How many agencies does it take to change a lightbulb?

By Stephanie Zhang

Chris Stewart found himself asking this question when he decided to finally file a complaint about the two D4 Docklands Park/Harbour Esplanade tram shelters, which have been sitting in the dark for at least over a year now.

However, he soon found himself caught in a bureaucratic mess as Yarra Trams directed him to the power supplier Citipower, which redirected him back to Yarra Trams.

Public Transport Victoria’s (PTV) 2015-2018 Accessibility Action Plan specifically aims to improve shelter environment through enhanced lighting, but according to Mr Stewart, the tram shelters have missed out.

The D4 tram shelter is particularly hazardous without suitable lighting as it steps out into traffic when entering and exiting the tram.

PTV told Mr Stewart the power was never connected when the shelter was built because it was too expensive.

However, according to PTV customer advocacy officer Simon Black, both shelter builders and the tram franchise holders had changed since the shelter was built.

Mr Stewart contacted Yarra Trams back in August 2017 and then contacted Citipower, who advised him it was up to Yarra Trams to maintain tram shelters. He did not hear back again from Yarra Trams.

Twitter user Justin Paraskevis (@justin_p) had also tweeted at Yarra Trams in June 2017 complaining that the shelter was not lit, to which Yarra Trams directed him to lodge feedback to PTV.

A Yarra Trams spokesperson told Docklands News: “All feedback received is investigated by our infrastructure team, and action is taken where required.”

Yarra Trams believes that lighting is not required because of street lighting, one of which is current not working – and is the responsibility of the City of Melbourne.

Despite these complaints, the tram shelters from either side of the road have not been lit and it is unclear when Yarra Trams, PTV, and Citipower can untie this bureaucratic knot.