Bus < Train < Tram?

Where art thou sane bus route planners? I don’t usually travel on buses, but I have had cause to travel on the bus routes around and beyond my local area, involving me making some interesting, although not altogether complementary, observations.

Now before I begin my ranting, I would like to point out that the 903 ‘Smartbus’ is a fantastic idea, in terms of frequent and modern buses arriving exactly on time at their ‘time points’ in a circular route around the metropolitan area, but I speak/rant here of the number of bus stops and the often ridiculous bus timetables.

Firstly regarding the number of bus stops. I admit that I haven’t travelled on buses extensivly, I’m more of a ‘tram person’ myself, but in my few experiences, I have come to notice a few things.about the bus stops that there is often a ridiculous number of bus stops – up to six or seven between two main roads. This causes the bus to be slowed down (as mostly it stops at around 3-4 of these stops). Why are there so many stops?

Take the tram for instance. Between two random main roads, there are only three tram stops, around 100m apart, as is usual on tram routes, on a length of road around 700 metres long. On the other hand, between two roads that, might I add, are about as close together, there are six bus stops, around 20 seconds apart (travelling at around 50km/h). Who on earth needs this many bus stops?

Sure, the elderly and disabled may benefit, but how come trams and trains aren’t the same? Why should we add an extra 50 but stops to a bus route streching from Altona to Mordialloc simply for the sake of a few wheelchair bound pensioners who have alternate transport anyway, and inconvenience the thousands of other people who travel along the route every day?