new rule. As far as I'm aware the Connex trains don't have a specific compartment whereas the new velocity trains do. If it is not a velocity train then it's the loco carriage set and they have a guard's luggage compartment.'
Mr Whelan has further noted, 'This is a total contradiction of their policy aimed at getting more people to use the services? Do they expect people to stand where the bicycle space is? Well, they can't, because there is shelf there - it's totally ludicrous.
I can understand it for the metropolitan system where Connex is running at capacity, but to apply it across the state does not make sense.
People knowing these (bike) facilities are available on the V/Locity trains have made them quite popular.'

4. Banning bikes on trains is environmentally ill-judged and ill-timed
The banning of bikes on peak hours trains has been condemned as particularly inappropriate as bikes are an environmentally friendly and economical form of transport.
It has also been noted that bicycles are enjoying a surge in popularity as commuters are attracted by their non-polluting quality and their inexpensiveness.
Project co-ordinator of the Mount Alexander Sustainability Group, Dean Bridgfoot, has argued that public transport providers should think laterally.
Mr Bridgfoot has stated, 'The issues of climate change and the rising cost of petrol means people are only going to use public transport more.' He emphasised that the V/Line service was not the problem, the problem was the denying of the service to cyclists wishing to take their bikes on board. Mr Bridgefoot argued, 'We need more of the train services. And we need a holistic approach. It takes real leadership from service providers to deal with climate change.'
In an article published in The Age on January 7, 2008, it was noted that Australia is experiencing a boom in pedal power, with bicycles outselling motor vehicles in 2007 - for the eighth consecutive year.
More than 1.4 million bikes were bought around the nation in 2007, compared to just over one million new motor vehicle sales, according to figures compiled by motor vehicle sales monitoring agency VFACTS and Customs.
The Cycling Promotion Fund (CPF), who are urging the federal government to invest in cycling infrastructure, say the figures show Australians have greater awareness of climate change and their health.
Rosemarie Speidel, the program director of CPF has noted, 'Australians want to become more active and are looking for practical ways to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.'
Keith Longridge, the president of the Bendigo Bicycle Users Group has claimed that ability for peak-hour commuters including workers and schoolchildren to use a 'roll-on, roll-off' combination of regional rail and bikes eased parking congestion at stations all along the line as well as having numerous greenhouse and health benefits.
Mr Longridge stated, 'The government is preaching sustainability, but it is not living up to it. And it is this lack of integration across the whole of the system that drives people crazy.'

5. The problem of overcrowded trains is not caused by bikes
It has been claimed that banning bikes from peak hour trains is a bandaid solution that does not address the cause of the problem. The solution, it has been claimed, is to provide more and better trains, not to bar bicycles.
Mr Daniel Bowen, the president of the Public Transport Users Association, has stated, 'It smacks of blaming the passenger for the failings of the system. We should have enough trains to cope with bikes during peak hour.'
Mr Elliot Fishman from the Institute for Sensible Transport has stated, 'This is an admission that they are not coping with the increase in passenger numbers.' Again, Mr Fishman has indicated that the solution is to improve the service, not ban the bikes.
In a letter published in The Age on January 3, 2008, Alice Burnett wrote, 'It is not legions of cyclists and armies of gargantuan bicycles that are putting the train system under stress but the sheer volume of commuters and the failure of Connex and the Government to adapt to this demand. Surely, the severe overcrowding that has prompted this decision would be best addressed by increasing the number of services.'
Also on January 3, 2008, The Age published a letter from Phil Bourke in which it was stated, 'The real cause of train crowding, as in any peak demand time, is lack of space to transport the available demand. So we need more trains, more often, so they are all less crowded and all travellers can be comfortably accommodated. Contrast the Government's haste to ban some users on trains with what they do with cars and freeways - just build more space.'

Further implications
Initially there was some dispute as to where the impetus for the tightening of regulations regarding the carrying of bikes on trains came from. Some commentators blamed Connex, others blamed the Victorian government. Connex has always maintained it supported the ban, while giving the impression that it had not precipitated it. Later, Stacey Hume, a spokesperson for the Victorian Transport Minister, Lynne Kosky, said service providers V/Line and Connex had requested the ban.
It would appear that in the face of the anticipated opposition from bike riders neither the Government nor Connex and V/Line wanted to be send as responsible for the ban.
The V/Line situation remains unresolved. No mention was made in the 2008 revised operating manual of a ban on carrying bikes on V/Line trains. When the ban was then announced in the press it was condemned by some as evidence of the Government's lack of considered policy.
Shortly afterwards V/Line announced a short-term postponement of the ban. The bike ban will now not be imposed on V/Line trains until February 8, 2008.
In the light of continued opposition to the ban and the fact that many V/Line trains have provision for bicycles it is possible that bicycles will ultimately be allowed to be carried on these trains.
Regarding Connex, it will be interesting to see whether the Victorian Government responds positively to Connex's proposed new services and improvements to its timetable. The Government has indicated that it will conduct a review of services in 2008. If it decides to extend services there may be a review of the bike ban on Connex trains.

Newspaper items used in the compilation of this issue outline
The Age: January 2, page 11, comment (satire) by John Weldon, `Connex solves overcrowding! Trains will not stop, at all'.
Herald-Sun: January 2, page 18, comment by Daniel Bowen, `The road to rail'.
Herald-Sun: January 2, page 16, letters (3), `Bicycles have no place on trains / Put the cyclists up the front / Bike ban just means more cars on roads'.
The Age: January 13, page 17, comment by Jason Dowling, `Cyclists still find their path blocked by bureaucracy'.
The Age: January 15, page 2, news item by Stephen Moynihan, `Station tries cages to ease peak bike ban'.
The Age: January 1, news item by Clay Lucas, `Bike racks or not, cycles banned on peak-hour trains'.
Herald-Sun: January 9, page 13, news item by Geraldine Mitchell, `Chain falls off bike law'.
The Age: January 8, page 5, news item by Clay Lucas, `Country cyclists win reprieve from railways bike ban'.
The Age: January 3, page 10, letters (4), `Cycle ban defies common sense / Connex irresponsible / It's simple: more trains / Make them pay'.
The Age: October 17, page 10, editorial, `Peddling the right message for Melbourne'.
The Age: January 12, page 10, letter, `Subsidise riders'.
The Age: January 4, letters (2), `Thanks, Ms Kosky / Cycling backwards'.