With the announcement that the Metro Tunnel will open for passengers in early December the necessity of a decision on proposed e-bike train travel restrictions has come into focus.
Now that major construction of the new underground railway stations has been completed, and the summer timetables for the introductory services released, public and media interest is building rapidly.
Millions of Melburnians will be keen to take a look at the new stations and to use the trains for a visit to the city.
The question that currently has no answer is: “Will there be any e-bikes on those trains?”
Bicycle Network has been privileged to have visited the Metro Tunnel already, and we are impressed and can see why it will become a precious community asset from the day it opens.
No doubt great care will be taken to ensure that the structures, the trains and the tunnel-travelling public do not come to any harm, and this means the risk of battery fires will be scrutinised extremely closely.
Bicycle Network has continued to discuss the issues with the state government and other stakeholders. We recently met with Energy Safe Victoria, the independent regulator of electric safety, including batteries.
We have also continued discussions with bike brand representatives from Australia and abroad.
Our argument that regulation-compliant e-bikes are very low-risk and to restrict their access to trains is unjustified and unfair is well understood, and authorities are genuinely reluctant to take this step.
The issue, however, continues to balloon, with more regulators getting involved.
Australia has an Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator, which now has overarching safety responsibilities across the Australian rail network.
And we have been told of efforts around the world and within Australian states to achieve unified standards and practices to deal with battery fire risks on public transport.
Clearly, this process will take months, and with the lengthy consultation and negotiation underway, will extend into next year.
With the tunnel opening in December though, some interim decisions might be made in advance of the final solutions being adopted.
Authorities have asked that we continue to provide input to their decision-making, and we will, but at the time of writing we have no guarantees that the result will be the one that riders are hoping for.
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