ABSTRACT
Melbourne’s extensive heavy and light rail networks are suffering from a decline in usage as the city becomes increasingly car-dominated. This chapter discusses reasons for this trend and contrasts Melbourne with Canadian cities and with Perth, Western Australia.1 The popular explanation for Melbourne’s problems – the low density nature of post-war suburban development – is held to be a rationalization, rather than an explanation. The real cause is government transport policies that reduce the attractiveness of public transport while expanding road capacity.
