Melbourne tram route 96

East Brunswick - St Kilda Beach

Route Information
Route Number	96
Number of stops	45
Timetables	Link
Route Map	Link
Zone Location
Zone 1
Entire route

Melbourne tram route 96 is a public transport tram and light rail route in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

It is one of Melbourne's busiest tram route carrying 39,700 passengers a day^[1] with a frequency of every 10 minutes or less during peak. It has been described as one of the World's Top 10 Tram rides,^[2][3] 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.

Like most tram routes in Melbourne, it falls within Metcard/myki ticketing Zone 1.

Frequent overcrowding problems have seen the route 96 become the only routes to run the C2 class Melbourne tram, specifically designed to carry more passengers, however several different tram models regularly run the route.

History

The line opened as a cable tram line operated by the Melbourne Tramway and Omnibus Company on 30 August 1887, operating along Bourke St and Nicholson St.^[4] It operated until 26 October 1940, when the Bourke St cable lines were abandoned by the Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board in favour of double decker buses.^[5] The Bourke St cable lines were the last cable trams to operate in Melbourne. Melbourne and Metropolitan Tramways Board, unhappy with the performance of the buses wished to rebuilt the lines as electric tram services, it was decided to reinstate trams when the buses were life expired, trams on the 88 (predecessor to the modern 86) started on 26 June 1955^[6] with the first tram to East Brunswick operating on 6 May 1956^[6]. The W7 class of trams were built for running on these lines and the new Z class trams first ran on route 96.

B2 class tram on the St Kilda light rail

The line was extended south to St Kilda along Spencer St, the former St Kilda Railway, 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 Line) to light rail.^[7] 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.

After the merger of the M>Tram network with Yarra Trams in 2004,^[8] most D2 class trams were transferred from Malvern depot to Southbank depot to help alleviate the congestion on the route.^[9] Since the introduction of these low floor Combino trams on the route, accessible stops have been built in 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 11th June, 2008 with the nickname Bumble Bee 1.^[10][11]

Route

Route 96
East Brunswick Stop 27 North Fitzroy Glenlyon Rd 24 Brunswick Rd 22 Carlton Alexandra Pde 17 Johnston St 15 Melbourne Museum Route 86 12 Victoria Pde Routes 24, 30, City Circle 11 City Parliament Parliament Station 9 Swanston St Routes 1, 3/3a, 5, 6, 8, 16, 64, 67, 72 6 Elizabeth St Routes 19, 57, 59 5 Queen St 4 William St Route 55 3 Spencer St Routes 75, 86,		Southern Cross Station Southern Cross Station Routes 11, 42, 48, 109, 112	122
		Batman Park Routes 70,

Casino Route 112 124a Port Junction Route 109 125 South Melbourne South Melbourne 127 Wright St 129 Middle Park 130 St Kilda St Kilda Station Routes 3a, 16 132 Park St Route 112 134 Luna Park Routes 3a, 16, 79 138 St Kilda Beach 140

Not all stops are shown, refer to timetable for full list of stops.

D2 class tram at Acland Street terminus in St Kilda

Route 96 runs from East Brunswick, travelling south on Nicholson Street between the suburbs of, Carlton North, Fitzroy North, Carlton and Fitzroy, past the Royal Exhibition Building in the Carlton Gardens, a World Heritage Site.

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 traversing the suburbs of South Melbourne, Albert Park, Middle Park and St Kilda on a right-of-way - the former St Kilda railway line - with stops at City Road, South Melbourne market, Albert Park, Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre, Middle Park, Fraser Street and St Kilda.

At the former railway terminus - St Kilda Railway Station - 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

A C2 class tram travelling along La Trobe Street, C2's have serviced the route since 2008

Route 96 is run from Southbank depot^[12] and is predominantly run with D2 class and C2 class trams, both low-floor tram classes, although during special events, track works or tram shortages trams running this route can include:

• A class
• B class
• C1 class (low-floor)

Special Events and Services

Several annual events affect the usual services along route 96. In particular:

• Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix - most services terminate at Middle Park are and replaced with buses
• RMIT University exams - (held at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre) additional services typically terminate at Middle Park are added during the peak to mitigate overcrowding caused thousands of students catching the trams
• St Kilda Festival - additional services

Maps and Timetables

• Official timetables
• Official route map
• Official tram network map
• Tram and train network map from railmaps.com.au

See also

• St Kilda railway line
• Trams in Melbourne
• Transportation in Australia

References

1. ^ "Learning our lines", The Age, http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/learning-our-lines-20110618-1g94d.html, retrieved 2011-09-28 
2. ^ Lucas, Clay Tram 96 travels tracks to glory The Age. 8 March 2008
3. ^ Public Transport Users Association (Victoria, Australia) » Article » Tram 96 among the world’s best — but could be even better
4. ^ "Melbourne Tramway and Omnibus Company Limited", TMSV Running Journal Vol 9 No 3, page 16, http://www.tramway.org.au/runningjournal/rj_vol9_no3.pdf, retrieved 2011-10-16 
5. ^ "Milestones, 1931 - 1940", Yarra Trams, http://www.yarratrams.com.au/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-155/173_read-881/, retrieved 2011-10-13 
6. ^ ^{a b} "Milestones, 1951 - 1960", Yarra Trams, http://www.yarratrams.com.au/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-155/173_read-879, retrieved 2011-09-26 
7. ^ "Milestones, 1981 - 1990", Yarra Trams, http://www.yarratrams.com.au/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-155/173_read-876, retrieved 2011-09-26 
8. ^ "Milestones, 2001 - 2011", Yarra Trams, http://www.yarratrams.com.au/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-155/173_read-874, retrieved 2011-09-26 
9. ^ "D2 Class", VICSIG, http://www.vicsig.net/index.php?page=trams&class=D2, retrieved 2011-09-26 
10. ^ "Media Release: FIRST OF FIVE FRENCH TRAMS NOW ON MELBOURNE TRACKS". www.dpc.vic.gov.au. 11 June 2008. http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/minister-for-public-transport/first-of-five-french-trams-now-on-melbourne-tracks.html!OpenDocument. Retrieved 1 September 2008. ^{[dead link]}
11. ^ "Five more trams to be added to the metropolitan system". www.yarratrams.com.au. http://www.yarratrams.com.au/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-39/44_read-1271. Retrieved 1 June 2008. 
12. ^ "Southbank Depot", VICSIG, http://www.vicsig.net/index.php?page=trams&depot=southbank, retrieved 2011-09-26