Does anyone know if a tram network will be established in Canberra in the near future? I know there is space left down the middle of the main avenues maybe for this to happen. It would be great if they had a modern tram network. All the developement of apartments in the inner part and students from the Universities, would all be able to utilize it.

Also, anyone got there own ideas about what could be done transport wise, other than cars.

It would be good yes, they have a lot of room, but if you did it would ruin the nice street there. I was there last week and i love it, it maybe be small yes and not too good scraper wise, but it's nice. The powerlines would cover all the great avenus and roads, so if it were somehow wireless it would be good. catching the route (or root) 69 to Capitol Hill :p

. The powerlines would cover all the great avenus and roads, so if it were somehow wireless it would be good.

There is no reason why powerlines would be criss-crossing the avenues.

http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/ali/muchavista2.jpg

Canberra wouldn't even need them in the centre of roads, in fact I think it would be stupid if they did. Fully fledged light rail running in any one of those corridors that exists between the burbs would suffice. Commonwealth Ave would probably be about the only place where street tracks would make sense IMO.

You could look into cable trams. Sure its unlikely to be done, but its always a possibility.
There are ways to disguise powerlines, such as planting tall trees on either side of the track, provided there was sufficient clearance.

ive never understood - why do trams have those stupid 'power catcher triangle beam thingys' on top of them, wen they shud just be placed underneath the tram and theres an underground electric cable that supplies its power. like those um.. electric racecar sets how the cars have a little latch under them that locks into the road and they zip around the racks using that as its energy source - trams should have the same idea.

'power catcher triangle beam thingys'
Pantograph? :lol:

Putting a third in the ground increases its maintenance cost because it has to be ripped out then put back in to be replaced, which means a job of extra concreting. Having an overhead wire means that the wire can just be taken out and replaced. Also having a third rail can actually increase the potential danger slightly, especially if insulators fail which can certainly happen.

yeah why not at least something will be moving around Canberra, when I went there the place was dead.

Also having a third rail can actually increase the potential danger slightly, especially if insulators fail which can certainly happen.

Slightly? I really doubt the suitability at all of a 3rd rail set in concrete in an outdoor, exposed and pedestrian-trafficed area.

I dont mind the over hanging wires if they are done tastefully like the ones in the picture above.

Canberra is perfect for lightrail for the obvious reasons stated in the posts.A population of over 300,000 definitely makes it a viable option.

Third rails aren't particularly common in heavily trafficed pedestrian areas, but they are around in places.

The overhead wires are also very uncluttered on most of the newer parts of Melbourne's system (ie. Bundoora, Box Hill and Vermont South, and a few more places).

They look pretty good, I think. They're not really that ugly, and they don't take up much space. I just wish they weren't an ugly silvery-grey colour. ;)

Overhead wires only become a real mess at junctions, having said that, the new wiring above the Balaclava grand union junction is great, dramatic improvement (on the ground, when you're in a tram going over the junction) and above.

There are some intersections in Melbourne which look like they could support dodgem cars - but that's a small price to pay for the look of a tram running down your street. I reckon Canberra has heaps of options for light rail - I'll haul out a few maps!

The French have came up with a ground collection system but installation and maintanence is a lot. That's why in Bordeax (sp?) outside the city centre, pants are used isntead.

One thread of wire is not that great a loss considering the environmental benefits...

I was there the other day, and thought that it would be a great place for trams. Certainly the streets are wide enough. And while it's a great city in many respects, one thing Canberra sorely lacks is a decent public transport system.

I might add that not only would the wide streets make Canberra the easiest Australian city in which to install a tram network - but that the abundant parkland would also be a boon to the construction of any such future newtork. I'm not suggesting that the parklands be ripped up and given over to public transport, but in cases where a line might be best served by passing through parkland (I'm thinking here of lines connecting town centres) why not?? Canberra has so much parkland (to the point that it often seems like a city scattered throughout one giant park) that several tram lines are hardly going to make a difference. And it seems to work quite well in Melbourne's Royal Park.

Images of the Bordeaux trams without an overhead lines

http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/trams/Bordeaux/Bordeaux_Tram_2185.jpg

http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/trams/Bordeaux/Bordeaux_Tram_2190.jpg

What about stupid pedestrians getting electrocuted? What happens during wet weather?

What about stupid pedestrians getting electrocuted? What happens during wet weather?

natural selection :p

actually, I have read that they are set in a cavity in the ground, so people can't really be elctrocuted by them unless they are willing to be.

The main problem with the system in Bordeaux is that peple find the grass an inviting place to walk and sit on. BAM!

I don't see why you would have grass there in the first place..unless they were there before the trams came.

it does look much 'cleaner'

I used to think they should have below ground wiring - but after seeing trams in action for real (after moving to Vic) I reckon that overhead is OK.

natural selection :p
I like your theory! haha! ;)

I think they prevent accidental deaths by making the third rail live only when there's a tram on top of it.

A lot of effort, when you could just put wires where they're out of the reach of all pedestrians and most vehicles. Besides, you only have wires crossing the road all the time when it's not viable or safe to put posts on the middle of the road at regular intervals.

The live section is every 8 metres. Only if the tram is above that section will current flow. Noone can be electrocuted.