Waking up in Geelong

Another instalment in my photos from ten years ago series – this time it is February 2014.

Trams

We start off with me being featured in The Age on the subject of a tram stop in Ascot Vale that kept being hit by motorists.

Also on the tram front, I spotted Victoria Police offices pulling over a motorist who drove through a tram stop on Swanston Street.

Meanwhile on Flemington Road I found buses driving along the tram tracks.

Route 59 trams terminating on Flemington Road due to the tram tracks along Mount Alexander Road in Travencore being replaced.

These works also isolated Essendon Depot where trams would park at night, so the route 55 tracks through Royal Park were converted into a temporary stabling location.

Which forced route 55 passengers onto replacement buses as well.

Trains

Regional Rail Link is an ongoing theme in this series, and in February 2014 the original tracks through Footscray towards Sunshine had been dug up.

With both V/Line and suburban trains diverted onto the new platform 1 and 2 to allow the new V/Line track pair to be constructed.

Privately owned automatic lockers were installed at the Swanston Street end of Melbourne Central station, only to be ripped out a few months later thanks to the ratcheting up of the national terrorism alert level.

But one thing that hasn’t changed is junk clogged up the entrance to Southern Cross Station – this month we had the ‘Exhibition of Lost Souls’ to promote the film ‘Wolf Creek 2’.

And a Victorian Government ‘use the Right Water’ promotion on the main concourse.

And something I haven’t seen for a few years – Metro Trains Melbourne at the Chinese New Year festival in Chinatown, giving away free balloons.

Down the pub

Remember the Savoy Tavern opposite Spencer Street Station?

The 1970s pub lay derelict for 15 years, until it reopened in 2014 after a minor refurbishment – only to close again in 2016 when the site was cleared to make way for the apartment tower that is currently on the site.

And a trip to Sydney

A friend invited me up to Sydney to visit, so I decided to turn it into a long weekend and spend the day on the train rather than fly. The XPT departed Southern Cross at 8.30am.

I jumped out for a quick photo at Albury.

Wagga Wagga.

Cootamundra.

And Goulburn.

Before we arrived into Sydney just on 8.30pm.

The next day I visited the usual touristy spots, like Circular Quay.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge.

And the Sydney Opera House.

Which was busy having the front steps replaced.

I can’t go anywhere without taking a photo of a train.

But I’m a fan of ferries as well – modern ones like the Sydney RiverCats.

And the classic Freshwater-class ferries on the Manly run.

I also headed past the since demolished Sydney Harbour Control Tower and the then-incomplete Barangaroo development.

My destination – Cockatoo Island.

A former shipyard.

Unfortunately I didn’t have another spare day to catch the train home to Melbourne, so I was off to Sydney Airport.

Sitting in a cheap seat with Jetstar.

Who luckily took me right over the top of the Craigieburn Train Maintenance Facility in Melbourne’s north.

Footnote

Here you can find the rest of my ‘photos from ten years ago‘ series.

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