<html><body>
<p>The City of Moreland at August's council's meeting has rejected a proposal to add what has been dubbed "anti-dooring" bike lanes on Sydney Road which would have seen painted bicycle lanes placed either side of the tram lanes. The council has <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/sydney-road-bike-lane-plan-rejected-amid-calls-to-scrap-onstreet-parking-20150813-giy5ii">reportedly</a> voted to lobby the State government and VicRoads to investigate building separated bike lanes on the road instead.</p>

<p>Perfect timing.</p>

<p>While much of the media focus has been on bikes on Sydney Road - after the recent death of a cyclist after he was 'doored' and then flung out into the middle of the road and into the path of heavy vehicle - I'd argue Sydney Road actually needs a complete root and branch review of all of its uses.</p>

<p>The priority and focus, as with designing any street, should always be on the pedestrian. Sydney Road between Park Street in Brunswick and Bell Street in Coburg could best be characterised as having:</p>

<ul>
<li>narrow footpaths clogged with hodge-podge smatterings of street furniture, parking information polls and inconsistent surfaces</li>
	<li>ugly and inconsistent awnings hanging at various levels above the footpath</li>
	<li>next to zero greenery directly planted in the street</li>
	<li>far too many cars which in turn slows trams down; trams, the very vehicles that will easily carry more passengers (inside and outside of peak) compared to the litany of single-occupant vehicles holding them up.</li>
</ul>
<p><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" scrolling="no" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m0!3m2!1sen!2sau!4v1439456211341!6m8!1m7!1sCwSoLuJ2avb_MyNLw0sDCQ!2m2!1d-37.7688422!2d144.9618176!3f185.99921544484553!4f-1.8187463972808189!5f0.7820865974627469" style="border:0" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>According to a <a href="https://www.bicyclenetwork.com.au/media/vanilla_content/files/Lane%20Widths%20SKM%202010.pdf">bicycle network / SKM report</a>, in 2010 VicRoads installed 80cm wide bike lanes on Sydney Road which resulted in kerbside traffic lanes being reduced to a width of 3 metres. Tram traffic lanes measure 3.3m wide.</p>

<p>The kerbside traffic lanes currently have clearways governing them in both peaks: the southbound kerbside lanes of Sydney road have clearways in the morning peak and the northbound kerbside lanes have clearways in the afternoon peak.</p>

<p>Outside of weekday peak times, the kerbside lanes revert to spaces that allow cars to park on both sides of the street. This on-street parking, of course, is in addition to the enormous amount of off-street car parking as shown by some of the examples in the map below.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="700" scrolling="no" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=zLzjYwjjDBk0.keWLjDGQRSyA&amp;hl=en" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>The areas which see the greatest economic activity - primarily through retail trade - located at the northern and southern extremities include vast open-air car parks and the precincts in between have a sprinkling of small car parks on both sides of the road.</p>

<h2>A new Sydney Road?</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/sydney-road_0.png" rel="gallery-all" title="Created using streetmix.net"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="251" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/sydney-road_0.png?itok=7GTJ8t3J" title="Created using streetmix.net" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Created using streetmix.net</figcaption></figure><p>The above was created using <a href="http://streetmix.net/">streetmix.net</a> and is intended to be a cross-section looking south toward the city on Sydney Road. The features, or changes from the current allocation of space, are:</p>

<ul>
<li>Footpaths widened (utilising the 80 cm of space currently used to the quasi bike lanes VicRoads installed in 2010) and trees planted.</li>
	<li>The existing eastern (left side) kerbside lane is converted to a 3m width permanent two-way bike lane, 150cm of space for each direction.
	<ul>
<li>I chose the eastern side of Sydney Road simply because at the Park Street end it would naturally meet the existing shared bike path which runs all the way down to Melbourne University alongside Royal Parade.</li>
	</ul>
</li>
	<li>A short buffer is installed to separate the converted bike lane and the city bound tram/traffic lane.</li>
	<li>The tram lanes are still mixed tram/car traffic lanes and the western (right side) kerbside lane remains a parking and peak clearway much like how it currently operates.</li>
</ul>
<p>This kind of set up would further discourage through traffic on Sydney Road in the morning peak (although, heavens knows why anyone would opt to use Sydney Road as a through route to the city in the first place…) yet still provides extra peak traffic capacity in the afternoon to use the route, functioning as an overflow route for the traffic which turns left from Royal Parade into Park St / Brunswick Rd heading to Citylink.</p>

<p>There's much greater emphasis on space for pedestrians and a proper bike lane set up through the heart of the municipality that would cater for both local cyclists and commuters alike. Commuter cyclists would be encouraged away from the Upfield bike path, which is currently shared with pedestrians.</p>

<p>Likewise the dedicated bike lanes would supercharge both the perception and reality of bike and pedestrian safety on Sydney Road thanks to complete separation of transport uses and coupled with extra bike parking facilities (thanks to the widened footpath) there's a greater incentive for people to travel to the entire strip.</p>

<p>After all, making a stand by turning a car sewer into a more pleasant urban environment <em>will</em> bring more people into the precinct thus creating more economic activity and flowing through to the retailer's bottom lines. Swanston Street, anyone?</p>

<h2>While we're at it…</h2>

<p>If the loss of morning peak traffic carrying capacity is just too much to bear for some (the people who would regularly troll comment threads with "cyclists should be licensed/pay registration"), perhaps implement the reverse on Lygon/Holmes/Nicholson Street; after all, this strip is and will continue to see just as much development density increases over time as Sydney Road.</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/lygon-street_0.png" rel="gallery-all" title="Created using streetmix.net"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="251" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/lygon-street_0.png?itok=OjOkbkBq" title="Created using streetmix.net" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Created using streetmix.net</figcaption></figure><p>In this cross-section - the same as the Sydney Road one, we're looking south towards the city - exactly the same allocation of space to different transport modes applies except the converted bike lane is on the western (right) side of Lygon/Holmes/Nicholson Streets thus providing citybound clearways in the morning peak.</p>

<p>It then would fall with City of Melbourne to continue the bike infrastructure through their municipality. Having the two way bike lane on the western side of Royal Parade and the eastern side of Lygon Street would allow for the use of the wide path which skirts around Melbourne General Cemetery and Princes Park (extending the path out to the trees and if necessary reducing the amount of space available to pedestrians) thus funnelling bike traffic on to Swanston Street, which already has Copenhagen lanes.</p>

<h2>Edit: Schooled</h2>

<p>This is how you do a presentation! This is the document that was submitted to Moreland Council, the one Jonathan (first in the comments) is talking about from <a href="http://sydneyroad.org/">sydneyroad.org</a>.</p>

<p>Jonathan also tells me that they polled retailers on Sydney Road and only 30% were opposed to the removal of on-street parking in order to widen footpaths and increase space for dining and displays.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="480" scrolling="no" src="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0ByO18-w-cDzDZDRHUk81cGlvNjA/preview" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>The following is from the July meeting of Moreland council. Also check out Revitalising Sydney Road's facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/revitalisesydneyrd">page</a>.</p>

<p><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" scrolling="no" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wh1d5OzRnXA?start=3339" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<h2>Over to you</h2>

<p>Tell us your ideas for Sydney Road (or the wider area) by posting in the comment section below.</p>
</body></html>

Alastair Taylor

Toying with ideas to improve Sydney Road

<html><body>
<p>Architects. They're the glue in the development process: interpreting, balancing and binding the various capitalist, creative and regulatory inclinations, goals and motivations. This special role that architects play ensures there's quite a lot of them if a city is pivoting toward a medium and high density development future like Melbourne is.</p>

<p>Our <a href="/developments">project database</a> has over 200 different firms that are linked to at least one project. The following list looks at the architecture firms who are most frequently referenced.</p>

<p>Together they are responsible for 39% of all projects and the raw numbers as listed in the Data Portal are 315 out of a total 805 projects at time of writing.</p>

<p>Fast fact: the top five referenced firms are responsible for an eye-popping 33% of all dwellings (30,000 out of 91,000) listed across all the various project phases on the database.</p>

<p>Select a firm's name to view a summary of their associated projects.</p>

<h2>
<a href="/architects/urban-design-architects">Urban Design Architects</a> (10 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/eight_murphy.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Eight Murphy, South Yarra"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="377" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/eight_murphy.jpg?itok=o9YbVnzd" title="Eight Murphy, South Yarra" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Eight Murphy, South Yarra</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/clarke-hopkins-clarke-0">ClarkeHopkinsClarke</a> (10 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/esse_apartments.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Esse Apartments, Essendon"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="314" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/esse_apartments.jpg?itok=ACHOMkng" title="Esse Apartments, Essendon" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Esse Apartments, Essendon</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/map-architecture">MAP Architecture</a> (11 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/fin_apartments.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Fin Apartments, Sandringham"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="373" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/fin_apartments.jpg?itok=Z01VXK2f" title="Fin Apartments, Sandringham" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Fin Apartments, Sandringham</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/metaxas-architects">Metaxas Architects</a> (11 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/c3.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="C3 Apartments, Brunswick"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="375" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/c3.jpg?itok=mWRMdv0I" title="C3 Apartments, Brunswick" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>C3 Apartments, Brunswick</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/dko-architecture">DKO Architecture</a> (12 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/marina_tower.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Marina Tower, Docklands"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="326" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/marina_tower.jpg?itok=AE1GXxja" title="Marina Tower, Docklands" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Marina Tower, Docklands</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/woods-bagot">Woods Bagot</a> (13 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/garden_hill.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Gardenhill, Doncaster"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="410" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/garden_hill.jpg?itok=DyubiuJ3" title="Gardenhill, Doncaster" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Gardenhill, Doncaster</figcaption></figure><h2>
Buchan Group (14 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/sovereign_square.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Sovereign Square, Box Hill"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="348" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/sovereign_square.jpg?itok=5tVXgdM0" title="Sovereign Square, Box Hill" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Sovereign Square, Box Hill</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/jackson-clements-burrows-architects">Jackson Clements Burrows</a> (15 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/166_gertrude.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="166 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="339" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/166_gertrude.jpg?itok=nN9s4UhX" title="166 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>166 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/peddle-thorp-architects">Peddle Thorp Architects</a> (18 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/whitehorse_towers.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Whitehorse Towers, Box Hill"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="637" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/whitehorse_towers.jpg?itok=tMl4_Y8B" title="Whitehorse Towers, Box Hill" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Whitehorse Towers, Box Hill</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/artisan-architects">Artisan Architects</a> (18 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/leo_he.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Leo, Hawthorn East"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="371" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/leo_he.jpg?itok=spWUJWvA" title="Leo, Hawthorn East" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Leo, Hawthorn East</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/cht-architects">CHT Architects</a> (21 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/wills_place.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Wills Place, Melbourne"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="312" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/wills_place.jpg?itok=5tKjxK-a" title="Wills Place, Melbourne" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Wills Place, Melbourne</figcaption></figure><h2>
Plus Architecture (23 projects)</h2>

<p>Plus Architecture are an Apartments.com.au Industry Hub member.</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/402_chapel_0.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="402-416 Chapel Street, South Yarra"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="380" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/402_chapel_0.jpg?itok=pKo-IZo5" title="402-416 Chapel Street, South Yarra" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>402-416 Chapel Street, South Yarra</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/sjb-architects">SJB Architects</a> (25 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/6-10_keele.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="6-10 Keele Street, Collingwood"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="330" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/6-10_keele.jpg?itok=UaDrKP3p" title="6-10 Keele Street, Collingwood" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>6-10 Keele Street, Collingwood</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/hayball">Hayball</a> (33 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/york_prahran.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="York Prahran"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="363" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/york_prahran.jpg?itok=AFtVp_1S" title="York Prahran" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>York Prahran</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/fraser-partners-0">Elenberg Fraser</a> (34 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/estelle.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Estelle, Richmond"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="319" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/estelle.jpg?itok=AcOsy6dU" title="Estelle, Richmond" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Estelle, Richmond</figcaption></figure><h2>
<a href="/architects/rothelowman">ROTHELOWMAN</a> (47 projects)</h2>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/hive_thornbury.jpeg" rel="gallery-all" title="Hive Thornbury"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="386" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/hive_thornbury.jpeg?itok=LmLIeskP" title="Hive Thornbury" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Hive Thornbury</figcaption></figure><p><span style="font-size:10px;">Lead image credit: <a href="http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=125827744&amp;postcount=3427">GlennWilson</a>.</span></p>
</body></html>

The top 15 architecture practices referenced on the Urban.com.au Project Database

<html><body>
<p>The correct answer to that question is: it's complicated.</p>

<p>On one hand if you look solely at the number of dwellings in developments, they are very much concentrated in the City of Melbourne + Fishermans Bend Renewal Area and the traditional high-density areas of inner Melbourne: Cities of Yarra, Stonnington and Port Phillip.</p>

<p>On the other hand if you are looking at the number of individual projects, regardless of the number of dwellings contained with in them, then the balance shifts. The centre of the city plus the traditional high-density areas of inner Melbourne make up 53% of all development projects within the Apartments.com.au project database, with the balance spread throughout what we deem to be the 'emerging' high-density areas of Melbourne and all other outer Local Government Areas.</p>

<p>Let's explain.</p>

<p>At the time of writing there are 805 projects listed in the project database and they can be broken into predominant use:</p>

<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 100%;">
<thead><tr>
<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Use</th>
			<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Number of Projects</th>
		</tr></thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Residential</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">724</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Mixed Use*</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">49</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Commercial</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">28</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Hotel</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">4</td>
		</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>* Mixed use buildings are where there is substantial other uses, for instance a residential tower with hotel suites or service apartments. Residential regularly feature retail or food outlet space but the primary tower levels are of a single use and therefore recorded as Residential.</p>

<p>If we exclude the commercial an hotel-only buildings we're left with 773 buildings which feature, or will feature, dwellings for sale depending on how far the project progresses through the development cycle.</p>

<h2>The traditional high-density areas</h2>

<p>Next we have dwelling count data for the majority of residential / mixed-use projects and that totals 91,568 for the entire metropolitan area. This is for projects that are either at Planning Assessment, Approved, at Sales or Under Construction. We can break the City of Melbourne plus the three LGAs which are traditionally high-density areas of Melbourne down geographically as follows:</p>

<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 100%;">
<thead><tr>
<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Local Government Area / Precinct</th>
			<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Number of Projects</th>
			<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Number of Dwellings</th>
		</tr></thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Melbourne + Fishermans Bend Urban renewal area</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">194</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">42,585</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Yarra</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">84</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">6,154</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Stonnington</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">74</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">5,667</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Port Phillip (excluding Fishermans Bend)</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">56</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">4,443</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter"><strong>Total</strong></td>
			<td class="rtecenter"><strong>408 (53% of metro)</strong></td>
			<td class="rtecenter"><strong>58,849 (64% of metro)</strong></td>
		</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>There is little doubt that Central Melbourne is seeing the lion's share of medium and high density development, especially when it comes to purely looking at the number of dwellings. Those four local governments are generally located with a 5km radius of Melbourne's GPO (with the exception of Stonnington: it does stretch much further east, but as most of its development activity is concentrated in the western half within the 5km radius I've included it in the above table).</p>

<h2>The emerging high-density areas and hotspots</h2>

<p>Next we have the 'emerging' high-density areas. They're characterised with existing population densities with roughly 4,000 people square kilometre or less located beyond the inner 5km radius of the GPO.</p>

<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 100%;">
<thead><tr>
<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Local Government Area</th>
			<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Number of Projects</th>
			<th class="rtecenter" scope="col">Number of Dwellings</th>
		</tr></thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Maribyrnong</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">30</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">6,006</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Moreland</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">52</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">4,702</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Darebin</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">41</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">3,382</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Manningham</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">24</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">2,998</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Whitehorse</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">32</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">2,617</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Boroondara</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">39</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">2,305</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter">Moonee Valley</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">29</td>
			<td class="rtecenter">2,111</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td class="rtecenter"><strong>Total</strong></td>
			<td class="rtecenter"><strong>247 (32% of metro)</strong></td>
			<td class="rtecenter"><strong>24,121 (26% of metro)</strong></td>
		</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>The main conclusion I draw from the numbers in the emerging areas is that Melbourne's north and immediate west are the biggest development hotspots outside the inner-city, away from where the majority of people currently live in metropolitan Melbourne. The arc from Maribyrnong to Darebin has just as much development in the pipeline as Yarra, Stonnington and Port Phillip (excluding Fishermans Bend) combined.</p>

<p>While Whitehorse is very much an established middle-ring suburban area, the urban-friendly infrastructure - high-frequency rail and a solid connecting bus network - puts the LGA firmly in the emerging area which might over time pip Manningham for clubhouse leader in the eastern suburbs.</p>

<h2>The remainder</h2>

<p>118 projects and 9,798 medium and high-density dwellings is nothing to sneeze at; just ask cities like Adelaide or Canberra.</p>

<p>Greater Dandenong with just under 10% of the near-on 10,000 dwellings in the development pipeline can only increase from here given it is now either entirely surrounded by suburban areas or green belts.</p>

<h2>Conclusion</h2>

<p>It's tempting to say yes, Melbourne's apartment boom is concentrated in the inner city, but as the data shows it depends on the primary metric in use when attempting to draw a conclusion and it also depends on what your definition of the inner city is.</p>

<p>A final thing to take away from the data tables listed above is that while many of the LGAs in the emerging list straddle the inner-city and middle ring of suburbs, there is an enormous pipeline of development work contained in these areas.</p>

<p>Yes, the inner-city is a beast of a thing but it would be idiotic to completely ignore what's hapenning beyond 5km from the GPO; these areas are richest when it comes to existing residential amenity, services and infrastructure, and they're the areas which have multiple structure plan reviews underway and have likewise undergone planning zone reform.</p>
</body></html>

Is Melbourne's apartment boom concentrated in the inner city?

<html><body>
<p>There are a few outstanding metropolitan strategic planning issues that need to be sorted before any Government commits to expanding the Dandenong rail corridor over and beyond already announced projects. To a large extent, it hinges on how freight is going to be moved in the South East over the longer term.</p>

<p>Back on the 19th of July <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/dandenong-rail-line-needs-two-extra-tracks-to-end-commuter-crawl-20150719-gidpqz">it was reported</a> the Victorian Transport Action Group had warned Spring Street that their project of removing nine level crossings in the Dandenong rail corridor and ordering the next generation of trains to be used on the line will only go part way to solving the line's reliability problems. The Group stated "the Dandenong rail line will need four tracks in the not too distant future" and that "express trains [on the two extra tracks] will reduce travel time for outer urban and regional commuters by more than 15 minutes".</p>

<p>Having multiple tiers of service - stopping-all-stations and express services - would indeed be welcome for outer suburban commuters and also enhance Dandenong's status in the south east by reducing the time to travel between the respective Melbourne and Dandenong CBDs. However, there is one problem, and it's exactly the same problem that the Melbourne Metro Rail project is attempting to fix.</p>

<p>The number of tracks through the inner city.</p>

<p>Cast your mind back to the release of the Eddington report into East-West travel in Melbourne and you might remember the original proposal for rail across the city was to split it into two phases. Phase 1 was to run from South Kensington to Domain Interchange and Phase 2 was to run from Domain Interchange to Caulfield via St Kilda Road / Dandenong Road thereby creating an entirely new track pair right through the inner city to Caulfield.</p>

<p>When the Ballieu/Napthine Government came to power this longer, more expensive two phase approach was ditched and the Phase 1 one approach was altered so the new rail tunnels would meet the existing rail alignment between South Yarra and Hawksburn.</p>

<p>Yes, by all means every station that is to be rebuilt as part of the level crossing removal projects in the Dandenong corridor should be designed with four tracks (but not necessarily four platforms) at each station, however if four tracks were laid and put into use as part of the level-crossing removal project then all it would do is create a massive choke point at Caulfield.</p>

<p>If the VTAG got it wanted - an extra track pair built to Dandenong - (and ignoring the Frankston line's third overtaking track between Caulfield and Moorabbin), to the east and south of Caulfield there would be trains running on three track pairs fighting for space on the two track pairs between Caulfield and South Yarra.</p>

<p>The choke point created at Caulfield under that scenario would reduce the maximum capacity of the four track railway between Caulfield and Dandenong (assuming all passenger services run through to the city as they do now) and therefore likely maintain the status quo in poor reliability.</p>

<p>This is exactly what we <em>don't</em> want.</p>

<h2>Port Phillip versus Western Port</h2>

<p>As part of any study into the need for an extra rail track pair as far as Dandenong, one area of infrastructure contention which every now and then gets its five minutes of fame (<a href="http://www.smh.com.au/business/lack-of-rail-driving-melbourne-to-lose-number-one-container-port-status-20150818-gj1lxd">yesterday no less</a>) is the long term plans for containerised freight at Melbourne's seaports. Based on positions in the previous government, the ALP favours, over the long-term, much of the infrastructure moving to the western shore of Port Phillip and the LNP favour expanding the existing Hastings port on Western Port.</p>

<p>The ALP-favoured Bay West expansion would be located near the existing national standard gauge rail network. The Liberal-favoured Hastings option is connected by a rail line that at present but only has broad gauge and all freight traffic would have to mix with metro traffic on the Frankston Line or the Cranbourne line if a branch were created and sent south to link up with the Stony Point line which runs into Hastings at present.</p>

<p>Bay West on Port Phillip or Western Port. Deciding on the long term future for port expansion is paramount, as siding with the Hastings option will have a more profound impact on the rail infrastructure requirements throughout the South East and this action would subsequently open up another round of debate.</p>

<p>One question to ponder: Is it wise to run more and more freight from an expanded seaport on the existing rail network right through the heart of the city where land for rail expansion would be at its most expensive?</p>

<p>Furthermore would an orbital, freight-only, standard gauge rail line running from Craigieburn to Hastings be a viable alternative?</p>

<p><span style="font-size:10px;">Lead image credit: Wikipedia.</span></p>
</body></html>

Comment: The Dandenong line and quadruplication

<html><body>
<p>Moonee Valley City Council has opened up its draft Essendon Junction structure plan for community feedback. You can view the draft structure plan and all other supporting documents on the <a href="http://www.mvcc.vic.gov.au/essendonjunction">City of Moonee Valley's website</a>.</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/essendon_junction_context.png" rel="gallery-all" title="Essendon Junction Activity Centre - Image from Moonee Valley City Council Essendon Junction structure plan"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="421" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/essendon_junction_context.png?itok=qzMctuLD" title="Essendon Junction Activity Centre - Image from Moonee Valley City Council Essendon Junction structure plan" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Essendon Junction Activity Centre - Image from Moonee Valley City Council Essendon Junction structure plan</figcaption></figure><p>Moonee Valley City Council's vision for Essendon Junction is stated in the plan:</p>

<blockquote>
<p>Essendon Junction will be a great place to live and work and a vibrant destination to visit, with attractive streetscapes and a seamless transport interchange. The Junction will be the cultural and entertainment heart of Essendon, offering an integrated network of streets with innovative developments complementing the existing heritage</p>
<cite><a href="http://www.mvcc.vic.gov.au/~/media/Files/Planning%20and%20Building/Long%20Term%20Planning%20in%20Moonee%20Valley/EJNAC%20SP/Essendon%20Junction%20Structure%20Plan.pdf">Draft Essendon Junction Structure Plan</a></cite>
</blockquote>

<p>As expected from any structure plan document, there is a strong emphasis on maintaining existing characteristics, while providing a framework for new development of varying densities within the activity centre.</p>

<p>The activity area is separated into six precincts - all with varying height limits and preferred setback treatments - with precinct number 2 (Essendon Station) hosting the largest height limits of 12 levels on the VicTrack land fronting Mount Alexander Road and precinct number 3 (The Core) having height limits up to six levels, in keeping with current development along Napier Street.</p>

<p>For instance on Brewster Street - which forms the northern boundary of Essendon FC's Windy Hill precinct - there are mandatory landscape setbacks of five metres from a street front, and in the case where a development may abut a sensitive or rear of an adjoining property, a non-mandatory setback of 4.5 metres from the property line is sought with further building setbacks for new development over three levels. Refer to pages <a href="http://www.mvcc.vic.gov.au/~/media/Files/Planning%20and%20Building/Long%20Term%20Planning%20in%20Moonee%20Valley/EJNAC%20SP/Essendon%20Junction%20Structure%20Plan.pdf">12 through 15 in the draft structure plan</a>.</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/essendon_junction_precincts.png" rel="gallery-all" title="Essendon Junction precinct map"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="376" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/essendon_junction_precincts.png?itok=BMu9Helv" title="Essendon Junction precinct map" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Essendon Junction precinct map</figcaption></figure><p>On Thursday 23rd of July, Moonee Valley City Council will be holdings its second information session at Ukranian House on Russell Street, Essendon between 6pm and 8pm.</p>

<p>Moonee Valley City Council are encouraging its citizens to engage with them and you can leave feedback, as well as view all other documentation on <a href="http://www.mvcc.vic.gov.au/essendonjunction">City of Moonee Valley's website</a>.</p>

<h2>Buckley Street and Mount Alexander Road grade separation</h2>

<p>Central to the draft structure plan is a council-endorsed plan to make major changes to the existing rail infrastructure in the center of the activity centre. At present the Craigieburn line is grade separated over Mount Alexander Road, but still has a level crossing on Buckley Street at Essendon Station.</p>

<p>Buckley Street is on the State Government's list of 50 level crossings to be removed over the next eight years. The supplementary documentation linked from City of Moonee Valley's Essendon Junction page includes <a href="http://www.mvcc.vic.gov.au/~/media/Files/Planning%20and%20Building/Long%20Term%20Planning%20in%20Moonee%20Valley/EJNAC%20SP/14%2093660%20%20Appendix%20A%20%20Essendon%20Junction%20Grade%20Separation%20Feasibility%20Study(2).pdf">a report created by GHD Australia</a> in 2013-2014 which sought to provide options for grade separation in the area.</p>

<p>The preferred option 3 would see the following occur:</p>

<blockquote>
<p>In this option, the rail drops below Buckley Street and through the existing heritage station precinct. A new below grade station would be located in the middle of the activity centre with the potential for a station entrance on Mount Alexander Road or near the existing station. The final location of the platforms would depend upon their required length and alignment.</p>

<p>Mount Alexander Road would be reinstated to grade. The tracks would travel below Mount Alexander and start to rise back to grade, north of Raleigh Street. This is the preferred option out of the 3 scenarios. The cost involved with the larger area of excavation and the construction of the underground station is seen to be justified given the value of their associated benefits. The deeper excavation ensures that the heritage station and its integrity are left intact.</p>

<p>The restoration of the Mount Alexander road surface to natural ground level eliminates the barrier of having the road below grade level; as it is currently or above grade level, as is the case in Option 1. Therefore this option provides the optimal opportunity for modal interchange and increased pedestrian connectivity, which is crucial for the development of the activity centre.</p>

<p>Locating the underground platforms between the existing heritage station and Mount Alexander Road, as per Option 3, maximises station accessibility with opportunities for entrances from Mount Alexander Road, Russell Street or Rose Street.</p>
<cite><a href="http://www.mvcc.vic.gov.au/~/media/Files/Planning%20and%20Building/Long%20Term%20Planning%20in%20Moonee%20Valley/EJNAC%20SP/14%2093660%20%20Appendix%20A%20%20Essendon%20Junction%20Grade%20Separation%20Feasibility%20Study(2).pdf">GHD Australia, Essendon Junction Grade Separation (Draft Feasibility Assessment Report), December 2013</a></cite>
</blockquote>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/essendon_junction_future_dev_parcels.png" rel="gallery-all" title="Future development parcels created by grade separation"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="298" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/essendon_junction_future_dev_parcels.png?itok=I6fTbO9d" title="Future development parcels created by grade separation" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Future development parcels created by grade separation</figcaption></figure><p>The report also includes a high-level cost estimate which GHD stresses would require further investigation. No single grade separation project currently underway is the same as any other in the metropolitan area, however it does make for interesting reading into all the input costs of a grade separation project.</p>

<p>A screen grab from page 71 of the <a href="http://www.mvcc.vic.gov.au/~/media/Files/Planning%20and%20Building/Long%20Term%20Planning%20in%20Moonee%20Valley/EJNAC%20SP/14%2093660%20%20Appendix%20A%20%20Essendon%20Junction%20Grade%20Separation%20Feasibility%20Study(2).pdf">Essendon Junction grade separation feasibility study</a>:</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/essendon_grade_sep_costs.png" rel="gallery-all" title="High level cost estimate provided by GHD"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="408" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/essendon_grade_sep_costs.png?itok=_OQI-U4L" title="High level cost estimate provided by GHD" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>High level cost estimate provided by GHD</figcaption></figure><h2>Comment</h2>

<p>Moonee Valley City Council's preferred option for grade separation to my mind is a sound one, as it ticks all the right boxes: removing a level crossing, retaining a heritage station building (bonus points would be awarded for repurposing it as a community facility), far stronger train to tram connectivity, restoring Mount Alexander Road to a proper boulevard and removing the current rail barrier at Raleigh Street.</p>

<p>Assuming GHD's cost estimates for under $200 million are correct and when the entire Essendon Junction structure plan is taken into consideration - more specifically the amount of dwelling supply and economic activity it will create over time - I don't believe it would be all that difficult for the benefits to outweigh the costs in this context.</p>

<p>Here's hoping the State Government adopt the council's preferred grade separation option.</p>
</body></html>

Essendon Junction structure plan and Buckley Street grade separation

<html><body>
<p>On Monday 29th of June, the Minister of Public Transport, Jacinta Allan, and Minister for Industry, Lily D'Ambrosio, called for expressions of interest for the design, construction and maintenance of a 'next generation, high-capacity metro train' (HCMT) for Melbourne.</p>

<p>Foreshadowed in the recent Andrews' Government budget, 37 new trains along with the building of a new maintenance centre in Pakenham East is expected to cost $1.3 billion.</p>

<p>A <a href="http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/traction-rolling-stock/single-view/view/victoria-begins-high-capacity-metro-train-procurement">Railway Gazette</a> article states that on top of the order for 37 new trains for the Pakenham/Cranbourne lines, the State Government seeks to have the right over 25 purchase options for the Melbourne Metro Rail project and a further 38 options to begin phasing out the 1980s era Comeng trains.</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/sandown_park_platform_length.png" rel="gallery-all" title="Sandown Park station on the Dandenong corridor"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="353" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/sandown_park_platform_length.png?itok=fiw8zv5h" title="Sandown Park station on the Dandenong corridor" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Sandown Park station on the Dandenong corridor</figcaption></figure><h2>Sweating more out of the platform space</h2>

<p>The station platforms on Melbourne's rail network - those on the surface, measurable by Google Maps - are around 160 metres and according to the Railway Gazette article the new high capacity metro trains look set to take full advantage of the existing infrastructure.</p>

<p>Not since the 1970s when the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harris_(train)">Harris trains</a> were primary workhorse of the rail fleet has there been any train marshaled in a configuration of more than 6 carriages. The recently departed <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitachi_(Australian_train)">Hitachi</a> and the current fleet of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comeng_(train)">Comeng</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X%27Trapolis_100">X'Trapolis</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siemens_Nexas">Siemens</a> trains have all been marshaled as 3 or 6 x 23-24m motor and trailer carriage trains measuring a total length of 71-72 metres for 3 car trains or 143-144 metres for 2 x 3 car sets which are now the standard configuration across all lines.</p>

<p>At 160m it would appear the next generation of trains to run exclusively on the Cranbourne/Pakenham lines would likely be marshaled in a 8 x 20m carriage configuration (or 7 x 22-23m configuration as pointed out in <a href="http://www.danielbowen.com/2015/07/01/next-gen-trains/">Daniel Bowen's blog</a>) thus utilising the full length of the existing platforms at stations along those lines.</p>

<h2>Piece by piece</h2>

<p>If there is any communications-related criticism to be levelled at the current State Government, it's that the piecemeal approach they have taken by drip-feeding announcements related to their huge book of Public Transport projects doesn't link back to the overall 'big picture' narrative.</p>

<p>Nevertheless, the table below is an attempt to at least put projects in some logical order and it's based on information that has previously been released as well as some assumptions denoted by an asterisk.</p>

<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 100%;">
<thead><tr>
<th scope="col">Puzzle piece</th>
			<th scope="col">Date</th>
		</tr></thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Sunbury line level crossings removed - Main Road and Furlong Road in St Albans</td>
			<td><a href="http://economicdevelopment.vic.gov.au/transport/major-projects/level-crossing-removal-project/current-projects#2">2017</a></td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Dandenong corridor level crossing removal project complete - 9 level crossings and 4 rebuilt stations</td>
			<td>2018*</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>First next generation HCMTs start rolling off the production line</td>
			<td><a href="http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/traction-rolling-stock/single-view/view/victoria-begins-high-capacity-metro-train-procurement">2018</a></td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Metro Rail project - start of civil works</td>
			<td><a href="http://mmrailproject.vic.gov.au/about-the-project">2018</a></td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Trial of new signalling system begins on Sandringham Line</td>
			<td>2019-2021*</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>State Government exercises HMCT purchase options for Melbourne Metro Rail</td>
			<td>2020-2021*</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>First batch of HCMTs nears end of production cycle</td>
			<td><a href="http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/traction-rolling-stock/single-view/view/victoria-begins-high-capacity-metro-train-procurement">2022</a></td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Metro Rail project - civil works and station construction complete, rail equipment installation and testing begins</td>
			<td>2022-2023*</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Second batch of HCMTs for the Melbourne Metro Rail / Sunbury line starts production cycle</td>
			<td>2022*</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Pakenham, Cranbourne and Sunbury lines retrofitted with new signalling system</td>
			<td>2024-2025*</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Second batch of HCMTs for the Melbourne Metro Rail / Sunbury line nears end of production cycle</td>
			<td>2024-2025*</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Metro Rail project - Pakenham/Cranbourne services begin running through to Sunbury and vice versa</td>
			<td>2024-2025*</td>
		</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h2>Wouldn't it be nice…</h2>

<p>If the State Government took a leaf out of the NBNCo's book and centralised all public transport project information - big picture and fine detail - in one <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/sell-nbn-services/rollout-map">giant map</a>?</p>

<p><span style="font-size:10px;">Lead image credit: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X'Trapolis_100">Wikipedia</a>.</span></p>
</body></html>

Melbourne's train fleet to be expanded

All being equal podcast: affordable housing in Melbourne

<html><body>
<p>The Premier and Minister for Public Transport this morning announced four more level crossing removals had been funded - Main and Furlong Roads in St. Albans, Blackburn Road in Blackburn and Heatherdale Road in Mitcham.</p>

<p>"These four level crossings will all be removed by 2018, and are part of our $2-2.4 billion commitment in the 2015-2016 Victorian Budget to remove at least 20 of these congested death traps over four years" the Premier said.</p>

<p>Leighton Contractors, Aurecon and Hyder Consulting will be working together to both design and build the four grade separation projects with input from public sector agencies VicRoads, Public Transport Victoria and the operator of the metropolitan rail network, Metro Trains Melbourne.</p>

<p>In a media release distributed on Tuesday morning, the Government has announced the package of works will cost around $480 million including $151 million from the Federal Government. This federal money is reportedly derived from savings made on the Regional Rail Project which began operations on Sunday.</p>

<p>Heatherdale Road, Blackburn Road and Furlong Road projects will be funded by the Victorian Government and the Main Road grade separation project funded by the Regional Rail Link savings.</p>

<p>In terms of rail corridor changes, at all four project sites the rail lines will be lowered under the existing road grade and three stations will be re-built as a consequence: St. Albans, Ginifter and Heatherdale.</p>

<p><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m0!3m2!1sen!2sau!4v1435019591184!6m8!1m7!1so6nLJDygseyT_7R6joKtsQ!2m2!1d-37.818875!2d145.213361!3f282.51!4f-2.819999999999993!5f0.7820865974627469" style="border:0" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>​Of all four level crossing removal projects which were awarded today, Heatherdale is likely to be the more intriguing from a design perspective. As seen in the google street view above, the existing station is already on a downhill (toward Ringwood) grade and lowering the rail line below the existing road grade will likely require a large amount of excavation to the west of the station in order to smooth out the rail corridor between Mitcham and Heatherdale stations.</p>

<p>As Blackburn Road and Heatherdale Road are completed, the only remaining level crossings between the city and Ringwood will be located at Union Road in Surrey Hills and Mont Albert Road in Mont Albert. Given Surrey Hills and Mont Albert Stations are located within a kilometre of each other, Apartments.com.au expects that both of these stations - which have three tracks and platforms like the recently announced Frankston line level crossing removals - would be completed at the same time, whenever they are prioritised by Government. These two level crossings do not feature in the list of 50 grade separation projects.</p>

<p>With the announcement of Main Road and Furlong Road projects today, once complete in 2018, all Sunbury line trains as far as Watergardens will be running on track with no level crossings, thanks to previous removal projects in the region with the most recent being Anderson Road as part of the Regional Rail Link project.</p>

<p>The State Government has also announced that geotechnical investigations have begun in the Dandenong corridor where nine previously announced level crossings are to be removed and four stations are scheduled to be rebuilt.</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/level-crossing-removal-locations.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="The 50 level crossings the Government aims to remove over eight years. Economicdevelopment.vic.gov.au"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="417" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/level-crossing-removal-locations.jpg?itok=doEZZzJe" title="The 50 level crossings the Government aims to remove over eight years. Economicdevelopment.vic.gov.au" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The 50 level crossings the Government aims to remove over eight years. <a href="http://economicdevelopment.vic.gov.au/transport/major-projects/level-crossing-removal-project/level-crossing-removal-locations">economicdevelopment.vic.gov.au</a></figcaption></figure><h2>Level crossing removals announced to date</h2>

<p>The Dandenong corridor:</p>

<ul>
<li>Grange Road, Carnegie</li>
	<li>Koornang Road, Carnegie - includes rebuilding Carnegie station.</li>
	<li>Murrumbeena Road, Murrumbeena - includes rebuilding Murrumbeena station.</li>
	<li>Poath Road, Murrumbeena - includes rebuilding Hughesdale station.</li>
	<li>Clayton Road, Clayton - includes rebuilding Clayton station.</li>
	<li>Centre Road, Clayton</li>
	<li>Corrigan Road, Noble Park</li>
	<li>Heatherton Road, Noble Park</li>
	<li>Chandler Road, Noble Park</li>
</ul>
<p>Expressions of interest were being sought in June and an earlier media release from the Minister for Public Transport stated the work was expected to start in 2016 - and today's announcement confirms that - and complete by 2018. Total value, designs and contractors not yet announced.</p>

<p>The Frankston Line:</p>

<ul>
<li>North Road, Ormond - includes rebuilding Ormond station.</li>
	<li>McKinnon Road, McKinnon - includes rebuilding McKinnon station.</li>
	<li>Centre Road, Bentleigh - includes rebuilding Bentleight station.</li>
</ul>
<p>The Glen Waverley Line:</p>

<ul>
<li>Burke Road, Glen Iris - includes rebuilding Gardiner station.</li>
</ul>
<p>Contracts for these four level crossing removals were awarded to a consortium which comprises John Holland and KBR. $524 million and complete by 2018.</p>

<p>The Ringwood corridor:</p>

<ul>
<li>Blackburn Road, Blackburn.</li>
	<li>Heatherdale Road, Mitcham - includes rebuilding Heatherdale station.</li>
</ul>
<p>The Sunbury Line</p>

<ul>
<li>Furlong Road, St. Albans - includes rebuilding Ginifer station.</li>
	<li>Main Road, St. Albans - includes rebuilding St. Albans station.</li>
</ul>
<p>Contracts awarded to an alliance of Leighton Contractors, Aurecon and Hayder Consulting. $480 million. St. Albans projects complete by 2017, Ringwood corridor projects complete by 2018.</p>

<p><span style="font-size:10px;">Lead image credit: <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/@-37.818875,145.213361,3a,75y,282.51h,87.18t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1so6nLJDygseyT_7R6joKtsQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en-GB">Google Street View</a>.</span></p>
</body></html>

St. Albans, Blackburn and Mitcham set to see more level crossing removals

<html><body>
<p>For many a year now there's been talk of a rail link to Melbourne Airport with the Albion corridor named as the preferred alignment. While an airport heavy rail link via the preferred corridor would serve the Airport, Sunshine, the city centre and most parts of the metropolitan area in the East and South via a change of trains in the city, it doesn't do much for people living in the north and working at the airport, let alone cater for passengers accessing the airport.</p>

<p>On top of origin/destination trips to the airport's terminals, the airport master plan foresees significant non-aviation development and employment sprouting on the outer edges of the land it controls between Melrose Drive and the Tullamarine Freeway, notwithstanding the large amount of semi-industrial employment already in the region.</p>

<p>Essendon Fields is seeing ongoing commercial development, most notably in recent times with Linfox moving in, and Moonee Valley have currently zoned the area to the west of Matthews Ave as Business Zone 3 which allows for mixed-use residential and commercial uses. Apartments.com.au even has its eyes on development in this very precinct: see <a href="/news/the-northern-light-rail-link">83 Matthews Avenue</a>.</p>

<p>Suffice it to say residents of Moonee Valley, Darebin and Moreland - areas where many people who work at Melbourne Airport reside - wouldn't directly benefit from a heavy rail link. These residents either have to travel into the city to catch the skybus (or in future the train) back out to the airport or play roulette with infrequent bus to bus (and rail to bus) connections; the only exception to this rule is the frequent connection between the Craigieburn line and Airport smart bus connection at Broadmeadows.</p>

<h2>The idea: a light rail line stretching from Thornbury to Melbourne Airport</h2>

<p><iframe height="480" src="https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=zLzjYwjjDBk0.k7Yg81lZOXQQ" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<h2>Airport West to Melbourne Airport</h2>

<p>From the current terminus of route 59 at Airport West, new tram track would be built along the western side of Melrose Drive into the airport zone.</p>

<p>In order to not play havoc with existing vehicular traffic from the current terminus, the tram track would be elevated across the Matthews Ave/Dromana Ave/Melrose Drive intersection at the main entrance to Westfield Airport West, remain elevated across Mascoma Street and the Albion corridor rail line and then would transition to an open trench in order to have a clear path underneath the Malvern Avenue/Western Ring Road/Sharps Road interchange.</p>

<p>Between the Western Ring Road and Melbourne Airport, save for a short 200-300m section of Melrose Drive, the tram track would be laid at grade in the median that currently separates the northbound Melrose Drive traffic lanes and the service road. All sections where the tram track intersects with streets would be signalised and only triggered as trams approach the crossings, effectively giving light rail services priority.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="400" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m0!3m2!1sen!2sau!4v1434616867136!6m8!1m7!1sRWP8PKQYzvOWihNysMOo6Q!2m2!1d-37.703101!2d144.882849!3f172.6402970433707!4f-2.7853582439360167!5f0.7820865974627469" style="border:0" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>From Trade Park Drive right up into the Airport lands - and where the new Tullamarine freeway exit intersects with Melrose drive - the trams would run in the ample space beside Melrose Drive and then switch to the Melrose Drive median up to Service Road and the Melbourne Airport Terminals.</p>

<p>The total length of this route is 6.3km, 350m of which is in an open below-grade trench and 550m is elevated at Airport West.</p>

<h2>Essendon to Coburg</h2>

<p>Using the short section of track which currently hosts the route 8 on Moreland Road, this idea would see both ends of that track extended west and east.</p>

<p>The first new track section from Essendon would run from where the existing route 59 trams turn out of Fletcher Street into Pascoe Vale Road down to the Moreland Road intersection and then turn eastward and run all the way to Moreland Station, where the existing tram track ends at Brunswick tram depot.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="400" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m0!3m2!1sen!2sau!4v1434617381097!6m8!1m7!1sAiNojxEgGGCYXBqiiBgrqQ!2m2!1d-37.753691!2d144.949251!3f253.85!4f-2.6299999999999955!5f0.7820865974627469" style="border:0" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>Engineering issues which would need to be dealt with along this route: Moreland road descends moderately from Pascoe Vale Road and the general road corridor narrows over the Moonee Ponds Creek Bridge, this would need to be widened.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="400" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m0!3m2!1sen!2sau!4v1434617059827!6m8!1m7!1sRgdL9xm5HmNKSG1dITqHFQ!2m2!1d-37.751078!2d144.927044!3f283.0521102350623!4f-7.56721222747305!5f0.7820865974627469" style="border:0" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>Similarly Moreland Road at Moreland station on the Upfield line would need to be grade separated - that's aken care of as it's already on the current government's <a href="http://economicdevelopment.vic.gov.au/news-and-media-releases/work-begins-to-remove-50-of-the-worst-level-crossings-in-melbourne">map of 50 level crossing removals</a> - but for the most part, Moreland Road is quite wide (parallel parking, bike and a single traffic lanes in each direction) and somewhat similar in profile to other roads in the area which have trams running on them.</p>

<p>This section of new tram track would measure 3.9km in length, connect/interchange with 3 existing tram routes (59, 55 and 19) and connect with 1 rail line (Upfield).</p>

<h2>Coburg to Thornbury</h2>

<p>Running on the existing tram track from Moreland Station across Sydney Road to Nicholson/Holmes Street the new track would be laid in the centre of Moreland Road and then across the Merri Creek along Normanby Avenue to St. Georges Road. From this point the route would use the existing track in St. Georges Road and Miller Street and Terminate at Thornbury junction in Miller Street.</p>

<p>There's an opportunity near the terminus to remove the existing Thornbury rail station and rebuild it 300m north in order for a) the station to be closer to the junction and b) directly interface with this new light rail route.</p>

<p>The width of Normanby Avenue from the Northcote Golf Club across St. Georges Road and into High Street is narrow and a straight route to High Street would need to include a grade separation. There is just one short 500m section of Normanby Avenue which would require some kind of tram prioritisation if the existing St. Georges road track were to be re-used.</p>

<p><iframe frameborder="0" height="400" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m0!3m2!1sen!2sau!4v1434617163241!6m8!1m7!1sXSV3aqlX1jOiwQj5PiUKXA!2m2!1d-37.758711!2d144.992573!3f293.19504533329155!4f-10.876194806512643!5f0.7820865974627469" style="border:0" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>This section of new track from Nicholson Street to St. Georges Road measures 1.6km in length. 1.4km of existing double tram track would be re-used for the Northern Light Rail line and from the St. Georges Road/Normanby Ave intersection to Thornbury junction. The new service would connect with 4 tram routes (1, 8, 11 and 86) as well as 1 rail line (South Morang).</p>

<h2>Some employment numbers</h2>

<p>Demographer's <a href="http://home.id.com.au/">.id</a> publish a great set of data on where residents of LGA's work. Melbourne Airport sits in the <a href="http://profile.id.com.au/hume/workers?SLACode=205353274">Hume - Craigieburn SLA</a> which also includes Greenvale, Craigieburn and Roxburgh Park.</p>

<p>The 2011 census data shows that the <a href="http://profile.id.com.au/hume/residents?SLACode=205353274">Hume - Craigieburn</a> area (where the airport is located) is the employment destination for:</p>

<ul>
<li>1860 people, or 3.5% of <a href="http://profile.id.com.au/moonee-valley/residents">Moonee Valley's residents</a>
</li>
	<li>1724 people or 2.5% of <a href="http://profile.id.com.au/moreland/residents">Moreland's residents</a>
</li>
	<li>870 people or 1.5% of <a href="http://profile.id.com.au/darebin/residents">Darebin's residents</a>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Interestingly, the Hume - Broadmeadows area which stretches from Gladstone Park (where this Light Rail line would go) over to Broadmeadows itself is the destination for:</p>

<ul>
<li>1763 people or 3.3% of Moonee Valley's residents.</li>
	<li>1620 people or 2.5% of Moreland's residents.</li>
	<li>338 people or 1.3% of Darebin's residents.</li>
</ul>
<p>The <a href="http://profile.id.com.au/moonee-valley/workers?SLACode=205105065">Moonee Valley - West</a> region stretches from the Maribyrnong to Avondale Heights. The overwhelming majority of employment in this region is centred around Essendon Fields/Airport and Airport West.</p>

<p>It sees 2550 or 20% of its local residents work in the same region. 985 or 8% of its employees travel from the neighbouring Moonee Valley - Essendon region and 531 people or 4.3% travel from both the Brunswick and Coburg sub-regions of Moreland.</p>

<p>If we assume 75% of employees living in Darebin/Moreland/Moonee Valley work at/near the airport, 35% of employees from those LGAs are travelling to the Gladstone Park-Tullamarine area for work and 90% of the people are travelling to Essendon Fields/Airport West for work, then that totals approximately 8,000 employees traveling to a work place destination in the vicinity of this light rail line.</p>

<p>Throw in the wholesale integration with 7 tram routes plus 3 rail lines and the potential pool of passengers for this light rail line for travel to Melbourne airport will no doubt increase.</p>

<h2>Services</h2>

<p>The new light rail line - let's number it route 60 - running from the Airport to Thornbury via Essendon Station, Fletcher Street and Moreland Road could start with 10 minute off-peak, 8 minute peak and 20 minute late night frequencies. All new stops along the line would be accessibility compliant and services would be operated with E-Class trams.</p>

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/e-class_interior.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Interior of a locally made Bombardier E-Class tram, image Wikipedia"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="360" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/e-class_interior.jpg?itok=gcrZ09ig" title="Interior of a locally made Bombardier E-Class tram, image Wikipedia" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Interior of a locally made Bombardier E-Class tram, image <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-class_Melbourne_tram">Wikipedia</a></figcaption></figure><p>Even though the journey would take over an hour from the city (remembering this isn't the main aim of the light rail line), there would be merit in extending the route 59 trams the extra 6km to Melbourne Airport. Using the current timetable as an example, that would mean 8 minute frequencies in off-peak times, 6 minutes in peak and 20 minute frequencies at night. Between Essendon and the Airport when combined with the new route 60 there would be an extensive amount of services.</p>

<p>According to the current route 59 timetable, from Fletcher Street and Pascoe Vale Road - where the new Moreland road extension would connect to the existing network - the journey to the terminus at Airport West Shopping Centre takes 18 minutes in off-peak times. This route travels mixed with traffic on Fletcher Street, freely via the Mount Alexander Road median, mixes with traffic on Keilor Road through the popular Niddrie shopping strip and then on its own separate track alongside Matthews Avenue up to the shopping centre.</p>

<p>By way of eliminating a future tram bottleneck, the existing track between Matthews Avenue and the Tullamarine Freeway should be grade separated at English Street: the Tullamarine freeway interchange with Matthews Avenue / primary entrance to Essendon Airport / Essendon Fields.</p>

<p>Using the Keilor Road to Airport West segment - a distance of 2.5 km - as a guide, the current timestable states this journey takes 5 minutes. Given much of the extension north of Airport West SC would be in a dedicated corridor and measures 6.3km, the journey time from Airport West to the Melbourne Airport would take in the region of 12-15 minutes. This allows us to calculate journey times on route 59 as follows:</p>

<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 100%;">
<thead><tr>
<th scope="col">Journey</th>
			<th scope="col">Time</th>
		</tr></thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Airport West</td>
			<td>12 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Niddrie</td>
			<td>18 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to North Essendon village</td>
			<td>23 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Essendon Station</td>
			<td>26 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Moonee Ponds junction</td>
			<td>34 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Flemington Bridge station</td>
			<td>45 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to route 59 terminus - Elizabeth/Flinders Street</td>
			<td>Approximately 1 hour</td>
		</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>For route 60 as there is no precedent on an east-west route for estimating travel times however I'll use route 55's timetable. Melville Road, which Moreland Road intersects with, is of a comparable width and sees a similar volume of traffic throughout the day. From Smith Street to Bell Street - the entire length of Melville Road where route 55 runs - measures 3.25km. The current timetable for route 55 sees this segment's journey time at 9 minutes; this allows us to provide a journey time estimate for route 60:</p>

<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 100%;">
<thead><tr>
<th scope="col">Journey</th>
			<th scope="col">Time</th>
		</tr></thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Melville Road (interchange with route 55)</td>
			<td>33-35 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Moreland Station / Sydney Road (interchange with route 19 and Upfield line)</td>
			<td>39-41 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Melbourne Airport to Thornbury Junction (interchange with route 86 and South Morang Line)</td>
			<td>47-49 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Essendon Station to Brunswick (Sydney Road)</td>
			<td>12-14 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Brunswick (Sydney Road) to Thornbury Junction</td>
			<td>11-13 minutes</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>Essendon Station to Thornbury Junction</td>
			<td>23-27 minutes</td>
		</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h2>Making things a little bit faster (and servicing different areas)</h2>

<p>You'll note on the map there are two red lines: one from Airport West slicing through Essendon Fields and heading to the North Essendon village and a second red line running from North Essendon village to the Pascoe Vale Road / Moreland Road intersection via Glenbervie. They only exist to illustrate how new areas could be opened up for direct light rail services and would allow a more direct route 60 service to operate while interfacing with the existing route 59 in North Essendon and Airport West.</p>

<p>From Airport West Shopping Centre the tram track would stay elevated and cross the Tullamarine Freeway and then use the Wirraway Road median where just before the aviation zone starts, the track would enter a 1.1km tunnel and traverse the airfield and surface next to the DFO Essendon Fields. From there, another short section of elevated track above the Bulla Road freeway interchange would then deposit the track in the Bulla Road median where it would join up with the existing route 59 track.</p>

<p>From Mount Alexander Road, to the south of the North Essendon village strip, new track would divert down Glass street then cross the top of a newly rebuilt and sunken Glenbervie station and turn south onto Pascoe Vale Road and then east onto Moreland Road.</p>

<p>These two new routes marked in red on the map measure 4km and 1.65km respectively. The existing route from Airport West via Matthews Avenue, Keilor Road, Mount Alexander Road and Fletcher Street measures 6.5km plus another 500m to connect to Moreland Road.</p>

<p>5.65km versus 7km with the shorter route servicing Essendon Fields directly - specifically the southern end with its major retail uses and the northern end with its commercial focus - and providing a higher quality tram to rail connection at Glenbervie (passengers wouldn't need to walk 300m like they do at Essendon station for a connection).</p>

<h2>Costs</h2>

<p>One of the best sources of discussion on this topic is from <a href="https://melbpt.wordpress.com/tram-construction-costs/">this 2008 blog post</a>. The author used the Box Hill, Vermont South and Docklands Drive tram extensions as an example and when you place the figures in that blog post through RBA's inflation calculator, the capital cost of constructing tram track - on road mind you - turns out to be $13.4 million per kilometre in 2014 dollars.</p>

<p>From the same post, the author asserts that the operational cost of running the tram network is (in 2014 dollars, thanks to RBA's inflation calculator) $1.1million per kilometre.</p>

<p>The original order of 50 E-Class trams by the State Government in 2009 cost $300 million according to this <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/test-proves-yarra-trams-eclass-trams-too-power-hungry-for-network-20140710-zt2jd">2014 Age article</a>; I'd estimate that 30 trams would be required for the new route 60.</p>

<h2>Estimates</h2>

<ul>
<li>$15 million per kilometre for standard in-road track.</li>
	<li>$25 million per kilometre for elevated/trench track.</li>
	<li>$30 million per kilometre for tunnel.</li>
	<li>Melbourne Airport - Airport West (6.3km total, 500m elevated, 300m trench): $82.5 million + $20 million = $102.5 million.</li>
	<li>Essendon-Coburg (all in-road, 3.8km): $57 million.</li>
	<li>Coburg - Thornbury (all in-road, 1.6km): $24 million.</li>
	<li>Total capital expenditure: $183.5 million for 12 kilometres of new track.</li>
</ul>
<p>Alternative route 60 track:</p>

<ul>
<li>Essendon Fields (4km total, 900m elevated, 1.1 km tunnel): $30 million + $22.5 million + $33 million = $85.5 million.</li>
	<li>Glenbervie (all in-road, 1.65km, station rebuild costs not included): $25 million.</li>
</ul>
<p><span style="font-size:10px;">Lead image credit: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tram_stop_56_(_Earl_St-Matthews_Ave)_at_Airport_West_(2).jpg">Wikipedia</a>.</span></p>
</body></html>

The Northern Light Rail link

<html><body>
<p>On Thursday the McKell Institute released a report titled <a href="http://mckellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/pdf/McKell_Negative-Gearing_A4_WEB.pdf">Changing Gears</a>. It's a document which looks at five different policy options in relation to negative gearing and perhaps most disappointingly it does not give strategic planning policy much of a look in.</p>

<p>First and foremost, the McKell Institute are a NSW-centric policy institute and much of the report views the issues with the existing negative gearing system through Sydney-coloured glasses - a quick word find search of the document yields 53 references to Sydney and 3 to Melbourne.</p>

<p>In saying that however, I welcome its favoured policy response of grandfathering existing negative gearing arrangements and allow new negative gearing only for new housing stock.</p>

<p>As I mentioned in the opening paragraph, very little attention is paid to strategic planning and much of the preferred policy response focuses on using negative gearing to drive more broadacre supply. Is it smart to accelerate metropolitan fringe growth thus further lengthening the time between when residents move in and infrastructure - be it community-related, transport-related or health/education-related - is put in place?</p>

<p>Building new houses on the fringe without adequate infrastructure and locking new residents into auto-centricity from day one is the peak definition of sprawl.</p>

<p>Melbourne's urban growth boundary underwent a review of 'logical inclusions' in 2012 and subsequently another 6000 hectares was added to the supply pipeline. In 2010, the then Planning Minister Justin Madden added a mammoth 40,000 hectares. Just those two changes alone is enough land for upwards of 700,000 houses (at 15 houses per hectare).</p>

<p>Melbourne does not have an issue with broadacre supply.</p>

<p>Rewinding back to the Guy Planning era and the reformed planning zones, regardless of how well it has been implemented by individual councils, it was an attempt to drive more supply into brownfields development across the existing metropolitan area. And this is what the McKell Changing Gears report doesn't appear to address: different states have different strategies.</p>

<p>States and cities around the country vary when it comes to housing and planning policy, some have urban growth boundaries, some don't. Some encourage large pockets of high-density development, some have planning schemes which encourage medium density development across a broader metropolitan area. If a great big axe is to be wielded by Canberra (the McKell Institute is aligned with the ALP) then Canberra must ensure this negative gearing policy switch aligns with the wishes and planning policies of the states.</p>

<p>Given that the ability to deduct interest expenses from a person's income only applies on property which is not the individual's principal place of residence then we're talking about increasing the supply of rentals on the fringe within the context of the Changing Gears report.</p>

<p>But this is where this policy should be tweaked: it should apply to new 3+ bedroom apartments only, especially in areas throughout the metropolitan area where new planning zones allow it.</p>

<p>In the apartment boom of early last decade, 1 bedroom apartments were more common than 2 or 3 bedroom apartments - this decade it's safe to say most new developments split 1 and 2 bedroom configurations evenly with a small smattering of larger apartments. If we're going to attempt to intervene on an apparent market failure, rather than increase the supply of rentals on the fringe, it should be targeted at the dwelling type we have a lack of - and that's family-sized apartments.</p>

<p><span style="font-size:10px;">Lead image courtesy mckellinstitute.org.au.</span></p>
</body></html>

Targeting the right kind of new rental housing with negative gearing policy changes

<p><a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/broadbeach-qld-4218">Broadbeach</a> offers plenty of reasons to live vertically, but moving from a substantial family home into an apartment can expose the compromises of high-density living. Privacy, room for guests and usable living space tend to matter more when an apartment is intended as a permanent home rather than an occasional coastal base.</p>

<p>A typical residential floor at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-eveleigh-broadbeach-7-9-surf-parade-broadbeach-qld-4218">The Eveleigh</a>, on Surf Parade,&nbsp;contains just four apartments. The 94-residence development by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/hirsch-faigen">Hirsch &amp; Faigen</a> is predominantly made up of expansive three-bedroom homes, with a limited collection of half-floor penthouses above.</p>

<p>Across the apartment floors, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/rothelowman">Rothelowman</a> has used the relatively limited number of residences to give each home greater access to natural light and outlook. Living spaces extend towards full-height glazing, while a series of bay windows frame selected views across the Pacific Ocean, city and hinterland rather than treating the building edge as a continuous wall of glass.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360965]</p>

<p>“The apartment floors deliver a collection of homes that embrace controlled outlook via a series of bay windows deliberately framing moments of view,” Rothelowman Director Kim Lowman said.</p>

<p>From outside, those projecting forms contribute to the tower’s faceted profile. Strong horizontal and vertical elements establish its proportions, while the changing position of the sun alters the light, shadow and reflection across the façade throughout the day.</p>

<p>The same attention moves inside the apartments, where the material palette combines warm timber, natural stone, metallic detailing and softer curved forms. Kitchens sit within the main living zone, with stone island benches, integrated joinery and European appliances, before the living areas extend towards the glazing and the outlook.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360981]</p>

<p>Three genuine bedrooms provide room to accommodate family and guests, while two secure car spaces and storage address some of the practical considerations that can become more noticeable when moving from a larger home. Feedback from the display suite has centred on the warmth and restraint of the interiors, with buyers commenting that the residences feel like homes rather than conventional coastal apartments.</p>

<p>A limited collection of half-floor penthouses occupies the upper levels, increasing the scale of the living spaces and adding private balconies and elevated finishes. From this position, the outlook extends between the ocean and hinterland.</p>

<p>Outside the private residences, The Eveleigh separates its shared spaces between the podium and rooftop. The podium is centred on wellness, with subtropical landscaping surrounding a swimming pool and pool terrace, yoga garden, private gymnasium, sauna and hot and cold plunge facilities. Landscaped retreats and pavilions provide additional places to sit away from the main recreation areas.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360966]</p>

<p>Higher in the building, a rooftop pavilion and private dining suite sit alongside resident lounge, barbecue and outdoor dining areas, opening towards panoramic views across the ocean, city and hinterland.</p>

<p>“Buyers are no longer just looking for an apartment, but a lifestyle where they can relax, reset, and enjoy a balanced way of living,” Hirsch &amp; Faigen Director of Sales Matt George said.</p>

<p>Interest to date has come from established owner-occupiers and interstate lifestyle purchasers, including buyers planning a future move to the Gold Coast. Many are coming from larger homes and want to reduce ongoing maintenance without giving up space for family and guests, privacy, two car spaces or the ability to entertain at home.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360969]</p>

<p>Much of that daily life can also take place beyond the building without requiring a drive. Kurrawa Beach and Pratten Park are an easy walk from Surf Parade, while Pacific Fair, Oracle Boulevard, The Oasis, restaurants, cafés, entertainment and public transport are also within walking distance.</p>

<p data-end="8307" data-start="8063">The Eveleigh is Hirsch &amp; Faigen's fourth Gold Coast development since entering the market in 2021, following The Hemingway at Palm Beach, The Emerson at Kirra and Yves at Mermaid Beach. Each of the preceding projects sold out before completion.</p>

<p data-end="8543" data-start="8312">“Broadbeach had been on our radar throughout our time operating on the Gold Coast,” the developer said. “Following our projects in Palm Beach, Kirra and Mermaid Beach, Broadbeach represented the natural next step for the business.”</p>

<p data-end="8915" data-start="8548">The Surf Parade site brought together proximity to the beach, protected coastal outlooks and walkability to dining, shopping and recreation. Hirsch &amp; Faigen also identified the street as an emerging premium residential address, with enough separation from Broadbeach's busier destinations to retain a quieter environment at home.</p>

<p>The Eveleigh is now under construction by Maxcon, with completion forecast for mid-2028. Three-bedroom residences are currently available from $2.87 million.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=149670]</p>


Joel Robinson

The Eveleigh brings house-like apartments to Broadbeach

<p>A long-stalled Campbelltown development site is back in play, with new plans for 139 apartments set to supersede a mixed-use scheme approved almost a decade ago but never built.</p>

<p>The new proposal for 28 Cordeaux Street would deliver 116 market and 23 affordable apartments in a part 14-storey building, bringing a substantial new project into a Campbelltown market where new apartment supply remains limited.</p>

<p>Plans have been filed over the 3,092 sqm corner site at Moore-Oxley Street, around 600 metres from Campbelltown Railway Station and the city-centre retail core.</p>

<p>The site already carries a mixed-use residential approval dating to 2016. Doroch Architects has now been engaged on a larger replacement scheme, which is progressing as a State Significant Development Application following a Housing Delivery Authority determination in August 2025.</p>

<p>The apartment mix comprises 39 one-bedroom, 72 two-bedroom and 28 three-bedroom residences. Two-bedroom apartments make up just over half of the project, while three-bedroom homes account for 20 per cent.</p>

<p><img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="136dd5b9-3791-4da6-9e31-76f533f5b4de" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da2.png?VersionId=LgOSy9nwf5u.MGswBBwaGGxuX8QpHSl_" /></p>

<p>Of the 139 apartments, 23 will be delivered as affordable housing under the in-fill affordable housing provisions of the Housing SEPP. The affordable component represents 15 per cent of the residential gross floor area and will be managed by a registered Community Housing Provider.</p>

<p>Doroch has sought to break the scale of the building into two distinct elements, with a masonry podium of around four storeys establishing the street edge before the residential tower steps back above.</p>

<p>The corner position has shaped that approach. Cordeaux Street faces toward the commercial and civic centre, while Moore-Oxley Street leads into the lower-scale residential neighbourhood to the south, and the design verification report describes the site as "bridging the commercial core to the north and established residential areas to the south."</p>

<p>The podium will be expressed predominantly in face brick, while the upper levels shift to brushed and grooved concrete cladding with darker metal detailing. Recessed sections, deep balcony edges and landscaping break down the upper form, with an approximately 11.8-metre setback to the northern boundary addressing the adjoining St Peters Anglican School.</p>

<p><img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c8b3d2d3-c561-4bfc-a5d9-a68c0c10dac1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da1.png?VersionId=AeAEyJU02Gk2k5noUj2StziCvdQ7fW4B" /></p>

<p>Campbelltown has been starved of new residential developments in the last decade.</p>

<p>The only other notable development set to come to market this year is ALAND's Queen Square, a mixed-use precinct on over two hectares that will comprise apartments above a vibrant ground-level retail and hospitality dining precinct.</p>


First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site

<p>
<style type="text/css">
</style>
</p>

<p>A 60-apartment building nine storeys tall would be a rarity almost anywhere along this stretch of Moreton Bay, but that's exactly what's been lodged for a modest Deception Bay street better known for its single-storey weatherboard homes.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/sherlock-construction-homes">Sherlock Construction Homes</a> is seeking to push Deception Bay’s emerging medium-density housing profile higher, lodging plans for a nine-storey apartment building near the suburb’s shopping centre and foreshore.</p>

<p>Dubbed Grosvenor Apartments, the proposal at 14-20 Grosvenor Terrace would replace two detached homes with a new building designed by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/mode">Mode Design</a>&nbsp;which would&nbsp;reach nearly 30 metres, well above the site’s mapped 21-metre building height.</p>

<p><img alt="First Look: Sherlock Construction pitches 9-storey tower for low-rise Deception Bay" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="86c21a25-5a97-4ca7-a361-80757137ea5b" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Deception%20da%20front.png?VersionId=aXIujfvEhH33sLHOEjHFv9Ii6qxSvAF4" /></p>

<p>The apartment mix is weighted toward larger homes, with 14 three-bedroom apartments, 31 two-bedroom apartments and 15 one-bedroom apartments. Six apartment types are spread across the floors, ranging from 66 sqm one-bedroom units through to three-bedroom apartments of 116 sqm, most with private balconies or terraces.</p>

<p>Levels one through seven follow a consistent layout of six to eight apartments per floor arranged around a central lift and stair core, with the top floor, level eight, trading one apartment for a landscaped community breakout space rather than repeating the standard layout below.</p>

<p>Ground floor is dedicated to arrival and services, with a lobby, mailroom and manager's office, alongside 91 car spaces.</p>

<p><img alt="First Look: Sherlock Construction pitches 9-storey tower for low-rise Deception Bay" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b098bde0-5fe1-4e6c-9601-e5446612e5fc" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Deception%20podium.png?VersionId=A0hfENMNxSxkfh9Jl6D4WJ9XIraeOukA" /></p>

<p>Mode Design's brief describes a "serene coastal-inspired design blending soft curves, natural textures and light-filled spaces to reflect the relaxed Deception Bay lifestyle."&nbsp;</p>

<p>The material palette leans on white and grey render, timber-look aluminium screening and stacked-brick-look finishes, with hanging greenery and vine planting proposed across balcony edges and ground-level walls.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Balconies feature asymmetrical geometries intended to vary the building's rhythm rather than repeat a single module up the tower, while lush planting is concentrated over the entry and level one balconies to soften the building's base.</p>

<p><img alt="First Look: Sherlock Construction pitches 9-storey tower for low-rise Deception Bay" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c05c5693-3e00-42d0-b075-55c36094f4db" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Deception%20da%201.png?VersionId=cMKJgBsBaaVCd2dA5O22SOT38OT_.BPA" /></p>

<p>The design evolved following an April 2025 prelodgement meeting with council. At that stage, the project was conceived as a seven-storey building containing 45 apartments. The subsequently lodged scheme increases the development to nine storeys and 60 apartments while introducing one-bedroom residences to the mix.</p>

<p>Zone Planning argues the additional scale reflects the site's position within an area earmarked for increased residential intensity. The planning report points to the North Lakes-Redcliffe-Moreton Bay Rail corridor strategy, which identifies Deception Bay as a district-level activity centre and supports greater housing choice within urban neighbourhoods.</p>

<p>Market Square Deception Bay, Deception Bay Sports Centre, Deception Bay State School, public transport, community facilities and the Moreton Bay foreshore are all identified within approximately one kilometre of the site, while the property falls within a 400-metre walking catchment of Market Square.</p>

First Look: Sherlock Construction pitches apartments for low-rise Deception Bay

<p data-end="587" data-start="368">Queensland builder-developer MAYD has revealed the first look at its major North Kirra beachfront development, lodging amended plans that reduce the number of apartments and increase the proportion of larger residences.</p>

<p data-end="778" data-start="589">The project is planned across a substantial 4,742 sqm amalgamated site spanning seven lots at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/2-6-pacific-parade-bilinga-qld-4225">2-6 Pacific Parade</a> and 27-33 Golden Four Drive in Bilin​ga, directly opposite Nor​th Kirra Beach.</p>

<p data-end="907" data-start="780"><a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mayd-group">MAYD</a> secured the site for $32.5 million in 2025, in what was one of the Gold Coast's largest property transactions of the year.</p>

<p data-end="1052" data-start="909">The development will be delivered across two stages, with the first stage carrying an estimated gross realisation value of around $360 million.</p>

<p data-end="1311" data-start="1054">The latest amendments seek to reduce the overall apartment count and shift the project further toward the owner-occupier market, with larger residences designed for buyers wanting considerably more space than traditionally offered in a beachfront apartment.</p>

<p data-end="1451" data-start="1313">The residential mix will include townhomes, oversized two-bedroom apartments, substantial three-bedroom residences and four-bedroom homes.</p>

<p data-end="1676" data-start="1453">MAYD has appointed Cera Stribley to lead the architecture and interiors, with the Melbourne-based design practice drawing on the beachfront setting through a series of ocean-facing terraces and heavily landscaped balconies.</p>

<p data-end="1908" data-start="1678">Strong horizontal forms and curved balconies will define the exterior, with subtropical landscaping integrated throughout the building to soften the built form and increase the connection between the residences and the beachfront.</p>

<p data-end="2142" data-start="1910">The project will also include an extensive collection of resident wellness and lifestyle facilities, continuing the broader shift across the Gold Coast's luxury apartment market toward larger homes supported by resort-style amenity.</p>

<p data-end="2142" data-start="1910"><img alt="MAYD" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d1bcbb05-e659-4b47-8bd4-1e595315e2ad" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%202.05.03%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=jj0XEud1X1DuLt7_KyElhjMdZGOXmLHP" /></p>

<p data-end="2308" data-start="2144">MAYD Founder Todd Mould said North Kirra was increasingly appealing to buyers attracted to the more established, lower-density character of the southern Gold Coast.</p>

<p data-end="2648" data-start="2310">"North Kirra presents one of the most compelling luxury residential opportunities currently emerging in Australia, combining absolute beachfront with the character and authenticity that buyers are increasingly seeking, and the same sense of tight-knit community that defined Burleigh and Currumbin perhaps 10 or 15 years ago," Mould said.</p>

<p data-end="2797" data-start="2650">"With Gold Coast Airport on its doorstep, it also offers a level of accessibility that broadens its appeal across almost every market demographic."</p>

<p data-end="2938" data-start="2799">The project comes as the southern Gold Coast continues to attract an increasing share of high-end apartment development and buyer activity.</p>

<p data-end="3216" data-start="2940">Kirra in particular has emerged as one of the region's more tightly held beachfront markets, with its relatively low-density character, established surf and hospitality scene and proximity to Gold Coast Airport differentiating it from the higher-density markets further north.</p>

<p data-end="3325" data-start="3218">Mould said those characteristics had informed the approach MAYD and Cera Stribley had taken to the project.</p>

<p data-end="3442" data-start="3327">"We've worked closely with Cera Stribley to create a vision that is deeply connected to its surroundings," he said.</p>

<p data-end="3662" data-start="3444">"Inspired by the coastline itself, the architecture has been shaped around space, privacy and resort-style living, creating a collection of homes that reflects the next generation of luxury on the southern Gold Coast."</p>

<p data-end="3818" data-start="3664">MOTIV Managing Director Carly Cottam, who has been appointed to market the project, said buyer attention had continued to move south along the Gold Coast.</p>

<p data-end="4076" data-start="3820">"Purchasers who may once have defaulted to Broadbeach, Main Beach or Surfers Paradise are increasingly recognising the value of a genuine beachfront location that offers lower density, strong amenity and a more established sense of community," Cottam said.</p>

<p data-end="4375" data-start="4078">"Kirra has a powerful combination of growing demand and genuine scarcity. Beachfront supply is inherently constrained, the area remains relatively low density, and buyers are increasingly placing a premium on locations that feel established, uncrowded and authentic rather than heavily developed."</p>

<p data-end="4503" data-start="4377">Cottam said the proximity to Gold Coast Airport was also proving increasingly important for interstate and second-home buyers.</p>

<p data-end="4741" data-start="4505">"Being minutes from Gold Coast Airport makes it particularly compelling for interstate buyers, frequent travellers and second-home purchasers who can access an authentic coastal lifestyle almost immediately after stepping off a flight."</p>

<p data-end="4910" data-start="4743">The acquisition takes MAYD's active development portfolio to more than $500 million, with the North Kirra project representing one of its largest undertakings to date.</p>

<p data-end="4951" data-start="4912">MAYD is targeting an early 2027 launch.</p>


First look at MAYD's North Kirra mixed-use precinct

<main data-perf-region="main">
<p data-end="600" data-start="394">Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.</p>

<p data-end="733" data-start="602">But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.</p>

<p data-end="970" data-start="735">Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.</p>

<p data-end="970" data-start="735">[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377679]</p>

<p data-end="1159" data-start="972">The project will comprise three residential towers alongside a hotel, restaurants, cafes and a skybar, more than 1,600 sqm of ground-floor retail and almost an acre of landscaped gardens.</p>

<p data-end="1357" data-start="1161">It represents the largest project undertaken by Reve Group, the development arm of the Kassis family, which has been building across the Hills District for more than 30 years through Kassis Homes.</p>

<p data-end="3400" data-start="3216">[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377675]</p>

<p data-end="3400" data-start="3216">Nova Rêve also represents a significant step up from the family's first apartment development, Grand Rêve, which was delivered nearby on Garthowen Crescent.</p>

<p data-end="1664" data-start="1517">Grand Rêve introduced larger, house-like apartment layouts and premium inclusions including Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances to the Castle Hill market.</p>

<p data-end="1826" data-start="1666">Nova Rêve takes that approach to a precinct scale, combining the residential component with hospitality, retail and substantial public and resident landscaping.</p>

<p data-end="1826" data-start="1666">[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377685]</p>

<p data-end="2045" data-start="1828">Reve Group Managing Director Sam Kassis said the project reflected the family's three decades of building in the Hills, which has evolved from trophy homes on quarter-acre blocks to larger-scale apartment development.</p>

<p data-end="2269" data-start="2047">"Grand Rêve was our first apartment project here and it showed us what this pocket of Castle Hill could be. Nova Rêve is the refinement of that idea: not just apartments, but a place the whole suburb can use," Kassis said.</p>

<p data-end="2430" data-start="2271">A key part of that approach is the hotel, which has been designed to operate as an amenity for the wider Castle Hill community rather than solely hotel guests.</p>

<p data-end="2606" data-start="2432">It will include restaurants, cafes, skybars and all-day dining, alongside conference and event facilities catering to business functions, community groups and private events.</p>

<p data-end="2724" data-start="2608">At ground level, more than 1,600 sqm of shops and cafes will open onto the surrounding streets and landscaped areas.</p>

<p data-end="2892" data-start="2726">Almost an acre of gardens designed by Land and Form Studios will run through the precinct, incorporating pathways, seating, barbecue areas and children's play spaces.</p>

<p data-end="2892" data-start="2726">[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377680]</p>

<p data-end="3004" data-start="2894">Reve Group's Romio Georges said creating an active ground plane had been central to the planning of Nova Rêve.</p>

<p data-end="3214" data-start="3006">"There are gardens with pathways, barbecues, seating and play areas, shops and cafes opening onto the street, and a hotel with restaurants and a skybar that anyone in Castle Hill can walk into," Georges said.</p>

<p data-end="3400" data-start="3216">The project's elevated position on one of Sydney's highest ridgelines will also provide apartments with outlooks toward the Sydney skyline, surrounding parkland and the Blue Mountains.</p>

<p data-end="3400" data-start="3216">More than 80 per cent of the apartments will occupy corner positions, with Turner responsible for both the architecture and interiors.</p>

<p data-end="3670" data-start="3538">&nbsp;</p>

<p data-end="3670" data-start="3538">[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=152737]</p>

<h3 data-end="3697" data-section-id="q3n5ak" data-start="3672">&nbsp;</h3>
</main>


Alastair Taylor

Editor's Picks

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News

Alastair Taylor

Editor's Picks

Receive the latest news stories to your inbox

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News