Not really anything special, but I thought I'd post it anyways.

The first thing I noticed was route 112, followed by the lack of a route 58, and then the info website being metlinkmelbourne

Congrats to DavidDoesLemmy for guessing the year, and shoutout to Duenan for getting close

Correct answer: 2011. Congrats to DavidDoesLemmy for getting it! If anybody's curious about the unredacted map, I've posted it here.

I blurred out the issuance date for obvious reasons, but can anybody determine the approximate date from the map design and routes?

Found it in the info book for the hotel I'm currently staying at and thought it might make a good game!

Cruel, but accurate and hilarious.

Article text:

Melbourne’s tram network will be handed over to a new operator at the end of this year, with promises of improved reliability and customer service on the world’s largest light-rail system.

Victorian Public Transport Minister Gabrielle Williams announced on Friday morning that Keolis Downer’s contract will not be renewed after running the network for the past 14 years.

French outfit Transdev and Chinese-government-owned construction giant John Holland will take over from December 1 and run it for nine years under a contract worth $6.8 billion.

Williams said the new contract includes strict benchmarks for service performance, and new technology would be rolled out to give passengers better real-time information about tram arrivals.

“Melbourne is home to the largest tram network in the world and this new contract will make sure our trams continue to move Victorians around safely, quickly and easily,” Williams said

Transdev and John Holland outbid Keolis Downer and another shortlisted consortium led by Melbourne-based SkyBus owner Kinetic.

Public Transport Users Association spokesman Daniel Bowen said he hoped the new operator would deliver better real-time arrival information and improve cleanliness and punctuality.

However, he said it was up to the state government to deliver the network’s most pressing upgrades: accessible low-floor trams and stops, on-road priority so trams aren’t delayed by traffic, and more frequent services – particularly in the evenings.

“You’re waiting on most routes 30 minutes between services on Sunday evening – that’s up to the government to commit to fixing,” Bowen said.

John Holland, which is building Victoria’s Metro Tunnel and the West Gate Tunnel Project, is currently a partner in Metro Trains.

Metro’s contract was due to expire at the end of 2024. But the state government extended it by 18 months in 2023 to mid-2026, to avoid changing operators during testing for the new Metro Tunnel, which is due to open in 2025.

Last month, the Allan government granted Metro another 18-month extension, meaning it will run the train network until at least November 2027.

Rail Tram and Bus Union Victoria secretary Vik Sharma said he welcomed the government’s commitment to service improvements through the new contract, which “members have long been waiting for”.

“This is positive news for members’ job security and opportunities into the future, supported by additional training for staff to support our diverse travelling community,” Sharma said.

Transdev operates transit systems in 19 countries and was part of a consortium that ran Yarra Trams from 1999 to 2009. It also ran about one-third of Melbourne’s bus network from 2013 to 2022.

Alternate title (also via the ABC):

"V/Line passenger numbers are up but failure to deliver extra services brings a host of problems for commuters"

We got off the train through a set of emergency stairs. It was cool

Unfortunately, this does not mark the return of a public train service to Mildura. It does, however, mark the beginning of private train services the general public is permitted to travel on.

This is the last photo I will be posting of today's 707 Vinelander tour to Mildura until it starts the journey back to Melbourne on Monday morning.

We were told today that a heritage train actually ran in 2016. It was just a single car DERM run by DERMPAV. This Vinelander would be closer to what was regularly seen on the line before its closure (an N class + 5 N sets + guards and power van

NB I edited out 2 people who were standing near the loco to clean up the shot a bit

I'll be on it, so if anybody wants to see it somewhere or a more precise timetable, lmk and if I have data and see the notification I'll let you know where we are

Thursday 6 June:

Friday 7 June:

Monday 10 June:

Tuesday 11 June:

The "[rebuilt]" part is mine as I felt the original title may be misleading. The stations aren't really new in the sense that they've never existed before, more that they are being moved above ground to remove level crossings

(before you come at me, I don't use Twitter. I stole it from a dude on Reddit, who yoinked it off Twitter)