Future Victoria: The big transport issues facing commuters in Melbourne’s west

Melbourne’s west has been plagued with traffic delays and public transport issues. The Herald Sun put four types of transport to the test on a morning commute – see which was fastest.

The Herald Sun’s Commuter Challenge highlighted the daily travel problems encountered in the city’s west – West Gate traffic snarls, poor bicycle infrastructure and too few train services.

Travel times from the western suburbs were inflated for the timed journey from Altona to the Southgate area of Southbank.

And the poor travel prospects for commuters are likely to continue with further works on the West Gate Tunnel and five more level-crossing removal projects to come in Spotswood, Altona, Newport and Yarraville.

Dane Hitchins was quickest on the day of the challenge, clocking in at 25 minutes on his Triumph Bonneville. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Occasional commuting motorcyclist Dane Hitchins was quickest on the day of the travel challenge, clocking in at 25 minutes on his Triumph Bonneville.

“I was straight on to the freeway and had a beautiful view of Melbourne City on the way,’’

he said.

Train commuter Daisy Henry took 40 minutes to ride 10 stops to the city centre. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

The traffic on the West Gate Freeway’s five lanes was quieter than normal on the day but there were still many stop-start sections along the way especially though South Melbourne and near the Power St exit.

Next quickest was motorist Matthew Younan, who took 34 minutes.

Nilsson Jones faced some issues on his ride into Melbourne from Altona. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

“I went on the West Gate Bridge, copped a bit of traffic there and getting off towards Power St to come towards here that’s where I copped a bit more traffic as well.”

For rail commuters, the single track on the Altona loop of the Werribee line limits the number of peak-hour services.

Train commuter Daisy Henry took 40 minutes to ride the 10 stops to the city centre.

Motorist Matthew Younan was second, taking 34 minutes to get to the city. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

“The Altona train to Flinders St only comes every 20 minutes, so it’d be frustrating if you missed it by a minute or two. Twenty minutes would end up making you pretty late to work.”

Cyclist Nilsson Jones had to deal with a deflating tyre but that was the least of his problems with some routes without any roadspace for bike riders.

“There’s a few places through Footscray where there’s no dedicated bike lane so it can be pretty unsafe,’’ he said.

BikeWest President John Symons said City of Maribyrnong residents were among the highest in Melbourne who could cycle but don’t because they were concerned about unsafe or non-existent cycling infrastructure.

“We know that half of all trips Melburnians take are less than 4.2km and a quarter are less than 1.6km, so what we need to do is encourage people and provide safe and accessible routes for the community to hop on a bike,” Dr Symons said.

In a previous Herald Sun Commuter Challenge, from Yarraville in June, cycling was the quickest option, and even running was faster than public transport.

Rail disruptions meant a journey by train and bus took 64 minutes for the 9km journey.