In a connected city, all people can move about freely to communicate and trade – locally, regionally and globally – without sacrificing essential social or ecological values. The City of Melbourne manages movement in and around our city to help people trade, meet and move about safely and freely. We know that catering for our growing city and safeguarding its continued prosperity means planning for an efficient and sustainable transport network of the future. Building a ‘connected city’ is about working closely with our partners and advocating for the free movement of people and goods in the city. It is about making it easier for more people to make more sustainable choices as they travel to and around the city, whether by foot, bicycle, tram or train.
Future Melbourne 2008

Overview

People who commented regarding A connected city sought efficient and human friendly transport options. There was a large amount of discussion regarding improving public transportnetworks to make them more efficient. There was also a significant amount of discussion and suggestions for operational improvements to public transport such as facilities and timetabling.

Use, or reduced use, of vehicles into and through the city was a well discussed topic. A large number of people stated that cars should be removed, or significantly reduced from the central city. There was a broad range of reasons explaining the benefits that would come from this action. A counter theme of comments was from those who want vehicle travel to be more efficient, suggestions to achieve this were more roads, wider roads and less on street parking. Parking technology and parking building relocation was another key issue for many, all aimed at improving parking and travel times.

There was a significant amount of discussion on cycling, specifically to increase its use, with the key request being for cycles to be separated from vehicles. Details were also provided on how to increase the city’s cycle network.

There were significant benefits identified for the City in increasing pedestrianised areas, including the city becoming more human friendly, in a variety of ways, and subsequently more appealing to locals and visitors.

There was a small amount of discussion on freight efficiency and logistics and regional transport.

Priorities: