Did my usual EOFY charity donation blitz. The 4th donation was enough for my bank to decide this was suspicious and block the card until I authorised it, as if this is something highly unusual at this time of year? Not actually as helpful as they probably think it is.💰

POV: Your connection was late and you missed the train to Upfield... on a Sunday morning 😧 State govt says fix coming soon🤞

So here are some thoughts on this heatwave: against fatalism, against inevitability, and against the fossil fuel industry's ongoing efforts to ensure they do as much damage as they can over the coming decades. These fossil-fuelled extremes emerge from decisions we can identify in recent history

Whelan the Wrecker #Melbourne

Interesting. This was just reposted by the former director of San Francisco transportation agency. Transit executives all know this important insight. It's only the "green" politicians who don't.

YOUR DAILY REMINDER PREVENTING POLLUTION PREVENTS HARM AND DEATH NONE OF THIS IS INEVITABLE www.theguardian.com/environment/...

2016: the Level Crossing Removal Project was just warming up. Ten years ago today was the ceremonial removal of the boom gates from my local station at Bentleigh, with then Premier Daniel Andrews, then Transport Minister (now Premier) Jacinta Allan, and local MP Nick Staikos... and me in attendance.

🚉🎂Happy 99th birthday to Huntingdale station, opened 25th June 1927 (originally "East Oakleigh") While it isn't great for amenity, the 601 shuttle bus to Monash Uni makes this a very busy station. Frequent services and quick connections make public transport a better option for more people.👍

38⁰ at 10pm in Paris. In June. The reaction of passengers as they stepped off the 17:31 train from London said it all. #ClimateCrisis

Absolutely superb work by @skyelark.bsky.social: Hanson's massive non-English speaking figure includes 100,000 babies. Yes, really. thepoint.com.au/factchecks/2...

Blog: a quick comparison of public transport fares around Australia. With the current half price fares, Melbourne's not the most expensive any more! danielbowen.com/2026...

After Tommy Robinson, today’s effort is a rogue doctor claiming Warney’s death was because of the Covid vaccine. FMD, not that I thought a vacuous clown like Stefanovic was leaving much of a legacy to begin with, but jeez, way to trash what little credibility you had.

"At present, most people moving into the area will look at their options and conclude that a car is the only viable way to get around. More and better public transport, along with better walking and cycling options, is key to providing more locals with real options."

Again?! My kids are breaking so many phones recently. I guess I'll have to text them on this number that is oddly different from where the message came from 🤔 #scams

#Myki top-up shouldn't be this hard. Metro stations used to have posters with fares displayed. Now you need a smartphone, to scan a QR code and navigate a web site. This is not an improvement.

The station formerly known as Mordialloc. #Connex #PTV #MetroTrainsMelbourne #GTFS

I don't know much about Andy Burnham, but I do know he was Mayor of Greater Manchester as they rolled out the Bee Network integrated public transport network... and that he's currently catching a train to London. Two points in his favour, I'd say. en.wikipedia.org/wik...

For anybody else in #Australia wanting to make charity donations before the end of the Financial Year next week, but not wanting to give them your phone number, I've been updating my list of charities. (Suggestions welcome!)

Tap and Go fare payment is now available for full fare passengers on trams as well as trains.🚋✅ People who prefer Myki cards can keep using them. Tap and Go only has 2 hour and daily fares - State Govt should add automatic weekly fare caps to ensure that people travelling every day don't pay more.

I've been trying to catch up on my blog posts of ten year old photos; I am not totally sure why I snapped this one! danielbowen.com/2026...

So in summary, slow cars down, give pedestrians more space, and it save lives. Technically easy - but in Australia, sadly often politically fraught.

What year will we have a fully accessible tram network that everyone can use? 2027? 2032? 2038? 2105?!

This might be one of the funniest chart about energy scenarios I’ve seen. You can hardly see “actual” for gas

I bought a new shaver. It has Bluetooth and an app. This seems unnecessary.

Most people in Melbourne's middle and outer suburbs have no access to high quality public transport, and as a result, have to drive almost everywhere. It's even worse in regional Victoria. More services = more choices Source: Vic Auditor General "Improving Bus Services" report

Melbourne's west needs better public transport! Join the rally tomorrow, midday at State Parliament calling for more action on upgrades for buses. Details here:

For anybody interested, there's a documentary about Eurostar and the Channel Tunnel on SBS TV right now... or on SBS On Demand here: www.sbs.com.au/ondem... (Among One Nation's many faults, they would like to abolish SBS.)

It’s too late Pauline! We ARE a multicultural community and there is no going back. First Nations were here first, all of us came after.

At Malvern, wondering how many inbound Frankston trains run out of service to the City to run evening peak services, when they could make a couple of extra stops to serve crowds going to the Richmond events precinct. #Melbourne

Yeah well done mate. #Rule128

I hope nobody was hurt by this apparently sentient car that drove onto the footpath.

Traffic light priority means your tram trip is much quicker. Other cities get it right - #Melbourne can do better! 🚊🚦

#Footscray, Melbourne

9️⃣0️⃣3️⃣❤️ On this day: the Warrigal Road Smartbus in Melbourne's east was launched 14th June 2006. Route 903 was extended through to Altona in 2009. Higher frequency and longer operating hours resulted in a 37% patronage jump in the first year.👍 More buses more often = more passengers on board.🚌

Gotta admit, it's genius for Paramount Plus to overlay two screens at once while you're trying to cancel. But I still found the button to continue. #WebDesign

Fire hydrant has a leek.

Dear brains trust, is there a way to mute specific apps in #iOS? I would happily never hear sounds from apps like Instagram (and most other social media apps), but I don't want to mute the rest of the phone. I've Googled; some Android versions have it, but apparently not iOS? Any ideas? 🙏

Tap and Go options have taken a looooong time to arrive. This will make a big difference to new and occasional users. Available for V/Line #Myki stations and Melbourne's west/north west, south/south east lines from tomorrow. Other metro lines from next Sunday.

When's the last bus on your local route? On many routes the last service is too early to be useful to most people. Those that do run later are often infrequent, meaning a long wait from connecting trains. More services more often makes public transport easier to use, which gets more people on board.

April / June 😢 #Melbourne #trams

Tap And Go will be a good option for many, but it only offers adult #Myki Money fares. State Govt should introduce an automatic weekly cap, same price as the 7 day Myki Pass, so everyday users can get the cheaper weekly rate.

You can donate to #FightMND here: support.fightmnd.org...#FightMND#BigFreeze

New blog post, taking a look at the concept designs of some new stations in Melbourne's west the-iron-road.blogspot.com/2026/06/new-...

Was just talking on ABC radio about #Myki Tap And Go. Good question from a caller: can you get a refund on your card balance if you want to switch to using credit card/phone? Yes you can, but it’s probably easier to just use it up, then switch.

Don't miss your train on a Sunday morning! On the Sandringham, Craigieburn, Upfield, Mernda and Hurstbridge lines you'll be waiting up to 40 minutes for the next one. This is not good enough for a city of 5 million. We're told many of these will be impoved soon. More services can't come soon enough.

Well well well, look who’s back. #Melbourne

Officially switched on tomorrow, but I found #Myki readers along the Frankston line already working for Tap And Go. Worked fine with my iPhone. Good to see this progress!

Tap and go fare payment options available from tomorrow on V/Line and about half of #Melbourne metro lines (via North Melb, South Yarra and Metro Tunnel). Remaining metro lines (via Clifton Hill and Burnley) next week. Trams and buses to follow, date TBA. Progress!

All Victorians need to have more choices in terms of how they get around. (clip from CTV News on Channel 31)

This turn of phrase from The Sizzle by decryption made me laugh out loud.