Two-wheelers short shifted in Victorian Government's $38b transport plan

December 8, 2008

After much hype, the Victorian Government finally released its transport blueprint this afternoon, with motorcycles and scooters again being given a raw deal.

The massive 164-page document, titled 'The Victorian Transport Plan', only mentions "motorcycles" (or motorbikes) seven times and "scooters" six times - and some of those in automatic statements about road use patterns.

But, as widely predicted in a torrent of pre-launch media leaks, most of the $38b blueprint focuses on building new rail and road corridors in and around Melbourne.

The government has identified six priorities for action in its detailed plan, including two where motorcycles and scooters already have the upper hand over other modes of transport: 'Moving around Melbourne' and Taking Steps for a Sustainable Future'.

The former outlines measures that will be taken to keep traffic flowing, including greater priority for trams and buses on shared roads, the creation of networked bike and walking paths, extending clearway times, better management of light sequencing, more incident response, the deployment of extra VicRoads staff to reduce congestion, and expanding audiences for traffic updates.

Despite proposals by organisations such as the VACC and the MRAA, as well as independent lobbyists, the benefits of motorcycles to help reduce heavy traffic congestion weren't mentioned in that section, in a state where most of the clogging is caused by single-occupant cars.

In the sustainable future section, the text mentions "A focus on improving safety, awareness and parking for motorcycles and scooters to enhance their potential as an alternative to cars".

The government goes onto say that it is currently working on those issues with the Victorian Motorcycle Advisory Council and local governments - but it doesn't outline a tangible and monetary action plan, unlike cycling or public transport.

Also, the blueprint doesn't mention that motorcycles cause very little infrastructure damage.

Currently, the Victorian Government collects $56 a year 'safety levy' from motorcyclists, which does not apply to any other transport users.

The Victorian Transport Plan was created following recommendations made by Sir Rod Eddington in a review which was released in early July.

The BikeSales Network has contacted the Victorian Roads Minister, Tim Pallas, seeking clarification on a number of points made in the blueprint.

For a full copy of the voluminous transport plan, click here (it's a massive 13mb  file, so please be patient!).