Melbourne

The City of Melbourne is the local government council area to the west of the City of Yarra.

Melbourne adopted its Transport Strategy 2030 in October 2019, containing many best-practice policy elements that Yarra should adopt.

Walking

Melbourne is proposing to improve amenity for people walking, including widening footpaths, reducing crossing distances, and allocating more crossing time.

Cycling

Melbourne is proposing to make all streets safe for cycling, including investing in 50 km of protected bicycle lanes, asking the state government to build a further 40 km, and constructing protected intersections.

The map below shows Melbourne’s proposed network of protected bicycle lanes, with multiple links to Yarra. The next step is for Yarra to commit to extending these bicycle lanes through Yarra to other councils.

Public transport

Melbourne is proposing to improve the amenity around each public transport stop, improving safety, speed and enjoyability.

Melbourne will also advocate for significantly improved public transport across greater Melbourne, including the construction two cross-city rail lines, a suburban rail loop, in addition to the already announced Melbourne Metro 1 and Airport Rail Link.

Parking

Melbourne supports the economically rational allocation of public land, including a trial of demand-responsive pricing for on-street car parking.

Car sharing

Melbourne is proposing to remove barriers to the expansion of car sharing, aiming to quadruple the number of car sharing vehicles from 500 to 2,000.

In contrast, the City of Yarra’s car share policy caps growth to 283 vehicles by 2024. Melbourne’s strategy is evidence based, and should be replicated in Yarra.

Independent reviews

Hussein Dia, Professor of Future Urban Mobility at the Swinburne University of Technology, reviewed the draft strategy in an article in The Conversation, summarising it as a ‘sensible plan for a liveable future’, and ‘If well executed and implemented, the strategy’s proposals will improve liveability and access to the city’.

Ratio Consultants reviewed the draft strategy, concluding “the delivery of the draft Transport Strategy by the City of Melbourne is a step in the right direction regarding the delivery of a transport system that responds to the future growth and needs of the CBD. Ratio as been a long-standing advocate of liveable futures and is heartened by the significant work that has been undertaken by the City of Melbourne in the creation of the draft Transport Strategy.”

Conclusion

Melbourne’s Transport Strategy 2030 contains many best practice elements that Yarra should adopt.