The issue is not new to Port Phillip, where parking has long been scarce. The forum will be the Metropolitan Strategy, next year's state government conference on urban sprawl and Melbourne's future transport needs. A leaked copy of the MTF submission Creating Choices, to be launched next month, spells out what Cr Hill and the other councillors want for Melbourne. He may have a point. Melbourne's rail network hasn't changed since 1930, apart from the city loop and minor extensions of existing lines.
Trams are slow.
It takes 79 minutes to travel on the East Burwood line from the terminus to Spencer Street. But billions have been spent building Melbourne's freeways since the 1960s. The Scoresby freeway looks set to go ahead, and yesterday The Age reported that a tunnel linking the Eastern freeway and City Link was back on the agenda. Cr Hill believes that with council amalgamations boosting the strength of local government and with the privatised rail and tram companies aggressively seeking market share, public transport now has some powerful advocates. Sydney's experience with the Olympics points to a better direction for Australian cities - public transport can work brilliantly.