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My point is, that the Northfield line serves 3 roads that have a combined total of around 100,000 vehicles passing through each day from the north. Now Im estimating that maybe 15-20% of that total maybe heading into the city. But if we could capture just some of those commuters, by building a park n ride thing (might need very large carpark though), the line would be heavily used.
Same goes with Tonsley line. The possible interchange at Bedford Park serves a road of over 62,000 cars.
If you have a look at commuter car parks at Modbury Int, Paradise Int, Brighton Stn, Noarlunga Cntre, Gawler, Mawson Lakes, Blackwood, the car parks are jammed full on any weekday, indicating people are quite prepared to drive to a proper transport link and take mass transit into the CBD

jk1237 wrote:If you have a look at commuter car parks at Modbury Int, Paradise Int, Brighton Stn, Noarlunga Cntre, Gawler, Mawson Lakes, Blackwood, the car parks are jammed full on any weekday, indicating people are quite prepared to drive to a proper transport link and take mass transit into the CBD

I can't speak for the northern places, but you are right about the southern stations. The most-used stations on the Noarlunga line all have substantial car parking and frequent bus services. Noarlunga Centre, Hallet Cove Beach, Hallet Cove, Brighton and Oaklands. At Noarlunga they fenced in the major all-day carpark next to the station and started charging $1.60/day or some similar pittance (can't remember just how much it was anymore). It was almost always full and more would park elsewhere nearby (Colonnades, Wallis Cinemas, Aquatic Centre). But yes, if you tried to capture 10% of 60,000 or 100,000 passing cars that's a big car park!

I've often wondered if charging a token fee (ie $2) for an all-day secure car park would still allow for enough demand to justify a multi-story garage next to a train station.

There's a few stations in Sydney with free multi-story car parks, as far as I know.

Well I dont understand why its only noarlunga that does this?? Elizabeth, salisbury, and gawler have something similar dont they?

come hell or high water before i park my car at a train station all day.

Cruise wrote:come hell or high water before i park my car at a train station all day.

well you can always catch the bus to your nearest interchange heheh.

jimmy_2486 wrote:Well I dont understand why its only noarlunga that does this?? Elizabeth, salisbury, and gawler have something similar dont they?

Charge for secure parking? Tea Tree Plaza Modbury does.

Cruise wrote:come hell or high water before i park my car at a train station all day.

Thousands do it. What makes you so special?

AtD wrote:

Cruise wrote:come hell or high water before i park my car at a train station all day.

Thousands do it. What makes you so special?

my nearest "interchange" and i use the term losely, is just a carpark beside the road open to all elements of the weather and Little turds on their way home from school walk through the "Interchange"

I dont want to risk damage to my car.

Same, so I use the next one up the line.

Toll Roads anyone?

Cruise wrote:I dont want to risk damage to my car.

That's why you do like I did and drive a car whose market value fluctuates depending upon the amount of fuel in the tank to the train station. I drove an early 80's Corona (mechanically it was in damn good condition, really only needed a new paint job and new seals in the air-conditioner) and it never got broken into or anything in two years despite it often being one of a few cars left in the carpark in the second or 3rd worst place in SA for breakins - before and after the fencing was there and the boom gates being taken down after 7pm. It was piss-easy to break into as well (I locked the keys in a few times ) I did use a club lock though, and that really is the key... your car just has to be more of a hassle to steal than the other ones nearby.

Due to circumstance I've been pushed back to driving down South Road again rather than taking two trains to work. Every time it rains, I pass at least one accident. Back in the dead of winter I once passed three accidents in one a day, and almost accident every day for a month when I chose to drive. Leaving my car at Mawson Lakes, it hasn't been touched once.

Could anyone tell me if running light rail would work out cheaper than buses? In terms of operation cost?

edgar_raphael wrote:Could anyone tell me if running light rail would work out cheaper than buses? In terms of operation cost?

I can't give you any definite proof, but if you look at the operational costs I think trams come out ahead of buses. Electricity is cheaper than diesel and trams carry more people than a bus, so you need less drivers. I'd imagine that bus tyres are rather expensive as well.

I think it would be a very interesting thing to see a breakdown of the costs of owning and operating a bus over its lifetime. Would be an interesting exercise to use the figures to then work out how much it would cost to use buses to provide the same level of capacity and frequency that the tram line does.

I'd imagine the H-class are unbeatable value for money these days - don't know of any 80 years-old buses on the road

true, but it would be interesting to know how much electricity is being used to run a normal tram and if it is more environmental friendly to run electric than diesel.