They got rid of zone 3? Sounds like a great idea to me. To everyone else, too, apparently. Buying a two zone ticket to go two stops always seemed a bit ridiculous. Now kids can hang out on the train all day, going back and forth.

I used Melbourne public transit extensively when I was there. The train lines cover almost the entire city, and you can take your bike on the train if you avoid peak hours/directions to get to the places in between lines. But I'm from Utah, so I have nothing else to compare it to. The buses were great, too--if you want to take hours to get anywhere.

Ah, I'm getting nostalgic. Graffiti on every surface, stoned/drunk teenagers, unstaffed stations late at night, needles, purple lights in the restrooms, people having sex in public. . .no wonder ridership is down.