Moorabool Street Bus Interchange - In Depth
The Moorabool Street bus interchange is a contentious issue in Geelong with many prominent locals calling to remove it and to revert bus services to their old complex form. It's not hard to find pieces online from its critics, The Geelong Advertiser has published over 20 articles since 2015 in support of dumping it. Making matters worse the Andrews government has been silent on the topic and is seemingly unwilling to address problems with the current arrangement.
In this article, I intend to explain my vision for the space and reaffirm why the busses must continue as they are but why the stop infrastructure and surroundings must be changed.
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| Busses operating route 1 and route 25 services departing the Moorabool Street Interchange. [Me] |
Part 1: The History
Prior to October 2010 most busses that serviced Geelong picked up and dropped off passengers at locations all around the CBD. The map below retrieved from the McHarrys website in 2007 shows how spread out stops were.
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| Map of Geelong CBD bus stops in 2007 [McHarrys Buslines via Wayback Machine] |
This kind of configuration makes public transport networks unreasonably complicated for passengers as they have either do some solid forward planning or have a copy of this map handy to find where their next connecting bus, or later bus home leaves from.
It also creates an accessibility issue with services arriving at Malop Street and others departing from Ryrie St creating a two-block separation for connections that can be a difficult task for some passengers with disabilities or additional needs especially if the timetables are tight.
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| 2009 Viclink version of the above map with minor route changes [Viclink via McHarrys Buslines on Wayback Machine] |
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| 2010 Viclink map showing routes stopping at Moorabool St [Viklink via McHarrys Buslines on Wayback Machine] |
This was further cemented in 2015 when the whole network was re-designed in conjunction with the Regional Rail Link project where every route to the CBD would run through Moorabool St.
Unfortunately, this win for passengers came at a cost, poor urban design.
Part 2: The Reputation and The Mall
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| The space surrounding The Interchange The east outbound bus stop is shown in orange, The west inbound bus stop is shown in purple, The Mall is shown in blue, and The West End is shown in green. [Open Street Map] |
The term "mall-rat" has come about to describe the kind of people who spent their days in The Mall doing not much at all, some of them causing trouble. There are many different reasons "mall-rats" exist often as a result of personal disadvantage but I'm not the expert to get into that discussion, the point being some not all from that group unarguably cause the majority of violent and disorderly incidents.
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| Police are in regular attendance to incidents at The Mall [Me] |
Many blame the busses saying that their nearby single point of arrival makes it easy for groups to congregate in The Mall. To that, I say well busses actually arrive on the west side of Moorabool Street and that part of Little Malop Street known as the West End is thriving arguably one of the best parts of the CBD.
The issue is one of the surroundings. "mall-rats" pick The Mall because they can own the space. There is nobody else staying around. Adjoining The Mall are empty or unappealing cheap shops and a loading dock for Market Square. Unlike West End which has ample dine-in restaurants, bars, and cafes. There are no destinations for people to stay and spend money in The Mall like there are in West End. Work needs to be done to encourage these kinds of tenants to take up The Mall, a difficult game of chicken and egg. There is an opportunity to revitalise the space, but it requires Market Square, The City of Greater Geelong, and The Victorian Government to all get on board.
The Interchange has its own problems that allow it to blur together with The Mall sharing a reputation. Resolving issues with The Interchange will make the distinction clear that they are distinct locations. This has already been done with The Green Spine and West End.
Part 3: The Infrastructure
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| View of Moorabool St in 2015 before The Interchange was built [Google Street View] |
Before we look at the infrastructure of The Interchange let's look at what was there before it. I'll be primarily looking at the east side adjacent to Market Square here as only Route 1 goes anywhere other than Geelong Station from the west side and the issues of poor design are lesser on this side as a result.
Conveniently Google Street View went through right before The Interchange was built there. There was nothing special in its place just a standard footpath with a standard awning covering it. A few tacky palm trees and an alfresco area at the corner of Lt Malop. Notably, you can see that the space from curb to shopfront is actually quite generous.
Essentially this was a blank canvas on which a bus interchange could be built properly with plenty of space to work available,
However, anyone who has tried to catch a bus from the Moorabool St interchange knows how terribly wrong they got it. The core design of the stop is an all-metal shelter with glass walls to the rear and jutting towards the road through. This rear glass wall separates the space into two distinct areas a "corridor" space and a "bus stop" space, neither is particularly appealing to anyone.
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| View of the "corridor" space between the shelter and Market Square |
The "corridor" space is directly adjacent to Market Square with its drab walls to the east and retro awning above. To the east is the glass-dividing wall of the bus shelter with a row of seats facing the shopfronts.
These seats are often not the first choice for bus travelers as they have their back to the busses. Due to the number of buses coming and going relying only on the sound of a bus is not an option as you have to turn around to check if it is yours each time.
It is truly a waste of potential, There is no point to the dividing wall as it makes people on both sides feel uncomfortable and confined.
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| The corner shop once a cafe has been vacant for years and is now completely boarded up. [Me] |
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| Cracked and smashed panels in the glass wall are a common sight. [Me] |
On the other side of the wall in the "bus stop" space things aren't as bad except for one glaringly obvious design flaw. It's the first thing you notice, the palm trees! The shelter structure was built around them for reasons that are completely illogical and unexplainable.
The palm trees are the cause everything that is wrong with this space
- Their roots make the floor uneven causing grief for those with wheelchairs, trolleys, and prams.
- They block the clear view down the road making it hard to see oncoming busses
- They are an obstacle to people trying to get through to thier busses
- The openings in the roof for them let the rain through.
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| The roots of the palm trees cause the pebble mix floor to bulge up creating an uneven surface. [Me] |
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| The cutouts to let the palm trees through also let the rain through. [Me] |
The other big issue here is not the space itself but how buses currently use it. There is no rhyme or reason to operations here. There is room for 3-4 busses to stop adjacent to the shelter at once, Being the key interchange for the entire city there is quite often more busses queueing up here. Some buses will drive right down and only open their doors when they reach the 1st spot and others will get to the 3rd or 4th spot open their doors and take off. Not the biggest issue right? Just look down the road and when you see your bus head towards it. Easier said than done, The palm trees obstruct the view and condense everyone moving around to a 1 person-wide space on either side of them. Not to mention you feel like you are on a hike climbing over the roots.
Ideally, with or without the palm trees the space would be split into two bays with half of the routes on each meaning you wouldn't have to constantly be on the lookout for your bus that can disappear from the back before you even notice it arrive.
Currently, all 17 routes' timetables are only posted on a single totem that is located poorly near the 1st boarding point causing crowding for those getting on the bus and those just checking the times. This was previously located in the middle of the shelter a much better spot in my opinion. The seating is also quite uncomfortable due to its rounded slat design.
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| The variety of palm trees creates obstacles and uneven surfaces. [Me] |
Part 4: The Future
In 2022 there were talks that Geelong councillors were working with The Department of Transport on a plan for The Interchange but nothing official has come out as yet, leaving bus users neglected with substandard facilities. The Geelong Advertiser reported that the design may be similar to a tram super stop seen in Melbourne located in the center of the road with platforms and car lanes on either side.
I personally think this is overkill and agree with the Public Transport Users Association that stops should be designed for bus users and should be staggered along the road.
Short Term Fixes
- Remove the palm trees
As mentioned above they cause a lot of unnecessary issues, for mobility, visibility, and weather protection. - Patch the holes
Removing the palm trees will leave big holes in the roof of the shelter structure that should be easily covered with metal plates. The ground will also need to be re-laid where the raised pebble mix covering the palms roots previously existed. - Remove the rear glass wall
As detailed the glass wall separates the space creating a confined unsafe feeling corridor between the shelter and the shopfronts. - Relocate the PTV Hub
The PTV hub currently located in Westfield should be relocated to the vacant corner shop of Market Square so customer service staff are on hand to help travellers right where they need it most. Customer service staff also provide a reminder to those around that they are there if things go wrong and can quickly contact police should any incidents occur providing the general public an extra level of reassurance. Working to improve the unsafe reputation of The Interchange. - Replace the bench seating.
The current bench seating is uncomfortable and the shop-facing seats are difficult for bus passengers, the seating should be replaced with standard street furniture seating with backrests like the example below.
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| Blurry example of the type of seating that would be better suited for The Interchange, located in West End, Little Malop Street [Me] |
With government willpower, The Interchange can be transformed into a world-class space that is easy to use for passengers. We don't even have to look too far to see good examples of this. Mitchel St in Bendigo (although smaller) has a very similar road layout to Moorabool Street in that the busses head to and from the railway station on either side of a main road with a nearby mall to one side. Here they have used space in the mall as the main waiting areas with PIDs allowing passenger to make their way over closer to their bus departure time.
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| Hargreaves Mall waiting area for Mitchell St Central bus stops in Bendigo [Me] |
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| Roadside Bus stop at Mitchell St Central, Bendigo [Me] |
Although this exact design is unlikely to work in Geelong due to The Malls other issues and higher bus frequency it does show that the Victorian Government can create good bus spaces when it wants to.
With that, in mind, I took it upon myself to relearn Sketch Up to clearly portray what I envisage for the long-term future of the Interchange and more importantly what can be done if The State government, Market Square, and The City of Greater Geelong all work together to solve this design problem.
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| The awning of Market Square would be replaced with one the full width of the footpath, with skylights allowing ample natural light in. [Me, with community assets] |
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| The Interchange would be split into two bays to avoid excessive bus queuing. A relocated PTV Hub means customer service would be on hand to assist passengers. [Me, with community assets] |
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| No full-height walls would create an open feeling space that is not confined. Planter boxes are used to improve the look and feel in lieu of palm trees. All seating faces the direction of oncoming busses. [Me, with community assets] |
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| Passenger information would be plentiful with PIDs and a totem for both bays with an additional two map cabinets. [Me, with community assets] |
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| The space is generally open and airy removing any confined and unsafe connotations. [Me, with community assets] |
This is ultimately pie-in-the-sky thinking that doesn't consider a number of factors like the heritage facade of Market Square, The architectural realities of physics, and the bureaucratic work needed to make all three parties work together but it's where we must start if we want to see out Interchange become truly world-class and deliver a great experience for passengers.
Part 5: How we get there
Contact your Local representatives!
Tell your local MP you want to see The Moorabool Street Bus Interchange fixed for bus passengers!
- The Hon. Jacinta Allan - Minister for Transport and Infrastructure
- The Hon. Ben Carroll - Minister for Public Transport
An excellent analysis. I fully agree with your plans for short-term and long-term fixes, although moving PTV Hub staff to an isolated location known for antisocial behaviour would create some safety challenges.
ReplyDeleteSome years ago I had the misfortune of needing to wait for a bus here, and it was not a fun experience. I always felt sorry for the little old ladies who had to wait for their bus in the midst of groups of loud, swearing teenagers. People took no notice of the "no smoking" signs, and of course there was a steady supply of diesel fumes too. Without real-time information, you had to check each new bus that arrived to see if it was your route.
It's true that the urban design is grim, but at least there is lots of shelter, which is more than can be said for many bus interchanges.
Another point I would add is that interchanges like this are completely inaccessible for those with low vision, who have to rely on the help of others around them to know when their bus arrives.
A great point I overlooked there regarding low vision accessability, Thanks Alan.
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