The

Monorail
Alternative
Monorails cost 10% - 15% of Rail Subways
and can carry
60,000 assen!ers " hour#
An e$tensive Monorail Syste% can be constructed for a
fraction of the rice of the roosed road and rail tunnels#
A sub%ission for the &ast 'est (in) *eeds Assess%ent study
Alan Ide
9
th
of July 2008
(Download document at www.NewAustralia.net to use hyperlinks)
The Monorail Alternative
The East West Monorail Solution
Imagine gliding silently above Melbourne's trees and traffic on a graceful and elegant
Monorail and being able to build it for a fraction of the cost of a rail subway
! eattle monorail (Image: Wikipedia)
The Proposal
Much more "ublic trans"ort can be built by building monorail lines then s"ending #$%&' (illion
on road ) rail tunnels*
&ast-'est (in) Route " *otes +ost
,-.illions/
0i!hoint 1 Ashburton Monorail +ootscray ,(- -omain ,aulfield
,hadstone .olmesglen / Ashwood&
-1#2
3oc)land 1 3oncaster Monorail 0onsdale !treet1 Albert 2oad1 .oddle !treet1
3astern +reeway1 -oncaster 2oad&
-1#4
Southern +ross 1 Rich%ond
Rail Subway
A 2 4m rail subway with one underground
station lin4ed to +linders !treet !tation
-0#5
T6TA( -7#2
Why Monorail?
Monorails are the chea"est way of adding grade/se"arated1 high/ca"acity "ublic trans"ort over the
gridloc4 on the ground&
Monorails are roven# Many monorail systems are in use as high/ca"acity "ublic trans"ort systems
carrying thousands of "assengers a day&
Monorails are safe# (eing totally grade/se"arated monorails are one of the safest forms of trans"ort&
Monorails are environ%entally friendly# Monorails have similar energy/efficiency to other mass/
transit systems& 5hey are far less energy/intensive to build than a rail subway while having a far lower
foot"rint than surface rail& Monorails can be installed with a minimum of disru"tion on the ground and
have a lower visual im"act than other ty"es of elevated rail systems& Monorails can travel at over
804m6h "roviding an e7cellent alternative to cars in crowded cities&
Monorails are cost effective# 2etrofitting a subway to a crowded city is usually "rohibitively
e7"ensive& 8reat uncertainties usually e7ist as to the full cost of dealing with the myriad underground
services 9sewers1 storm water1 mains water1 electricity ) gas&: as well as geological challenges such
as roc4 and mud& ;ften subway systems are below sea/level creating many e7"ensive and time/
consuming challenges during construction and maintenance&
Monorails are 8uic) to build# 5he monorails "ro"osed here could be built in time for the 20$0
election&
4
The Monorail Alternative
Monorails Cost Less
Monorail systems cost about 14% er )ilo%etre of a subway system& ,onstruction ris4s are less with
Monorail system due to the ease of above/ground construction&
Transort Syste% +ost er
)ilo%etre
,-Millions/
*otes
.eavy rail subway -A 211 +rom !ir 3ddington's re"ort / #< (illion for $<
4ilometres&
!hanhai Maglev Monorail
95ransra"id:
#=! >0 ,onstructed in 20021 s"eeds u" to '00 4m 6 h& ,ost
#=! $&2 (illion for ?0 4m&
;4inawa Monorail @ 9.itachi: #=! 2< ,onstructed in 200? and now o"erating& A Medium
siAed monorail with flat wal4/through floors&
Bita4yushu Monorail @ 9.itachi: #=! %2 0arge monorail system with full/siAed carriages&
+lat wal4/through floors& ,onstructed $98'&
5o4yo/.aneda Monorail @
9.itachi:
#=! $' Medium siAed monorail with wal4/through floors&
,onstructed $9%>&
Buala 0um"ur Monorail @
9Monorail Malaysia:
#=! ?% A recent two/carriage monorail system on high
"illars&
Melbourne &ast-'est
Monorail
-A 50 CroDected cost of .itachi 'Medium siAed' monorail&
@ !ee Monorail !ociety cost data "age&
9roosal Aro$i%ate
3istance
,)ilo%etres/
+ost er )ilo%etre
,-A Millions/
&sti%ated Total +ost
,-.illions/
.igh"oint Ashburton Monorail 28 #'0 -1#2
-oc4land -oncaster Monorail 2? #'0 -1#4
!outhern ,ross 2ichmond 2ail
!ubway
2 #>$$ -0#5
Total +ost -7#2
Re%ainder fro% -16#5 .illion -17#1
Eote that some of this cost should be recou"ed from a FMonorail land ta7G on commercial land near
monorail stations& .igh"oint1 ,rown and ,hadstone would be e7"ected to donate s"ace to route the
monorail to their "ro"erties&
5he remainder of the #$? (illion could fund
$
*
="grade signalling to allow 2/minute headway throughout metro area&
2ail e7tensions to 2owville1 !outh Morang1 Mornington ) Alamein to 3ast Malvern&
3lectrification to !unbury1 Melton ) 8eelong&
Many tram and bus im"rovements& Curchase of more trains&
="grades to the regional rail networ4& !tandardisation of 4ey freight routes&
-u"licate single/line trac4s& 37tra e7"ress trac4s from +ootscray !unshine&
2emove flat rail crossovers between !outhern ,ross and Eorth Melbourne stations&
,layton !tation Monash Medical Monash =ni !"ringvale 2oad / Eunawading monorail&
Building rail subways is so expensive it should only be onsidered as a last resort!
$See What to do with ! "illion# ta$ in Schedule.%ls
7
The Monorail Alternative
Monorail Syste" Capaity
Monorails ca"acity varies widely from small tourist systems to the giant 5ama commuter trains&
Monorail Tye &$a%le 9assen!er
(oad
+arria!es 9assen!ers " hour "
direction with 4
%inute headway
:ery S%all
?0 4m6h

3&g& !ydney
>8
9!eated:
< $1>>0
0itachi - S%all
%0 4m6h
3&g& !inga"ore
2>8
9Cea4:
> <1>>0
0itachi -
Mediu%
80 4m6h
,Reco%%ended
for Melbourne/
3&g& 5o4yo ) ;4inawa
$100%
9Cea4:
% ?01$80
0itachi - (ar!e
80 4m6h
3&g& 5ama ) Bita4yushu
$1$'8
9Cea4:
% ?>1<>0
5he high ca"acity of the .itachi monorails is due to the wheels being below the floor1 unli4e the low/
ca"acity !ydney monorail which has the wheels between each car& Cassengers in all .itachi monorails
can move through the full length of the monorail train&
5he "assenger loadings for the .itachi monorails were "rovided by .itachi Australia as "art of their
review of an earlier version of this document& .itachi Australia suggests a "ea4 standee loading of 8
"eo"le6sH& meter with <? 4g6"erson& Eote that the .itachi system/ca"acity "age "rovides higher loading
figures suitable for Ja"anese commuters&
2
The Monorail Alternative
Monorail Cars
Le#t: &he 'lat walk(through 'loor on a )itachi*s +itakyushu monorail.(Image: )itachi )
$ight: &okyo ,onorail. Note the 'ront door 'or emergency e-acuation $etween trains. (Image:
Wikipedia)
.itachi monorails are characterised with an o"en layout allowing for loads of about $1000 "assengers on
a Medium/siAed si7/car train&
5he straddle/beam A0I38 designs shown on this "age are recommended over the sus"ended car
designs such as !A+383 to reduce the visual im"act of beams and the ris4 of truc4 / monorail
collisions&
As A0I38 monorails run on rubber tyres and are "owered by electric motors they are very Huiet&
0evels of <'d( are Huoted here for .itachi A0I38 systems& 0i4e other "ublic trans"ort1 monorails
would reHuire adeHuate heating and cooling to ensure "assenger comfort&
%isabled &ess
5he Monorail system can be accessed by lift from street level& As lift floor1 "latform floor and monorail
car floors are at the same level there is no im"ediment to the disabled "erson using a Monorail system&
.itachi's vehicles are also able to acce"t a wal4way to evacuate disabled "assengers between monorail
trains should a monorail become stranded between stations&
Ti'eting
Ideally the Monorail would use the new my4i system or whatever system is in "lace for the rest of
Melbourne's "ublic trans"ort&
Alternatively the Monorail could be 'free' with o"erating costs being met with a monorail land/ta7
surcharge&
5
The Monorail Alternative
Stations
!tations can be built into e7isting buildings increasing the value of the building& Minor stations could
have a smaller foot"rint if they use multi"le lifts rather than escalators& !tairs should also be "rovided for
the athletic as well as for emergencies&
Ideally stations would be translucent to reduce visual im"act& 5his would entail as much as "ossible of
the structure being constructed of glass or other trans"arent material& !olar "anels could "rovide "ower
to the station& !tation walls would "robably need to wra" around the monorail to "rovide "rotection for
"assengers in bad weather&
A station on the small Sydney monorail. .se o' transparent materials should reduce the
impact o' the station while retaining the weather(proo'ing (Image: Wikipedia)
6
The Monorail Alternative
&esthetis
,oscow monorail (Image: Wikipedia)
MelbourneGs monorail could be a great visual asset to the city and a maDor tourist draw card if adeHuate
attention is given to the design of the "illars and beamway& 95his has not always been the case with
other e7isting monorails&:
A FMedium siAedG monorail such as the !eattle Monorail is recommended for Melbourne& 5he Flarge
siAedG monorail such as the Bita4yushu Monorail "robably has too large a visual im"act&
5he Moscow Monorail shows that it is Huite "ossible to have aesthetic su""ort "illars& 5he beam should
be "laced above street trees to avoid the need for tree removal1 as demonstrated with sections of the
5o4yo Monorail& !ome Ja"anese monorail "illars are covered in lattice wor4 to encourage cree"ers to
cover the "illar& 5his would discourage graffiti& !ee also the !inga"ore Monorail "illars&
Advertising should not be "ermitted on "illars1 monorail cars or the beamway& Cillar design should be
sim"le and elegant / the obDective should be to fit in with Melbourne rather than stand out from it&
Swithing
5here is a myth that monorails have a "roblem with switching& .owever1 in reality all serious monorail
systems have switches that are used continuously in day/to/day o"eration&
5he "ro"osed system reHuires switching at the Ashburton end and from the main beamway to storage
and maintenance facilities& 5his can be achieved using one of the methods e7"lained by 5he Monorail
!ociety on their switch myth "age& !ee also .itachi 5rac4 !witch "age& (oth sites have video cli"s of
switches in o"eration&
5he Melbourne Monorail would "robably use the !egmented !witches shown on the above "ages&
;
The Monorail Alternative
Sa#ety
Monorail systems are not immune from "roblems caused by "oor design&
5he !eattle monorail has suffered a collision between two cars on a section of trac4 where the beams
were too close together& 5he beams should always be far enough a "art to allow monorails to "ass
without signalling&
Ihere monorail "ylons are located on or near road or rail lines they should be built to withstand
substantial im"acts without colla"se&
As far as "ossible Monorail cars should be fire "roof and "rovide some means of esca"e& .itachi
recommends evacuation from one monorail train to another one on the adDacent beam / although this
has never been necessary in "ractice& .itachi monorails can also be cou"led together and "assengers
evacuated through the front or rear doors& 9!ee .itachi web site for diagram&:
Ihere monorail beams cross roads with a height clearance less than other e7isting infrastructure then
a "rotecting beam should be "laced across the road ahead of the monorail beam&
5he monorail should draw "ower at multi"le "oints and have multi"le bac4/u" generators ca"able of at
least moving the monorail cars to the ne7t station&
All monorail stations should be staffed& !taff should be trained in first aid and be ready to assist the
disabled as well as "roviding security and information&
&ama monorail / a )itachi 0arge &ype# monorail carrying o-er 1222 passengers per 3(car
train at up to 42 km5h. (Image: Wikipedia)
5
The Monorail Alternative
& Case Study( The To'yo Monorail
5he 5o4yo Monorail ( a *,edium Si6ed* )itachi monorail. (Image: Wikipedia)
5he 5o4yo .aneda Monorail "rovides a great e7am"le of how well a monorail can "erform and is a
good model for a Melbourne Monorail&
$2<1000 Cassengers 6 day&
2
$&' (illion Cassengers from $9%> January 200<&
9 !tations&
$< 4m&
'00 5rain 6 day o"erating 0'*?0 2>*00&
80 4m 6 h to" s"eed&
,ost J#=! $' Million 6 4m to build& 9Includes a tunnel1 seismic "rotection and several long/
s"an bridges that are not reHuired in Melbourne& Many su""ort "illions are on reclaimed land or
in canals& :
2un at a "rofit by a "rivate o"erator&
-ual/beam system with switches at each end&
Ihile technically similar to what I "ro"ose for Melbourne1 more attention needs to be given to "illar
aesthetics than is evident in this and some other Monorails&
2See 7apan &imes Article 89 7an 822:
<
The Monorail Alternative
)ighpoint &shburton Monorail $oute
0i!hoint 1 =ootscray 1 +.3 1 3o%ain - >ueens Road 1 'indsor -
+aulfield 1 +hadstone 1 0ol%es!len 1 Ashwood - Ashburton
37ce"t for the turning loo" at the .igh"oint end of the system1 the beamway would consist of two beams
su""orted on single "illars& Cillars would generally be located on the median stri"s of maDor roads and
not result in loss of roadway e7ce"t on Kueens 2oad& 9,lic4 =20 to see relevant 8oogle Ma"&:
Se!%ent "
Monorail
Station
3etails Available Transort
?nterchan!e
0i!hoint
Return (oo
$>0m diameter single/beam loo" with maintenance
wal4way and some stabling& Crovision for future e7tension
to Air"orts
.igh"oint !tation between .igh"oint .ome Ma4er and !ho""ing
,entre&
.igh"oint bus services&
.igh"oint /
+lemington
-ual/beam over Ci"e Ma4ers Car41 Maribyrnong 2iver and
+ischer Carade to +lemington 2acecourse
+lemington !tation at Iest/end of main stadiums& =le%in!ton Railway (ine
+lemington
Lictoria
=niversity
-ual/beam over +ischer Carade and "ar4land&
Lictoria
=niversity
!tation over Mills ,lose Eone&
Lictoria
=niversity /
+ootscray
-ual beam over Eicholson !treet1 over low/rise sho"s to
+ootscray 2ailway !tation&
+ootscray 5he +ootscray Monorail !tation is above Irving !treet and
the +ootscray 2ailway !tation&
@eelon!, Altona,
'illia%stown, Melton,
.endi!o, St# Albans lines "lus
bus and tram services&
+ootscray /
Eorth
Melbourne
-ual/beam over .o"4ins !treet and -ynon 2oad&
5he main maintenance and Monorail storage facility could
be located at some "oint adDacent to -ynon 2oad&
Eorth
Melbourne
Monorail !tation is over railway station& .road%eadows, Afield and all
Eorth Melbourne lines&
Eorth
Melbourne
!outhern ,ross
-ual/beam over rail trac4s leaving s"ace for future rail
over"asses that are needed to remove flat rail crossings in
this area&
!outhern ,ross Monorail !tation is over L60ine "latforms near !"encer
!treet and under e7isting roof structure&
All rail services#
,ollins1 (our4e and !"encer
!treet 5rams&
!outhern ,ross
37hibition
Monorail e7its through new o"ening in !outh wall over
,ollins !treet and in front of the new Age building along
!"encer !treet& -ual beam crosses over rail viaduct and
Marra 2iver to 37hibition !tation& !ome loss of "ar4ing in
!"encer !treet&
,rown Monorail !tation is over or near ,rown ,asino near
,larendon !treet& +ootbridge to 37hibition ,entre&
!t& Bilda1 Cort Melbourne1 Albert
Car4 5rams&
37hibition
!outh
Melbourne
-ual/beam over ,larendon !treet1 Ihitman !treet1 Bings
Iay !treet ;2 another route over the M$ 5oll way&
10
The Monorail Alternative
Se!%ent "
Monorail
Station
3etails Available Transort
?nterchan!e
!outh
Melbourne
!tation near the intersection of !turt !treet and Bings Iay& !turt !treet and Bings Iay
trams
!outh
Melbourne /
-omain
Cower !treet1 !turt !treet1 Bings Iay1 Car4 !treet
-omain Monorail !tation is over -omain tram interchange All !t& Bilda 2oad 5rams
-omain /
0eo"old
-ual/beam over !t& Bilda 2oad 9north service lane over
trees: and (owen ,rescent to Kueens 2oad& (eam over
street trees& !ome loss of car "ar4ing s"aces&
0eo"old !tation over Kueens 2oad ) 0eo"old !treets& ,onnecting
wal4way from Albert Car4 to Armadale !treet over Kueen
and !t& Bilda 2oads&
!t& Bilda 2oad 5rams
0eo"old
0orne
-ual beam continues over centre of Kueens 2oad&
0orne !tation over Kueens 2oad ) 0orne !treets& ,onnecting
wal4way from Albert Car4 to .igh !treet over Kueen and
!t& Bilda 2oads&
!t& Bilda 2oad 5rams
0orne
Iindsor
-ual/beam along Kueens 2oad to Crinces .wy&
Iindsor ;ver Crinces .wy& Sandrin!ha% (ine#
,ha"el !treet 5rams
Iindsor
Malvern
-ual/beam along Crinces .wy& Cylons on Eorth side of
central median stri" with beam over street trees&
Malvern ;ver or near Malvern 2ailway !tation& 8lenferrie 2oad and .awthorne
2oad 5rams&
+ranbourne, 9a)enha% and
=ran)ston (ine
Malvern
,aulfield
-ual/beam along Crinces .wy and then along !ir John
Monash -rive&
,aulfield ;ver !ir John Monash -rive adDacent to ,aulfield 2ailway
!tation&
9Cossible monorail stabling over current rail wor4 yards:
+ranbourne, 9a)enha% and
=ran)ston (ine#
Eo ? 5ram&
,aulfield /
,arnegie
-ual/beam along !ir John Monash -rive and -andenong
2oad 6 Crinces .wy
,arnegie !tation over Bornang 2oad&
,arnegie /
,hadstone
-ual/beam along -andenong 2oad 6 Crinces .wy1
entering sho""ing centre near -avid Jones&
,hadstone !tation in1 over or ne7t to ,hadstone !ho""ing ,entre& ,hadstone bus services
,hadstone
.olmesglen
-ual beam along Middle 2oad and Iarrigal .wy over9N:
Monash +reeway&
.olmesglen Monorail !tation at 3ast/end of .olmesglen 5A+3 near
railway station&
@len 'averley Railway (ine#
.olmesglen
Ashwood
-ual beam along Iarrigal .wy median stri"&
Ashwood !tation near .igh !treet Iarrigal .wy intersection
Ashwood/
Ashburton
-ual beam above .igh !treet median stri"&
Ashburton Monorail station over Ashburton 2ailway !tation car "ar4&
(eam switch to allow trains to return to .igh"oint&
Ala%ein Railway (ine
Ashburton
Ter%inus
!tabling for several monorails over rail easement Eorth of
station between red tennis courts and rail line&
11
The Monorail Alternative
)ighpoint Southern Cross Station Seg"ent
Monorail "ath shown in red&
37isting heavy rail M35 lines shown in blue&
9Ma"s courtesy of 8oogle Ma"s:
14
The Monorail Alternative
Southern Cross &la"ein $ailway Line Seg"ent
5his segment connects the !andringham1 -andenong1 +ran4ston1 8len Iaverley and Alamein heavy
rail lines&
17
The Monorail Alternative
%o'lands * %onaster Monorail $oute
3oc)lands 1 (onsdale Street 1 Albert Road 1 0oddle Street 1 &astern
=reeway 1 3oncaster Road 1 Srin!vale Road - *unawadin!
37ce"t for the turning loo" at the -oc4lands end of the system1 the beamway would consist of two
beams su""orted on single "illars& Cillars would generally be located on the median stri"s of maDor
roads and not result in loss of roadway& 9,lic4 =20 to see relevant 8oogle Ma"&:
Se!%ent "
Monorail
Station
3etails Available Transort
?nterchan!e
-oc4lands
Return (oo
A single/beam loo" around the doc4lands area with a
station&
!outhern ,ross !tation over the -+; near !outhern ,ross .igh"oint Ashburton Monorail
All other rail lines&
0onsdale !treet -ual/beam over trees
Melbourne
,entral
!tation over Myer/end of Melbourne ,entral 9above
wal4way:
All loo" services
0onsdale !treet -ual/beam over trees
Carliament !tation near Carliament 2ail !tation All loo" services& 5rams&
Albert 2oad )
.oddle !treet
-ual beam over trees&
Eorth 2ichmond 0in4 to Eorth 2ichmond 2ail !tation ,lifton .ill 0ines1 5rams
.oddle !treet -ual/beam over trees
Lictoria Car4 Monorail !tation is near railway station& ,lifton .ill 0ines
3astern
+reeway
-ual/beam on median stri" with "rotective barriers&
,handler Monorail !tation near ,handler .ighway& (uses
3astern
+reeway
-ual/beam on median stri" with "rotective barriers&
(ur4e Monorail !tation is near (ur4e 2oad (uses
3astern
+reeway
-ual/beam on median stri" with "rotective barriers&
(ulleen 2oad !tation near intersection& (uses
3astern
+reeway
-ual/beam on median stri" with "rotective barriers&
-oncaster 2oad !tation near intersection& (uses& Eo >8 5ram 5erminusNN
-oncaster 2oad -ual/beam over median stri"
-oncaster
!ho""ing
,entre
!tation over or in !ho""ing ,entre (uses
-oncaster 2oad
!"ringvale
2oad
-ual beam continues over centre of road& !everal stations
in this segment&
Eunawading !tation near Eunawading rail station& (eam switch to
allow trains to return to -oc4lands& 0ine could be
e7tended down !"ringvale 2oad&
2ingwood 0ine 5rains
12
The Monorail Alternative
The Southern Cross $ih"ond $ail Subway
5he 4ey bottlenec4 is between +linders !treet and !outhern ,ross !tations where there are only si7
trac4s to carry all 3ast/Iest traffic& A short rail subway can solve the "roblem while 4ee"ing the
enormous costs involved with subway construction to a minimum&
5his two/trac4 J2 4m subway could run under the ,(- with 3astern "ortals near 37hibition !treet and a
Iestern Cortal near !outhern ,ross !tation& A single underground station would be "rovided under
+linders !treet with escalators u" to +linders !treet station& 5he above subway should be built to allow
e7tension to +ootscray1 ,aulfield or elsewhere at a later date&
5he "ro"osed rail subway route is shown in blue on the above ma"& 5he "latform at !outhern ,ross
would be Dust north of the (our4e !treet "edestrian wal4way& 5his subway could connect Altona1
Iilliamstown ) Ierribee services to one or more eastern lines&
+nreasing Train Capaity without a Subway
;ne of the 4ey Dustifications for "ro"osing an 3ast/Iest rail subway is to increase the ca"acity of the
suburban train system& 5he "ro"osition is that the e7isting four trac4s between +ootscray and ,aulfield
are at ca"acity and two new trac4s are needed&
.owever1 if signalling across the networ4 is enhanced to allow trains to run with 2/minute headway
most of these "roblems can be solved& 92/minute headway is already attained in the evening "ea4 in the
city loo"& .eadway of 2/minutes or less is common on the Moscow1 Caris and 0ondon metros&:
.etter Ti%etablin!
5o fully utilise e7isting trac4s trains should be run in OburstsP& ;n the -andenong line this would involve
running the following services in the following seHuence in twenty/minute bursts from the city on the
-andenong trac4*
$& +!!
?
/ 8i""sland 37"ress Ca4enham !ervice 9Cassenger or +reight:
2& 0oo" / Ca4enham 37"ress -andenong !ervice $
?& 0oo" / Ca4enham 37"ress -andenong !ervice 2 9"ea4 hours:
>& 0oo" / ,ranbourne 37"ress ;a4leigh !ervice $
'& 0oo" / ,ranbourne 37"ress ;a4leigh !ervice 2 9"ea4 hours:
%& 0oo" / 2owville 37"ress ,aulfield !ervice $
<& 0oo" / 2owville 37"ress ,aulfield !ervice 2 9"ea4 hours:
!imilarly on the +ran4ston trac4*
$& +!! / !tony Coint 37"ress +ran4ston service 9Cassenger or +reight:
2& 0oo" / +ran4ston 37"ress ,heltenham !ervice $
?& 0oo" / +ran4ston 37"ress ,heltenham !ervice 2 9"ea4 hours:
>& 0oo" / ,heltenham !to""ing All !tation service $
'& 0oo" / ,heltenham !to""ing All !tation service 2 9"ea4 hours:
?;linders Street Station
15
The Monorail Alternative
!ince the 8i""sland services originate from +linders !treet !tation only ten of the above services travel
via the single ,aulfield =nderground 0oo" trac4& Assuming trains run with a 2/minute headway these
ten services could run every 20 minutes& 5his then "rovides the following level of service*
3estination +urrent evenin! ea)
services er hour
9roosed evenin! ea)
services er hour
8i""sland 5wo 5hree
Ca4enham +our !i7
,ranbourne 5hree !i7
2owville *oneB 90ine not built yet: !i7
!tony Coint ;ne every other hour ;ne
>
every hour
+ran4ston +ive !i7 from loo"1 two from +!!
'
,heltenham +ive !i7
.ere is a sam"le 20/minute segment for the -andenong 0ine& +or sim"licity it starts at $<*00 at
2ichmond& 5he second service to each destination would only run in "ea4 hours&
@island
Service1
9a)enha%
Service1
9a)enha%
Service4
+ranbourne
Service1
+ranbourne
Service4
Rowville
Service1
Rowville
Service4
@island
Service4
2ichmond $<*00 $<*02 $<*0> $<*0% $<*08 $<*$0 $<*$2 $<*20
,aulfield $<*0< $<*09 $<*$$ $<*$? $<*$' $<*$< $<*$9 $<*2<
;a4leigh $<*$2 $<*$> $<*$% $<*$8 $<*20 $<*2' $<*2< $<*?2
-andenong $<*2> $<*2% $<*28 $<*?% $<*?8 $<*>>
Ca4enham $<*?% $<*'0 $<*'2 $<*'%
5he area shaded yellow shows the "ortion of each service that is e7"ress& 9!tations from 2ichmond to
,aulfield are serviced by ,heltenham sto""ing/all/stations trains on the +ran4ston trac4s&:
8ra"hically this can be "resented as follows& 92owville trains s"lit off after ;a4leigh station1 ,ranbourne
trains s"lit off after -andenong !tation&:
3andenon! (ine Schedule
0
$0
20
?0
>0
'0
%0
<0
80
2ichmond ,aulfield ;a4leigh -andenong Ca4enham
M
i
n
u
t
e
s
8i""sland
Ca4enham$
Ca4enham2
,ranbourne$
,ranbourne2
2owville$
2owville2
8i""sland
Ca4enham$
Ca4enham2
,ranbourne$
,ranbourne2
2owville$
2owville2
Sample Dandenong 0ine train schedule showing two <$ursts= o' trains o-er 32 minutes.
Eote that the second 8i""sland service is able to run at e7"ress s"eed to -andenong without running
into the bac4 of the "revious Ca4enham1 ,ranbourne or 2owville services& !imilarly the Ca4enham
services do not run into the ,ranbourne services1 and so on&
>Due to single track to Stony >oint only one ser-ice 5 hour is practical at this stage.
'?stimate does N@& consider use o' third track so more ser-ices should $e 'easi$le.
16
The Monorail Alternative
Eote also that the timetable is Ocloc4 faceP& 5he ,aulfield to Ca4enham "assenger need only remember
that there is a train at 9 "ast1 29 "ast and >9 "ast each hour on every day morning and night& In "ea4
hours there is an e7tra train in case she canGt get on the first one&
5he only Huestion mar4 over this is the assum"tion that the networ4 is ca"able of safely running with 2/
minute headway& If not1 clearly wor4 is needed to bring the signalling system u" to international
standards& 5his is li4ely to be far chea"er than building e7tra trac4 in a subway& !ee !chedule&7ls for
further details&
A similar result can be achieved on the !ydenham line& In the following e7am"le ? (endigo/line trains
are scheduled 9and can run at J$004mh: with 9 !ydenham trains in "ea4 hour& At best % !ydenham
trains are scheduled currently with (endigo/line trains often forced to travel at below %04mh&
Eote that !ydenham !ervice? would need to o"erate out of !outhern ,ross and not via the 0oo"&
Sample Sydenham 0ine train schedule showing two <$ursts= o' trains o-er 32 minutes.
Rail 6verasses between Southern +ross and *orth Melbourne
,urrently there are maDor delays near !outhern ,ross !tation due to M35 trains from Eorth Melbourne
crossing L60ine trains attem"ting to reach the L60ine "latforms at !outhern ,ross&
(uilding one or two rail over"asses for M35 trains would eliminate this "roblem&
+onsistent +ity (oo 6eration
5he current "ractice of altering the direction of the city loo" at lunch time should be abandoned& All M35
trains should run to !outhern ,ross or +linders !treet stations first as these are best able to co"e with
large crowds& ,aulfield1 (urnley and Jolimont loo" trains should then travel cloc4wise around the loo" at
all times& Eorth Melbourne loo" trains should o"erate counter/cloc4wise at all times& 5his should
o"timise signalling in the loo" to facilitate maintaining 2/minute headway and reduce "assenger
confusion&
In "ea4 hour many more services can be scheduled by not running trains through the loo" but
terminating them at !outhern ,ross 9Eorth or Iest trains: or +linders !treet 9Eorth1 !outh ) 3ast
trains:&
*o 'aitin! in the +.3
All loo" services should run to the ,(-1 around the loo" and bac4 to the edge of the networ4 without
waiting at +linders !treet station& 5rains terminating at +linders !treet or !outhern ,ross should
'bounce' bac4 out again after the driver has wal4ed from one cab to the other&
,leaning1 maintenance1 fuelling1 driver change/over and safety chec4s should all ha""en at the outer
edge of the networ41 not in the congested centre&
1;
+ootscray !ydenham
0
'
$0
$'
20
2'
?0
?'
>0
>'
'0
Sydenha% (ine Schedule
(endigo !ervice
!ydenham !ervice$
!ydenham !ervice2
!ydenham !ervice?
(endigo !ervice
!ydenham !ervice$
!ydenham !ervice2
!ydenham !ervice?
M
i
n
u
t
e
s
The Monorail Alternative
Seven +ar Train Sets
Many new train sets would be needed to o"erate an im"roved timetable& All new train sets should be
four/car sets& 5hese can be matched with e7isting three/car sets to form seven/car sets which are the
most that can be accommodated at the loo" stations&
$eo""endations
Croceed with a feasibility study of the monorail o"tions&
Croceed with the design of a 2 4m !outhern ,ross 2ichmond rail subway&
Croceed with other "ublic trans"ort "roDects made "ossible by E;5 building a $<
4ilometre rail subway or a road tunnel&
Im"rove train scheduling to obtain immediate ca"acity im"rovements&
&'nowledge"ents
3arlier versions of this document were reviewed by*
Ci% 9ederson / Cresident1 5he Monorail !ociety&
CenDi 'atanabe / .itachi Australia@
9A ,-TE: () )itachi*s comment is limited to technical aspects where we 'ind applica$le to comment as a supplier. (8)
)itachi is not in the position to comment on any commercial -alues indicated in this paper. (B) "y gi-ing comments to
this paper1 it does not mean )itachi*s appro-al o' the document or does not make )itachi responsi$le 'or the contents
o' this document1 or any damage or loss arising 'rom or in relation to this document. )
.ey $e#erenes
5he Monorail !ociety www&monorails&org
.itachi 2ail !ystems / Monorails www&hitachi/rail&com6"roducts6monorailQsystem
3ast Iest 0in4 Eeeds
Assessment 9-;I:
htt"*66www&doi&vic&gov&au6doi6internet6"lanning"roDects&nsf
Ii4i"edia Information about and images of various monorail systems&
8oogle Ma"s !atellite ma"s of Melbourne see hy"erlin4s in 9roosed
Route section&
Contat %etails
&-%ailE AlanIdeREewAustralia&net
9honeE 0> $8'? 000%
'ebE www&EewAustralia&net6ewm&html for latest version of this document and other
information including !chedule&7ls&
15