Accessibility Update - Q1 2016
Thursday 28 January 2016
Tram stop upgrades
The following stops have been upgraded to level access stops:
- Stop 11 - Wellington Parade at Jolimont Station (Routes 48 & 75)
- Stop 43 - Toorak Terminus (Route 8)
- Stop 125 - Clarendon Street Junction (Routes 96 & 109)
- Stop 51 - Gardiner Station (Route 72)
- Stop 33 - Moonee Ponds Junction (Route 59)
The following stops will be upgraded to level access stops in the coming months:
- Stop 19 - North Richmond Station (Routes 12 & 109)
- Stop 20 - Lennox Street and Victoria Street (Routes 12 & 109)
Vehicle Passenger Information Systems on B-Class trams
Vehicle Passenger Information Systems (VPIS) are being fitted to B-Class trams. VPIS provides automated audible and visual next stop information. 126 of 130 (73%) B-Class trams have been fitted with VPIS, with the remainder of B-Class trams to be fitted by the end of March. As part of this project, the headboards on the outside of B-Class trams have also been updated to improve visibility.
tramTRACKER app
The latest version of the tramTRACKER app was released on 23 November 2015.
New features include:
- Disruption notifications - get notified when there are disruptions or service changes on your route
- Tram / stop alarms: Set alarms to alert you when your tram is arriving at your stop
- Estimate your journey time in the timetables section (back by popular demand)
- Sort your tram predictions by route or minutes
- Automatic network updates every time you open the app
- Our partnerships and special offers available in Melbourne
- Interactive tutorials to assist you with the new features
Ride along - Thursday 12 November
On Thursday 12 November, Yarra Trams Advisor, Accessibility, spent a few hours on the tram network with Guide Dogs Victoria and Blind Citizens Australia in the morning, and All Aboard in the afternoon.
We discussed issues, potential solutions and upcoming projects. It was a valuable experience for Yarra Trams as we got to see first-hand what the challenges can be when travelling on trams.
This has resulted in some new actions for our next Accessibility Action Plan, including:
- Investigate the possibility of an additional pole and stop request button in priority area on C Class trams
- Investigate adding a handrail above priority seats in priority area on D Class trams
- Update / redesign decal for priority area to have wording similar to decal above priority seating
- Add braille decal to identify audio buttons
- Investigate updated customer feedback feature for tramTRACKER app (similar to 'rate your driver' in Uber app)
Additional stop request buttons - priority area on C2 trams
Feedback received from a member of All Aboard noted that C2 trams are the only class of low-floor trams that do not have a separate stop request button for customers who use mobility aids. These buttons notify the driver that the customer may need additional time to get off the tram and that the driver should look out for them.
We have engaged a company to investigate if we can add these buttons to C2 trams.
Accessibility Week
Yarra Trams' third annual Accessibility Week was held from Monday 30 November to Friday 4 December 2015. Accessibility Week is a week of activities for employees to raise their awareness of accessibility issues. Events run during the 2015 week were:
- Presentations from the Victoria Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission to the Executive Team and other managers
- Symposium at the Victorian Institute of Sport with presentations from three Paralympians
- A marquee at the Disability Sport and Recreation (DSR) Festival
- Team entered into the corporate wheelchair basketball competition run by DSR
- 'Name the puppy' competition in conjunction with Guide Dogs Victoria