<strong>Ground</strong> <strong>Transport</strong> <strong>Plan</strong> :: 9 9.2.4 Rail <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> is currently not served by rail. SkyBus is the predominant form of public transport (other than taxis) connecting <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> to the CBD. While very successful, this service is entirely reliant on the State arterial road network that is approaching capacity. The nearest rail station is at Broadmeadows on the Craigieburn Rail Line and is located some six kilometres to the east of the terminal. Bus connections are available from Broadmeadows Station every 15 minutes between 6.30am and 9.00pm on weekdays. That service reduces to every 30 minutes in the early morning and late evening. While this service is an option for passengers, it is not adequate as a sustainable long-term solution. <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> supports a direct rail link to the airport as a critical transport option to enable the airport’s future growth, and to further reduce the reliance on the road network. This Master <strong>Plan</strong>, like previous Master <strong>Plan</strong>s, makes provisions for developing a rail link, including reserving land to be used for rail. These provisions are consistent with an ‘Albion East’ alignment which the <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> Rail Link Study determined was the best route for a <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> rail link. <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> encourages Victorian and Federal Governments to commit funding for these important rail projects to support the future growth of Victoria’s aviation connections with the world. Figure 9.3 shows public transport networks that provide access to the airport. 9.2.5 Bus Services <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> is served by numerous bus services that link the airport to the local area, the <strong>Melbourne</strong> city centre, metropolitan <strong>Melbourne</strong> and regional Victoria. i. Metropolitan Bus Metropolitan public bus services include Route 478 (Moonee Ponds–<strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>), Route 479 (Sunbury–Moonee Ponds via <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>) and Route 500 (Broadmeadows–Sunbury). These services generally have limited hours of operation and low frequency, running every one to two hours. Route 901 (Frankston–<strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>) is a SmartBus service, which provides more frequent services (every 15 minutes) and operates from approximately 6.30am to 9pm on weekdays. The service runs every 30 minutes in the early morning and late evening. The SkyBus airport service runs between Southern Cross Station in the CBD and <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>. SkyBus provides a 24/7 direct shuttle service, with buses every 10 minutes during peak times. It currently operates 125 in-bound services every weekday. In addition to SkyBus, there are other privately operated airport-route buses that link the airport with metropolitan <strong>Melbourne</strong>. These include the Dandenong, Frankston and Peninsula airport shuttles and the Eastside <strong>Airport</strong> Bus. <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> continues to work with Public <strong>Transport</strong> Victoria to improve the hours of operation and frequency of these services, to better respond to the travel demands of all patrons, but specifically for employees from higher concentration locations, including Moonee Ponds, Sunbury and Broadmeadows. ii. Regional Bus DRAFT V-Line operates two bus services from Southern Cross Station to Barham and Deniliquin via <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>. These services provide access to regional communities including Barham, Rochester, Cohuna, Bendigo, Heathcote, Deniliquin, Echuca and Wallan, among others. There are several privately operated buses that service regional centres. Buses link Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Warragul and Shepparton with <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>. These regional buses operate two to 15 in-bound services per weekday. 9.2.6 Taxi/Hire Car (VHA) Taxis are an attractive mode of transport for travel to and from <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> due to their convenience and the airport’s proximity to <strong>Melbourne</strong>’s city centre. Journeys to <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong> make up approximately 13 per cent of all taxi movements in <strong>Melbourne</strong> and approximately 30 per cent of taxi revenue. Taxis and hire cars will continue to be important for <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>. These services are flexible, convenient and provide transport options for those areas not well serviced by buses or rail. Currently, taxi drop-offs predominantly use Departure Drive, and the supply of pick-up services at the Arrival Drive forecourt is managed by a series of holding areas. Licensed hire cars, operated by VHA, are also based at <strong>Melbourne</strong> <strong>Airport</strong>. A dedicated area adjacent to the existing multi-level car park caters for their specific parking and circulation requirements. MELBOURNE <strong>Airport</strong> Master plan 2013 – PRELIMINARY DRAFT : : 109
Fig. 9.3 DRAFT 110
Change language