System Melbourne Depot Southbank Night-time Friday & Saturday | Operator Yarra Trams Vehicle C2 class
E class Locale Melbourne, Australia | |
 | ||
Melbourne tram route 96 is operated by Yarra Trams on the Melbourne tram network. It operates from Brunswick East to St Kilda Beach. The 13.9 kilometre route is operated by C2 and E class trams from Southbank depot.
Contents
It is one of Melbourne's busiest tram routes carrying 39,700 passengers a day with a frequency of up to every six minutes during peak. It has been described as one of the world's top 10 tram rides, highly popular with both commuters and tourists visiting St Kilda's many attractions and special events including the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix and the St Kilda Festival.
The route began electric operation on 6 May 1956, with the reintroduction of trams on Bourke Street. It was extended to St Kilda on 20 November 1987, with the conversion of the St Kilda railway line to a light rail. As a result it has a lengthy right of way between Melbourne and St Kilda, although the majority of the route is on-road. End to end services take about 50 minutes.
Frequent overcrowding problems have seen route 96 become the only route to run the C2 class tram, specifically designed to carry more passengers, complementing the D class trams. Due to its high usage, the route was chosen in April 2012 to undergo major infrastructure upgrades along its entire length.
History
The line opened as a cable tram line operated by the Melbourne Tramway & Omnibus Company on 30 August 1887, operating along Bourke and Nicholson Streets. It operated until 26 October 1940, when the Bourke Street cable lines were abandoned by the Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board (MMTB) in favour of double decker buses. The Bourke Street cable lines were the last cable trams to operate in Melbourne.
The MMTB, unhappy with the performance of the buses, decided to reinstate trams when the buses reached life expiry, trams on the 88 (predecessor to the modern 86) started on 26 June 1955 with the first tram to East Brunswick operating on 6 May 1956.
The W7 class trams were built for running on these lines and the new Z class trams first ran on route 96 in June 1975.
The line was extended south to St Kilda along Spencer Street, the former St Kilda railway line, Fitzroy Street and The Esplanade to terminate in Acland Street on 20 November 1987 following the conversion of the St Kilda Railway (along with the Port Melbourne railway line) to light rail. The broad gauge 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) track was re-gauged to standard gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) and the overhead voltage was reduced from 1500V DC to 600V DC with light rail platforms built adjacent to the former stations platforms.
With the closure of North Fitzroy depot in December 1993, its route 96 duties were transferred to South Melbourne depot.
After the merger of the M>Tram network with Yarra Trams in 2004, most D2 class trams were transferred from Malvern depot to Southbank depot to help alleviate the congestion on the route. Since the introduction of these low floor Combino trams on the route, accessible stops have been built on Bourke Street, Fitzroy Street and St Kilda Esplanade, increasing customer safety and comfort.
In response to frequent overcrowding on the tram system in 2008, the state government leased new C2 class trams from Mulhouse, France specifically to run the route. The first of these new trams began operation on 11 June 2008 with the nickname Bumble Bee 1. In November 2013, the first E class trams entered service on the route. In January 2016, route 96 began operating through the night on Fridays and Saturdays as part of the Night Network.
Route 96 Project
On 17 April 2012, it was announced that Route 96 would become the focus of tram upgrades to transform it from a tramway to a light rail system; a "model" for how Melbourne's tram network should operate. The Route 96 Project superseded a similar project of the previous government, Tram 109.
The proposed aims of the project are:
The objectives are to:
In mid-2013, the proposed changes were released to the public. They involved an eventual segregation of trams from traffic along nearly the entire route, and the upgrade of all stops to level access to improve passenger flow and make the network disability-compliant. On Nicholson Street, all on-street parking would eventually be removed to create dedicated tram lanes where it is illegal for cars to drive. Easy-access stops (level access by raising the road to footpath level) would be constructed between Blyth Street and Brunswick Road, while centre island superstops would be constructed between Brunswick Road and the CBD.
The World Trade Centre and Port Junction stops in South Melbourne would be redesigned with a separate bay for the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant, while in St Kilda, some parts of Acland Street would be closed to cars in favour of widened footpaths, pedestrian plazas and tram right of way.
The project has received strong support from commuters, urban planners and public transport advocates, while there have been concerns from shop owners along the route that a loss of on-street parking will negatively affect business.
Work completed as at March 2017 has included:
Route
Route 96 runs from Brunswick East, travelling south on Nicholson Street through the suburbs of, Carlton North, Fitzroy North, Carlton and Fitzroy, passing the Royal Exhibition Building.
It enters the CBD on Spring Street turning west into Bourke Street at Parliament House, travells through the Bourke Street Mall and turns south into Spencer Street, passing Southern Cross station, it crosses the Yarra River and enters Southbank on Clarendon Street before passing through the suburbs of South Melbourne, Albert Park, Middle Park and St Kilda on a right-of-way on the former St Kilda railway line with stops at City Road, South Melbourne market, Albert Park, Melbourne Sports & Aquatic Centre, Middle Park, Fraser Street and St Kilda. The tram line exits the private right-of-way and travels along Fitzroy Street and The Esplanade to Acland Street, St Kilda where it terminates.
Operation
Route 96 is operated by trams from Southbank depot and is predominantly run with:
However, during special events, track works or tram shortages, trams running this route can also include:
Special events and services
Several annual events affect the usual services along route 96: