Transport in Hobart

The city of Hobart, Tasmania is served by a wide variety of transport. While the city's main form of transport is private transport on the road network, transport is also available by bus, ferry and aircraft. A suburban train service operated between Hobart and Brighton from the 1870s until 31 December 1974.[1] There has been, however, talk in recent years of reinstating a train service in the northern suburbs.[2][3][4]

Public Transport

Public transport in Hobart has been provided exclusively by buses since 1968. Trams ran in Hobart from 1893 to 1960 and were briefly replaced by trolleybuses, from 1960 to 1968.[5]

The low population density of Hobart has resulted in the creation of bus routes which cover a wide area and operate at a low frequency. The consequence is that bus travel is not competitive with travel by car, because routes are often lengthy and indirect, meaning that passengers can take a long time to reach their final destination.[6] This has contributed to Hobart having the second-lowest public transport patronage in Australia[5][7]

Serious constraints in the road network, along with low-frequency bus services, have led to ongoing discussion of re-introducing trams to Hobart.[8] Since the completion of the Brighton Transport Hub, the former rail line through inner Hobart has fallen into disuse. A $400,000 feasibility study was undertaken to investigate introduction of commuter trains along the Hobart-Bridgewater rail corridor.[2] A state-of-the-art light rail system was proposed to make use of the rail corridor, creating a new express route to Hobart.[9]

Taxis and limousines operate with no ties to Metro. Taxi Combined and Yellow Cabs run the large fleets of taxicabs in Hobart.

Bicycle

There are many bike tracks in the greater Hobart area, one of the most notable being the intercity bike track which runs from Hobart 12 km north to Glenorchy along an unused rail line of the Hobart–Bridgewater rail corridor.[10] Other bike routes travel through Mount Wellington and the waterfront of the River Derwent at various locations.

Road

The release of the Hobart Area Transportation Study in 1964 has influenced the use of cars as the dominant mode of transport in Hobart. The Davey/Macquarie couplet expand east-west along the southern fringe of the city centre connecting the three major highways; the Southern Outlet, the Tasman Highway and the Brooker Highway which expand out to the outer suburbs. These highways are in turn supported by secondary arterial roads; Goodwood, Sandy Bay and Main Roads as well as the East Derwent and South Arm Highways.

Water

Aurora Australis and HMAS Newcastle docked at Sullivans Cove

Several private ferry operators run are based in Sullivans Cove for commuter, tourist and leisure purposes. Destinations include Port Arthur on the Tasman Peninsula, Peppermint Bay at Woodbridge, the eastern shore town centre of Bellerive, Wrest Point Casino in Sandy Bay, and Museum of Old and New Art in Berriedale.[11]

Hobart has the second deepest natural port in the world, second to only Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.[12] As a result, it sees an extensive cruise ship calendar, with approximately 30 ships berthing at Sullivans Cove between October and April each summer.[13] Hobart has also hosted visiting US Navy ships.[14]

Hobart serves as Australia's main sea link to Antarctica for the Australian Antarctic Division, headquartered in Kingston. Hobart is the home port to the Australian Icebreaker the Aurora Australis which serves the Australian Antarctic Territory during the summer months. Hobart is also home to the French ship L'Astrolabe, which makes regular supply runs to the French Southern Territories located around Antarctica.[15]

Airports

Hobart International Airport, located in the eastern satellite suburb of Cambridge, Tasmania, is Tasmania's busiest airport. 3 airlines and approaching 2 million domestic passengers utilize the airport each year. The airport is a hub for Skytraders, which operates chartered flights to Antarctica. Cambridge Aerodrome is situated in the same suburb and caters exclusively for general aviation and charter flights.

See also

References

  1. ↑ The Hobart Suburban Passenger Service 1875-1975 Stokes, H.J.W. Australian Railway History, February;March 2005 pp43-67;108-119
  2. 1 2 "Hobart still on rails". The Mercury. 2007. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
  3. ↑ "Tassie fuel paradise". The Mercury. 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-06.
  4. ↑ "Hobart rail corridor key to development". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2008. Retrieved 2009-09-19.
  5. 1 2 "Glenorchy to Hobart CBD TransitCorridor" (PDF). Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Resources. 2012. Retrieved 2013-03-10.
  6. ↑ "Hobart to Northern Suburbs Light Rail Business Case - Stage One Report" (PDF). ACIL Tasman for the Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Resources. 2012. Retrieved 2013-03-11.
  7. ↑ Rowallan, Toby (2009-03-17). "Rail vital to cut road jams". The Mercury. Retrieved 2013-03-17.
  8. ↑ Waterhouse, Charles: Bid for trams back on track, The Mercury, 9 August 2010.
  9. ↑ Worley, Mark (2008-08-03). "Bus traffic could be diverted to rail". The Mercury. Archived from the original on 2008-09-17. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  10. ↑ "Century Ride". Bicycle Tasmania. 2007. Retrieved 2008-07-22.
  11. ↑ MONA Online
  12. ↑ "Antarctic Tasmania". Government of Tasmania. 14 August 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  13. ↑ "Record number of cruise ships to boost Tasmania's economy". The Mercury. 11 September 2014. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  14. ↑ "US Carriers - Carl Vinson". Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  15. ↑ "Australian Antarctic Division - MV Astrolabe". Australian Antarctic Division. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
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