Melbourne Peak Hour Traffic

[KezR33]

Hey guys,

Looking for some advice and am unsure who or where to ask. I have a new job starting next year in Hawthorn and need to find a place to live. My girlfriend who I plan on moving in with also works in Carlton.

She can reach her work from the CBD easily by catching a tram, but cannot drive. I can drive to mine (parking provided) or catch the train and get off at Tooronga station, but it involves a bit of a walk. Neither of us have any experience with inner city peak hour traffic, apart from the fact trains are shit and unreliable.

Does anyone have any recommendations on which suburbs we should be looking at? We were considering:

Richmond: Its located right between the two, Tooronga station is on that line and my gf can easily get into the city. However I have been told by my parents who lived there 15years ago that traffic is horrendous in the morning - I can only imagine its worse now.

South Yarra: Benefit here is I can jump onto the Monash OUTbound and get off at Toorak road. How bad is the traffic outbound on the Monash in the mornings (and inbound in the afternoons), and how bad is it around South Yarra/Toorak Rd?

CBD: Biggest con here is we would have no car, which is a great money saver but could prove annoying.

Carlton: This is her idea. She walks to work, which admittedly would save a lot of money and I drive to Hawthorn. How difficult would this be in the morning? I imagine it would not be worth the effort.

Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated.

[xALmoN]

traffic will make you cry.

and the trams are as bound by traffic as the cars.

[blah_blah]

TL:DR

But peak hour traffic in Melbourne CBD is pretty bad, also got to be aware of where to do hook turns.

Public transport may be your fastest and safest bet

[CMBC1981]

man...i did the commute from pakenham to docklands and pakenham to laurimar for nearly a year (after which I called it quits)....and I tell you something, if you can leave the car at home and walk to work or catch train/tram - that would be ideal. Outbound on the Monash is pretty good in the mornings because everyone else is going inbound, but either way when you get onto the main streets you will probably find traffic builds up again. Its really a no win situation when it comes to traffic, unless you catch the train or tram....

[WYTSKY]

your not going to get a perfect answer, either way someone is going to be put out.

Imo, these are the best 2 options:

1. if you can reduce your reliance of traffic/public transport - ie a short tram ride/drive and then walk/push bike, that will be the best outcome.

2. or if one of you can completely eliminate traffic/public transport and the other has to drive that will be good too.

I live 31kms from my work on St kilda road, its an hour by car in the morning and an hour & 10mins on the way back. by public transport its an hour and 15 each way + alot of sick dirty people crammed next to you.

You have no choice but to get used to it.

[Longinus]

I don't ever drive to the city, but I take the train every day as I work there. The traffic is also seasonal, during sunny days the traffic will generally flow at a pretty decent pace. But at the slightest sign of rain and even more especially so, during rain showers, the traffic will come to a standstill and all of a sudden EVERYBODY suddenly forgets how to drive and they all forget about the existence of road rules.

People are strange.

I highly recommend the public transport system over driving through and around the city, it might have its multitude of faults, but at least it's cheap(ish) and always available for you. Although on that note, f**k Metro!

[81gSKy]

Richmond, Collingwood and Fitzroy would be cheapest that's close to Carlton and better access to Hawthorn, but these areas are shady and not safe. Carlton North, Fitzroy North, Clifton Hill and Abbotsford are the same case, but slightly better.

[paulr33]

i drove to st kilda rd from gladstone park every day for a good few years

not only does it take the same time or longer than public transport, but it costs probably 4x more

train zone 1 / zone 2 daily is - $240 a month

or

drive etag - $8 a day ? - $176

fuel - $176 (est $40 a week)

car park - $264

so you can see the difference. the main problem with traffic is every car has 1 person in it.

public transport is fine and v cost effective vs driving

[Wheezy]

Being someone who has lived in quite a few different areas around melbourne, here is my experience.

Pakenham to Carlton (5 years). Train is the cheapest and probably longest (time wise) solution. If you want to drive from the south east be prepared for a freaking early start and $$$. Fuel plus Etag which is $7 each way and parking on top of that gets expensive.

Ringwood to Carlton for 9 months, train was the cheapest and the eastern freeway is not so bad until you need to get onto 'kunt' road

Werribee to Melbourne and now Richmond the fastest and cheapest way is driving providing you can get cheap or free private parking

If I was you I'd catch a tram from Carlton/Brunswick way and get a train straight to hawthorn from melbourne central (city loop). Zone one ticket all day costs f**k all and you dont have to drive. That part of the city is also full of great food and the cbd isnt too far either. Living Hawthorn way will be really expensive too.

[UNR33L]

i hated working in the city and have since resigned mainly because of the shitty travelling time / effort

[dkbcleaner]

I would live in carlton. Driving from carlton to Hawthorn is easy as coz your going against the flow each way at those times

[ARTZ]

Hey guys,

Looking for some advice and am unsure who or where to ask. I have a new job starting next year in Hawthorn and need to find a place to live. My girlfriend who I plan on moving in with also works in Carlton.

She can reach her work from the CBD easily by catching a tram, but cannot drive. I can drive to mine (parking provided) or catch the train and get off at Tooronga station, but it involves a bit of a walk. Neither of us have any experience with inner city peak hour traffic, apart from the fact trains are shit and unreliable.

Does anyone have any recommendations on which suburbs we should be looking at? We were considering:

Richmond: Its located right between the two, Tooronga station is on that line and my gf can easily get into the city. However I have been told by my parents who lived there 15years ago that traffic is horrendous in the morning - I can only imagine its worse now.

South Yarra: Benefit here is I can jump onto the Monash OUTbound and get off at Toorak road. How bad is the traffic outbound on the Monash in the mornings (and inbound in the afternoons), and how bad is it around South Yarra/Toorak Rd?

CBD: Biggest con here is we would have no car, which is a great money saver but could prove annoying.

Carlton: This is her idea. She walks to work, which admittedly would save a lot of money and I drive to Hawthorn. How difficult would this be in the morning? I imagine it would not be worth the effort.

Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Lol.. of course it is her idea.....but honestly carlton to hawthorn wouldnt be too bad once you figure a few backroads..My other choice would probably be richmond..theres some nice new apartments up around there too..pricey though..

peak hour traffic is never fun, but there is always a way around it if you plan ahead..Once you know your area Its no worse in the city than it is coming to Frankston from the city every night..

But the CBD at 5pm weekdays is a f**king nightmare......make sure you get out of there by 4pm or just stay around and have a beer till 7pm

[xALmoN]

vic pde is a standstill. alexander pde is a standstill. at about 4.30.

[ARTZ]

Of course it is, but if you wanna be a sheep you'll get stuck in the herd..

Street directory is your friend, navman is your enemy..

For eg a job I do from Fitzroy to footscray in peak hour , 4.30 pickup. It used to take me an hour..I can now knock it over in 25 minutes..Intact I think I could get from Hawthorn to any of those suburbs listed in 20-30 min regardless of traffic..

[xALmoN]

what's teh route? i'd like a route from cbd to burwood 25mins in peak hr.

[Cowboy1600]

What kinda clothing do you have to wear at work?

Business, business casual, casual?

If it's anything but business, you could look at doing your Ps and buying a bike.

Otherwise plan to use public transport,not your car, to get to work.

I'd look at Richmond or Prahran. They are close and would be great places to live if you're looking for inner suburbs/city. Also consider Carlton, Collingwood, Brunswick because you can easily jump a tram and train and get to Hawthorn in 30 minutes. Pushies are also a great way to get around in the city and inner suburbs.

Personally, if I were in your situation, I'd be looking at Prarhan. I like it's light alternative vibe and it's bloody close to the city.

[ARTZ]

what's teh route? i'd like a route from cbd to burwood 25mins in peak hr.

Where in CBD..Swanson st Uni?? .

from there I'd be looking at something like, Albert St > Barkers rd > Mont Albert Rd.> Elgar Rd

or if you can get on the freeway >High st >Warrigul would be quickest way, but getting on the freeway can be a nightmare, especially if your at the north end of the CBD ..You could actually find it quicker heading to footscray rd or montague st and going through the tunnel, but that will cost you a full toll

[xALmoN]

ah. the lygon/alexander pde intersection. is where i usually park for school.

i usually just get on alexander pde then get on the easten then exit at middleborough, which is a little less crowded than elgar.

but that takes me about 40mins to an hour. give or take

[ARTZ]

Yeah your pretty much screwed from there..you could try Johnston or Gertrude st but its probably not going to be alot quicker..

then again the Eastern is shocker at that time so it's worth a try. Of you keep going the sane route everyday your never going to find out if there's a better one..

Page 44-46 in the melways...study it and try something different

[Cowboy1600]

I do Hurstbridge to the cnr of Collins and King in 45 minutes in peak hour