FREMANTLE BRIDGE DESIGN A GREAT OPPORTUNITY

 

 

 

The Fremantle community and Council are rallying state government to ensure we will have significant input in what the new traffic bridge will look like, its location and that the old traffic bridge, or a part of it, will be saved for community and tourist use.

North Fremantle resident Rebecca Clarkson has been very active and had meetings with Simone McGurk and Josh Wilson and many other people. She is trying to connect the entire Freo community, especially those impacted by the bridge.

Rebecca organised an online petition that has received many hundreds of signatures already, and she has been assured that community consultation by Main Roads will start this month, so stay tuned for updates on that.

Imagine the possibility of a high span bridge where tourists could climb over and  a flying fox down to the foreshore.

I walked over to the old traffic bridge yesterday morning and took these photos.

Roel Loopers

INDIAN PACIFIC TRAIN TO START IN FREO

 

 

Exciting news for Freo! The extremely popular Indian Pacific train journey from Perth to Sydney might well become a real coast to coast from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, and start here in Fremantle

Transport Minister Rita Saffioti used the 50th anniversary of the tourist train to reveal the WA government was looking into extending the service from East Perth train station to Fremantle, with some of the preliminary work already underway.

Earlier this week the Indian Pacific, the 4352 kilometre transcontinental train trip from Sydney to Perth, celebrated its 50^th anniversary.

Fremantle Mayor Brad Pettitt said it would be fantastic to have Australia’s longest rail journey terminating in Fremantle. The popularity of these long and luxurious rail journeys just seems to be growing and growing, and how amazing would it be for passengers to arrive in Fremantle on the Indian Pacific and actually see the Indian Ocean.”

“There are some really great synergies with having the Indian Pacific arriving in Fremantle. For example, people would be able to step off the train and step straight on to a ferry to Rottnest, or they could ride the Indian Pacific to Fremantle and then board a cruise ship to sail home.

“It could also provide the impetus for the redevelopment of Victoria Quay and improving the connections between the port and the city centre.

An uninterrupted rail link from to the Pacific Ocean in the east to Indian Ocean in the west was not completed until 1969.

The newly named Indian Pacific train embarked on its inaugural transcontinental journey on 23 February 1970, with more than 10,000 people turning out to welcome it upon its arrival in Perth.

On average the Indian Pacific is 774 metres long, consisting of two locomotives and 30 carriages.

It takes about 65 hours to travel the 4352 kilometres from Sydney to Perth, at a leisurely average speed of 85km per hour.

Roel Loopers

ROAD AND RAIL NOISE PROTECTION FOR COMMUNITY

 

Planning Minister Rita Saffioti today released the revised State Planning Policy 5.4 road and rail noise, which aims to balance the needs of transport corridors with protecting the community from unreasonable amounts of noise.

The new policy will help develop better land use and development outcomes around major transport corridors, including METRONET and the McGowan Government’s social and affordable housing package that will be built around station precincts.

• Revised State Planning Policy 5.4 on road and rail noise released following public consultation
• Updated policy aims to balance the needs of transport corridors while protecting the community from unreasonable noise
• Will broadly apply to new residential developments within 300 metres of a transit corridor
• New guidelines will support delivery of major McGowan Government election commitments including METRONET

The review was overseen by the Western Australian Planning Commission and involved an extensive public consultation period, with 62 stakeholder submissions received.

The new policy balances the community’s need for amenity and quiet while also recognising the need for important freight and transit corridors.

It aims to ensure noise impacts are addressed as early as possible in the planning process and encourages best practice around noise mitigation design and construction standards.

The updated policy will apply broadly to new residential developments proposed within 300 metres of a specified transport corridor and to new or major upgrades of roads and railways.

In addition to simplifying the assessment and implementation process, the policy and associated guidelines will:

• Provide guidance on ‘quiet house’ design requirements such as building orientation, window glazing and insulation;
• Introduce mapping and trigger distances that demonstrate areas to which the policy applies;
• Prioritise strategic freight routes and ensure noise mitigation measures are suitable for the function of the route and the proposed or current land use; and
• Provide better guidance on the content and form of noise management plans.

For more information, visit http://www.dplh.wa.gov.au/spp5-4

 

Roel Loopers

FREMANTLE LINE TRAIN CHANGES

 

There will be changes to the Fremantle Line train services from July 21 with all trains stopping at all station from there on. I assume that means there won’t be any express trains to and from Fremantle anymore.

Transperth states that two B Series trains will be running Monday to Friday during the morning and afternoon peak period but I am not sure what B Series stands for and could not find the answer on the PTA website either.

So if you commute daily by train it is best to check out the changes and new timetable.

Roel Loopers

FREMANTLE TRAINS NOT RUNNING TODAY

 

Yesterday I saw a notice on Facebook by the PTA that Fremantle trains would not be running at night this weekend but a Roundhouse volunteer guide just told me she had to take a bus from Mosman Park because the trains are not running during the day either.

With WINTERWORLD just starting today it is amazing how the Public Transport Authority so often cancel Freo trains when festivals are on. Is there any collaboration with the City of Fremantle at all?

Roel Loopers

HARMLESS PARCEL CLOSES FREMANTLE RAILWAY STATION

 

 

The Fremantle railway station was closed for over two hours from 8am this morning when PTA transit guards found a suspicious package and the bomb squad was called in.

Traffic along Phillimore Street was diverted and some train and bus commuters experienced delays.

The parcel turned out to be harmless.

Roel Loopers

FREMANTLE TRAIN LINE NOT POPULAR

 

It is surprising to hear that passenger numbers on the Fremantle train line have again declined, with the seventh consecutive decline in 2018.

The number of passengers on the Fremantle-Perth line was down by 290,000 journeys last year.

This puts into question how realistic Fremantle Council is about pushing for light rail in the Fremantle area, when the existing rail services from Fremantle to Perth, Armadale, Joondalup, Midland and Rockingham are not popular with Freo commuters, and the numbers have been declining for seven long years now.

What needs to be done now by the State Government is to find out what the reasons are for the decline in people using the Freo line and maybe the City of Fremantle can also do a survey.

I know that many Fremantle residents drive to the Murdoch station to hop on the train, so that will be one of the reasons for the declining numbers from the Fremantle train station.

Roel Loopers

GOLDEN MORNING AT FREO RAILWAY STATION

 

 

I had an early 6.30am catch up coffee with former Fremantle Councillor Dave Coggin at Il Cibo this morning. He is a man I greatly respect and really like and he is now working at the WA Premier’s Department.

When we walked out of the cafe Dave pointed at the railway station, saying “Look at that light!” I wandered over of course to take this stunning photo of it.

Roel Loopers

PUTTING YOUR LIFE ON THE FREO LINE

 

 

We should never underestimate the stupidity of our fellow human beings, as this photo I took this morning at 10am shows.

This group of young tourists literally put their life on the line by walking on the railway track, because the footpath at Arthur Head is closed due to rockfall danger.

It would have taken a panic run of about 100 metres to get to safety if a container freight train had come. Stupidity at its worst!

Roel Loopers

FREMANTLE TRAFFIC BRIDGE STRENGTHENING

The WA government is spending another $ 3 million on strengthening the Fremantle traffic bridge after it completed the fender system upgrade earlier this year.

Advanteering Civil Engineers has the contract to use specialist divers to repair and strengthen the 100 pilons under water. The work should be completed by May next year.

Roel Loopers