Recently I've discussed improving the gains from transport infrastructure projects by accompanying them with service uplifts. That's desirable as it spreads benefits to more people and improves utilisation of assets that we spent good money building.
The bigger the capital project the more that gains are maximised by paying attention to network and service aspects.
Just over a year ago I wrote a three part series on a complementary bus and tram network for the western, central and eastern portions of the Metro Tunnel and related lines. This would give a huge slice of Melbourne from Sydenham to Dandenong a revamped bus network with vastly more suburban connection points between frequent services.
Will something like this actually happen? Wording in Victoria's Bus Plan about tying bus reform to capital projects gives hope with explicit mention of the Metro Tunnel (p17). But with three years typically required to add bus routes (or two years after budget funding) they'll need to get a wriggle on to make it happen by Day One in 2025.
The Suburban Rail Loop
Lead times shouldn't be an issue for the Suburban Rail Loop with a projected 2035 opening. For those who have just switched on, the SRL is an orbital railway planned to operate, in its first $35b stage, between Southland and Box Hill.
Its builders describe it as the critical wheel that joins radial rail's spokes. Though for more connection combinations SRL is better thought of as a ship's helm with the 'spokes' protruding. Which will be the case at all rail interchange stations except Glen Waverley.
SRL East will add six speedily linked suburban connection points to the public transport network. Each point effectively costs about $6 billion. Four will be near radial rail (Southland, Clayton, Glen Waverley & Box Hill), two near trams (Burwood & Box Hill) and one (Monash) with buses only.
Each SRL station will need high quality connections from the surrounding area. Interchanging rail and walk-up patronage alone won't be enough to generate its projected 400 000 daily trips. Commuter car parking is too space-inefficient per passenger gained, possibly one of the reasons why SRL stations won't have any. Cycling access needs to be both parallel and perpendicular to the line while bus services need to be of a quality rarely seen in Melbourne. One could even go so far to say that the SRL will fail without a good feeder network due to wide station spacing limiting its catchment.
A frequent SRL feeder network
With that in mind how would one design a SRL feeder network? I'd start with the key transport corridors approaching each SRL station. That includes trains and trams as well as buses. Where possible I'll incorporate existing SmartBus routes and already outlined feeder concepts for Metro Tunnel East to avoid 'reinventing the wheel'.
I'll present a potential SRL feeder network concept via maps - one per SRL station. Noting the SRL's very high frequency, the main routes feeding it will also be frequent, eg every 10 min or better 7 days. These are the thicker lines. Thinner lines are also feeders but less frequent, say every 15 - 20 minutes. In addition all bus routes to all SRL interchanges should operate 7 days except (possibly) for niche industrial or education services.
Routes in an area but which don't feed that station aren't drawn though the more important ones are numbered in grey. The maps have a lot of overlap so you should be able to piece the network together.
After each map I'll explain some background on each route and why it's there.
Cheltenham (Southland)
LONG HOURS / EVERY 10 MIN OR BETTERFrankston line: Already Melbourne's most frequent rail line, commencing its 10 minute service earlier on weekends and operating it later into the evening would provide more seamless feeder connections at Southland.
733 Sandringham - Box Hill SRL SmartBus: Proposed as the SRL's precursor due to the existing Route 733 passing near three of the six SRL station sites (Box Hill, Monash Clayton, Clayton). This upgrade would retain the current 733 alignment between Box Hill and Clayton with the southern end extended to Southland and Sandringham (via Bay Rd). This would bring high quality transport to Clarinda and build patronage to the SRL corridor in the years before its opening. More on SRL SmartBus
here.
828 Southland - Fountain Gate via Centre Dandenong Rd and Dandenong: Incorporates most of existing Route 828 with improved 7 day operating hours and frequency. The western and far eastern portions of this route could be operated by reformed local services.
LONG HOURS / EVERY 15-20 MIN OR BETTER
600 Southland - Sandringham: The current corridor is very complex, comprising three sometimes duplicative infrequent routes (600/922/923) with different termination points depending on time of day and day of week. Reform would simplify this to one or two routes (600/602 numbers suggested) for a simpler and more consistent service. Background with a potential reform option here.
767 Box Hill - Chadstone - Southland: An existing route that is direct north of Chadstone but somewhat indirect south of Chadstone, operating on local streets in Bentleigh East. A service improvement has been budgeted but not yet implemented. Upgrade to an SRL feeder could involve further increased frequencies and straightening to operate via Murrumbeena and East Boundary Rd to serve development in the Bentleigh East area and provide better connections to jobs at Moorabbin. The Murrumbeena Rd/East Boundary Rd corridor is especially desirable to serve with a direct service as it is half way between the Frankston train line and Warrigal Rd (with Route 903). Requiring reform to nearby routes 627, 701 & 822, you can read more here (where the route is labelled 620).
811 Southland - Springvale: Simpler and more frequent route formed from the upgraded central portion of the existing long, complex and infrequent 811/812 pair. The Brighton end could be served by an extended Route 824 from Moorabbin while the Dandenong end (especially Heatherton Rd) would gain from a large improvement to its network (discussed later).
Local routes: To strengthen the profile of Southland as a centre and SRL interchange, it is recommended that Route 823 be upgraded to run 7 days and potentially straight up Nepean Hwy to Elsternwick. Improved hours and frequency on Route 708, especially on weekends, is also proposed.
Clayton
LONG HOURS / EVERY 10 MIN OR BETTER
Pakenham/Cranbourne lines: Service upgraded to operate every 5-10 minutes from early morning to late at night 7 days. Likely to be already in place given Airport Rail.
703 Brighton - Blackburn SmartBus: Existing partial SmartBus boosted to operate over wider hours and more frequently. Also proposed as Metro Tunnel feeder.
733 Sandringham - Box Hill SRL SmartBus: A feeder for Clarinda and precursor to SRL. Oakleigh end of existing 733 may be served by a local style route if required. Suggested unchanged alignment for Clayton - Box Hill portion with it continuing to serve existing Monash bus interchange (if this is kept). Consideration may be given to operating parts of this route as a limited stop service to speed travel.
LONG HOURS / EVERY 15-20 MIN OR BETTER
824 Brighton - Waverley Gardens: Existing Route 824 bus extended west from Moorabbin to Brighton (replacing existing and less frequent 811/812) and east from Clayton to Waverley Gardens to provide a new direct Centre Rd station feeder and replace existing indirect 631 in area. Clayton - Keysborough portion of existing 824 could be replaced by Route 704 extended from Clayton. This route would connect Holmesglen TAFE at Moorabbin to the SRL at Clayton.
Local routes: Scope exists for a local style route to Clayton via Boundary Rd and Clayton Rd. This could start at Mordialloc and could incorporate the existing Route 705 but operate more frequently and terminate at Clayton rather than Springvale. It would connect Braeside jobs and some residents to the SRL. A substitute route would be needed for Fairbank Av to retain coverage. A larger version of this concept is described here with Infrastructure Victoria even proposing an even bolder Mordialloc - Monash SmartBus.
Monash
LONG HOURS / EVERY 10 MIN OR BETTER
630 Elsternwick - Monash SRL Station: Existing Route 630 on North Rd extended west to a stronger terminus at Elsternwick and east to the new Monash SRL station. Already a popular route this would connect areas around Ormond, Bentleigh East and Huntingdale to the SRL.
693 Chadstone - Ferntree Gully: Existing Route 693 on Ferntree Gully Rd extended west to Chadstone (replacing duplicative route 742 which could be deleted in the area) and terminated east at Ferntree Gully (with other route reform in the Belgrave area). Would operate via Monash SRL Station. An important connector from the Knox area to the SRL and Monash precinct jobs. Background here.
703 Brighton - Blackburn SmartBus: Existing partial SmartBus boosted to operate over wider hours and more frequently. Would be routed to operate via Monash SRL Station. Also proposed as Metro Tunnel feeder.
737 Westall - Glen Waverley - Knox City - Boronia: Incorporates existing Route 737 but extended to start at Westall station to serve dense housing around there and M-City on Blackburn Rd. Upgraded route would provide an important link between the SRL, Monash jobs and the often poorly served Knox area. Potential for frequent service to extend to Croydon (which is route's existing terminus).
810 Monash SRL - Springvale - Heatherton Rd - Dandenong: A proposed frequent route serving a poorly served transport 'black hole' of Melbourne's south-east along Heatherton Rd (where it would replace the currently hourly 811) and provide a new direct Monash connection for Springvale. Alignment would also improve access to the hospital and TAFE at Dandenong. First proposed as Metro Tunnel feeder but would also add major connectivity to the SRL
.
LONG HOURS / EVERY 15-20 MIN OR BETTER
803 / 804 Chadstone - Monash SRL - Dandenong: A harmonised pair to replace the currently complex and infrequent 802 / 804 / 862 combination in the Monash / Greater Dandenong area. Basically Route 804 remains the same but 802 and 862 get replaced with a new route 803 as
discussed in detail here. Both 803 and 804 would operate 7 days (unlike the current 802 and 804). The change for SRL is that the corridor is moved from Princes Hwy to Ferntree Gully Rd and routed via the SRL Monash station to provide an efficient feeder. As compensation Route 800 on Princes Hwy could be increased from every 20 to every 10 minutes as proposed in
Greater Dandenong's Public Transport Future prepared for the City of Greater Dandenong.
Glen Waverley
LONG HOURS / EVERY 10 MIN OR BETTER
Glen Waverley line: Service upgraded to operate every 10 minutes or better from early morning until late at night 7 days.
691 / 692 Glen Waverley - Rowville - Ferntree Gully (Rowville TrainLink): A harmonised pair that provides an SRL and CBD train feeder for people in the southern Knox area around Rowville. Could be limited stop for faster travel speed. A same stop change to the 693 on Ferntree Gully Rd would allow access to Monash precinct jobs and education services. Each route would operate every 20 minutes with staggering to meet trains every 10 minutes at Glen Waverley. Done in conjunction with Rowville area network reform,
more detail is presented here.
737 Westall - Glen Waverley - Knox City - Boronia: Mostly existing route but via modified alignment to replace deleted portion of Route 742 and add capacity on Springvale Rd. Upgraded route would provide an important link between the SRL, Monash jobs and the often poorly served Knox area. Potential for frequent service to extend to Croydon (which is route's existing terminus). A local route option would need to be provided in Coleman Pde to retain network coverage.
LONG HOURS / EVERY 15-20 MIN OR BETTER
623 St Kilda - Chadstone - Glen Waverley: Existing popular route upgraded to operate longer hours and higher frequency. Scope to remove the complex Stephensons Rd/Mt Waverley backtracking but only if Route 733 is upgraded with higher frequency to compensate. Also desirable to reroute via Caulfield station further west in conjunction with amalgamation with part of the complex Route 624 in the Carnegie area.
731 Glen Waverley - Deakin SRL Station: An entirely new Highbury Rd route that adds coverage where it is lacking in a large part of Glen Waverley and Mt Waverley. While Highbury Rd is within walking distance of the parallel 75 tram, bus route spacing in the area is sparse with many residential streets to the south away from any public transport. Poor street layouts make mid-block bus routes inefficient so the best way to widen coverage is a Highbury Rd route like this whose strong termini should ensure reasonable usage.
734 Glen Waverley - Caulfield: An existing route currently performing below potential due to its weak western terminus (Glen Iris). A
short extension to Caulfield would support the Metro Tunnel, enable better airport access and improve connectivity to a large Monash campus. The Suburban Rail Loop should make Glen Waverley an even stronger eastern terminus, with this route being a fairly strong feeder from the west.
742 Glen Waverley - Ringwood: An existing route that starts at Chadstone, overlapping many routes including 693 on Ferntree Gully Rd. Nevertheless its Glen Waverley - Ringwood portion has significant catchment so has been included as an SRL feeder. An option may exist to start the route at Monash University instead of Glen Waverley though other options are available for this trip including the SRL.
Background here.
Local routes: To strengthen the profile of Glen Waverley as a centre and SRL interchange, the U-shaped Route 736 should be split at Glen Waverley for improved legibility. Route 848 could be extended north to Glen Waverley from Brandon Park to create a stronger terminus in conjunction with local network reform. Also, 7 day service is recommended for Route 885 which feeds Glen Waverley Station.
Burwood (Deakin Uni)
LONG HOURS / EVERY 10 MIN OR BETTER
75 tram: Service upgraded to operate every 10 minutes or better from early morning until late at night 7 days to maximise its potential as a feeder for the SRL.
903 orbital SmartBus: A rerouting via Deakin University was announced last year and is pending implementation. Like with all orbital SmartBuses frequencies are not uniformly high, even on the 903, Melbourne's single highest usage bus route. An upgrade could see 903's Heidelberg to Mentone portion boosted to operate every 10 minutes or better from early morning to late at night 7 days. This portion of the 903 could be extended to LaTrobe University to form a second SRL SmartBus in conjunction with the 904 MegaBus concept west of Heidelberg.
LONG HOURS / EVERY 15-20 MIN OR BETTER
731 Glen Waverley - Deakin SRL Station: An entirely new Highbury Rd route that adds coverage where it is lacking in a large part of Glen Waverley and Mt Waverley. More detail given above.
767 Box Hill - Chadstone - Southland: An existing route with budget funding for an upgrade. Route is direct north of Chadstone but somewhat indirect south of Chadstone. Straightening of southern portion discussed above.
Local routes: While not a long hours frequent route, it is recommended that Route 766 be extended to the Deakin SRL station from its current weak terminus. Longer operating hours and 7 day service are also desirable.
Box Hill
LONG HOURS / EVERY 10 MIN OR BETTER
Belgrave/Lilydale lines: Service upgraded to operate every 5-10 minutes from early morning to late at night 7 days. First stage of this should be a weekday uplift to 10 minutes with Belgrave and Lilydale operating every 20 minutes each.
109 tram: Service upgraded to operate every 10 minutes or better from early morning until late at night 7 days.
733 Sandringham - Box Hill SRL SmartBus: A popular route that has received budgetary funding for a service upgrade (pending commencement). A strong corridor desirable to upgrade to a frequent service as a precursor to the SRL. Southern extension to Southland and Sandringham discussed above.
903 orbital SmartBus: Heidelberg to Mentone portion upgraded to operate every 10 minutes or better from early morning to late at night 7 days. As outlined above, this very long route could be split at Heidelberg with the eastern portion extended to LaTrobe University to form a second SRL SmartBus (Deakin - Box Hill - Doncaster - Heidelberg - La Trobe University).
LONG HOURS / EVERY 15-20 MIN OR BETTER
270 Box Hill - Mitcham: Existing popular route serving areas north of the railway. Included due to strong usage and patronage.
279 Box Hill - Doncaster: A popular route that
gained a modest service upgrade in 2021. However still suffers from confusing deviations (eg via Blackburn) and one trip per hour terminating at Templestowe. Consistency of route and further hours and frequency upgrades are possible at low cost and would provide a good SRL and Box Hill feeder from the north.
281 Box Hill - Templestowe: Currently limited frequency and hours. Overlaps with 293. Scope exists to consolidate with this route to provide a low cost frequent corridor that feeds the SRL and improves connectivity from the hospital precinct. More detail on this is here.
670 Box Hill - Lilydale: This is a western extension of the existing 670 that starts at Ringwood. It would provide a simple direct route linking the SRL at Box Hill with various retail and civic destinations along the Maroondah Hwy. A Box Hill 670 extension could also allow wider network reform including
splitting the 901 orbital SmartBus which suffers from poor catchments and overlaps with other routes.
730 Box Hill - Ringwood via Canterbury Rd: This would be a new route providing a direct SRL and Box Hill feeder service from a large corridor without one. It would also assist other local recreational and shopping trips to Forest Hill Chase and Ringwood and facilitate other long-overdue bus network reform in the Box Hill-Ringwood area.
More detail on this is here.
Local routes: Box Hill has some local bus routes that do not run 7 days or which finish early at night. Small upgrades to the following are suggested: 271, 284, 302, 612 & 766. Complex or duplicative routes such as 732, 735 and 765 could also be reviewed.
Route reform summary (7 day 10 min frequent services in bold)
Frankston train - frequency upgrades (minor)
Pakenham/Cranbourne train - frequency upgrades
Glen Waverley train - frequency upgrades
Belgrave/Lilydale train - frequency upgrades, fewer simpler stopping patterns
75 tram - frequency upgrades
109 tram - frequency upgrades
201 bus - replaced by SRL
270 bus - hours and frequency upgrades
271 bus - hours upgrades
279 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, deviations removed
284 bus - hours upgrades
302 bus - hours upgrades
281 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, merged with 293 for simpler route
600 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, merged into 1 or 2 simpler routes (with 922 & 923 deletion)
601 bus - replaced by SRL
612 bus - hours upgrades
630 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, extensions to stronger termini
623 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, route simplification in conjunction with 624 and 733
631 bus - Southland - Clayton portion retained, eastern portion replaced by 737 and 824.
670 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, extension west to Box Hill in conjunction with 901 reform
691/692 bus - reformed & new routes to form Glen Waverley-Rowville-Ferntree Gully Train link
693 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, revised termini (Chadstone - Ferntree Gully)
703 bus - hours and frequency upgrades
704 bus - run east to Keysborough to replace 824 in area
705 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, operate to Clayton instead of Springvale.
708 bus - hours and frequency upgrades
730 bus - new Canterbury Rd route between Box Hill and Ringwood
731 bus - new Highbury Rd route between Deakin SRL and Glen Waverley
733 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, extension to Southland/Sandringham as SRL SmartBus
734 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, extension to Caulfield for stronger terminus
736 bus - route split at Glen Waverley for improved network legibility
737 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, extension south to Westall
742 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, shortened to remove duplication with 693 and others
766 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, extended to Deakin SRL
767 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, straightened in Bentleigh East (involving 627, 701 & 822)
800 bus - hours and frequency upgrades
802 bus - replaced by proposed more frequent 803
803/804 bus - reformed and new Chadstone - Dandenong routes to replace complex 802/804/862
810 bus - new Heatherton Rd route between Monash, Springvale and Dandenong
811/812 bus - reformed in conjunction with Brighton, Keysborough and Dandenong changes
822 bus - terminated at Southland or Cheltenham with Sandringham served by extended 733
823 bus - hours and frequency upgrade, extended to Elsternwick via Nepean Hwy
824 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, extended west to Brighton and east to Waverley Gardens
828 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, revised termini (Southland - Fountain Gate)
848 bus - extension from Brandon Park to Glen Waverley
862 bus - replaced by proposed more frequent 803
885 bus - hours and frequency upgrades
900 bus - hours and frequency upgrades
901 bus - split at Ringwood as part of wider orbital reform and 670 extension
902 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, reroute Doncaster - Melbourne Airport as SRL SmartBus
903 bus - hours and frequency upgrades, route split & extended to LaTrobe Uni as SRL SmartBus
922/923 bus - deleted in conjunction with Southland - St Kilda 600 corridor simplification
Most of the above initiatives can and probably should be done well before the SRL opens. Such phasing of work is better for resourcing, workflow and resolving any issues before SRL service commences.
Conclusion
The Suburban Rail Loop needs effective feeder trains, trams and buses to get the patronage it needs to justify its construction and to ensure that its benefits are spread over a wide area rather than just small clusters around the new stations.
The current bus network, especially, requires substantial reform to deliver the required direct and frequent feeder services. Train and tram services also need improved frequencies, especially off-peak and at night.
A network to deliver better connections to each SRL East station has been described. It is just one possibility out of many and would almost certainly benefit from refinement.
It or any other new network would represent significant change so work should commence sooner rather than later. The first stages of this could be along the lines of
SRL SmartBus and the
2025 Metro Tunnel bus network described here.
Thoughts on this are welcome and can be left below.
Useful Networks for other areas are here
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