Melbourne Bike Share review

This weekend I tried a one-day pass to Melbourne's bike share scheme. I did find the initial process a bit clumsy with 80 pages of terms and conditions to agree to.

At least it's not an EULA with "I Agree" at the bottom of the document.

Also I didn't realise that it was a two-step process in that I had to buy the one-day pass and then get a bike-unlock code separately. If there was some prompt on the screen, it wasn't helped by the poor lighting at the Flagstaff Gardens station where I completed my transaction.

The bike itself feels 'squishy' in the same way that a recent Holden Commodore feels squishy with the steering. It's good in that the bike bounces over bumps but quickly runs out of gears. The frame shape is very practical. The bell, however, doesn't seem to work so well - I think it was supposed to work by rotating the cuff around. I could not find a lever. Also, the bike seems to auto-correct steering back to straight. It's not a twitchy bike at all.

The station where I started from had two bikes with loaner helmets. This seemed to be a common number for the stations that I passed. There was no 7-11 store for me to buy a helmet nearby. I probably wouldn't want to as it'd be annoying to carry around a helmet with me.

The website states that you need to wait five minutes between rentals. However...

Keep your trips under thirty minutes and take two minute breaks.

I'm sure you've seen the bike-only lane on Swanston Street and how wonderful it is. Here's Collins Street instead.

Drain is about shoulder width.

It's always good fun when your bike lane exists entirely in the door zone.

Boboyan Hillclimb to 1400m

This ride was a scouting ride for a future cycle tour towards Melbourne. It was a solid challenge and the midday heat was felt while struggling up. I think I didn't bring enough food and was hungry-sleepy traversing Fitz's hill towards Canberra on the way back. That situation was resolved with an ice-cream in Tharwa.

A broken spoke! A pannier bag was sucked into the wheel.

End of the sealed Boboyan road

Touring gears definitely help overcome these gradients.

The dirt road surface was pretty good on Boboyan road. 

Clearing the unsealed section on the way down was a really quick affair. The Hospital Hill lookout provided a stunning view and an idea to use the Old Boboyan Road next time - as long as we're prepared to ford creeks. I didn't feel too bad at 1415m elevation but was feeling rather drained for each uphill on the way back. It was getting a bit chilly towards the end of the ride but the suburban section was flat enough. It was a total of 106km. Interestingly mapmyride suggested it required around 5000kj one way.

Quick Aldi Solar Shed light modification

Here's a quick modification to turn the Aldi Solar Shed light into a dark-triggered lamp.
Three components are used: a resistor, a light-dependent resistor and an N-channel MOSFET. A variable resistor was used for tuning.

one side of rear bicycle brakes touching rim

Check the cable and the sleeve. I didn't realise it had such a great effect on the brake pads.

LED 'bulbs' problems

Flickering - check individual LED modules
Doesn't turn on - check bridge rectifier

Myki automatic blocking

Remote unblocking improves myki customer experience

Date Published: Tuesday 11 December 2012

Metropolitan customers whose myki card is blocked following a failed auto top up payment request will now have their myki card remotely unblocked.
A blocked myki card will be unblocked when a customer touches on at a myki reader or myki gate, or uses a myki machine. A card will also be unblocked at a Premium Station ticket office or myki retail outlet, provided a customer is completing a myki top up transaction.
The change means customers no longer have to post their myki to customer care to be unblocked and significantly reduces the amount of time between making the required payment and being able to use the myki card.
Auto top up adds value to a myki card and then requests payment from the customer’s linked bank account or credit card later. If this payment request is unsuccessful, the myki is blocked until payment has been made.
If an auto top up customer has their myki card blocked, they can make a payment via their online account or by calling 1800 800 007. A successful payment immediately triggers a request to be sent to myki devices across the system to unblock the card.
Customers should allow at least 24 hours for their payment to be processed and for the unblock request to be available at devices.
Remote unblocking has initially been introduced in metropolitan Melbourne. Bus passengers in regional towns where myki operates should note that the software is currently scheduled to be deployed on regional buses by the end of 2012. It is possible to unblock a myki at a myki machine in regional towns.
Auto top up is available to registered customers and provides ‘set and forget’ convenience. When a customer’s myki money balance falls below their nominated threshold, it is automatically topped up with an amount of the customer’s choice so that they are always ready to travel.
Customers should ensure that their bank account or debit/credit card details are kept up to date in their myki online account, and that sufficient funds are available to pay for any top up that has been applied to their myki.

http://ptv.vic.gov.au/news/news-promotions/remote-unblocking-improves-myki-customer-experience

It sounds like if you're courageous enough to use auto top up then you'd better be clever enough to have another card - especially with the unblocking delay. Ridiculous.

Also, I had a dream where I didn't add the fried onion packet into my instant mi goreng. Scary scenario.

Visiting Melbourne

Dot points because I can't be bothered forming paragraphs:

• Took an overnight Greyhound coach. The bus driver stalled at a major intersection.
• Got to wake up next to a lovely young lady in the morning though. Well, several times in fact and to the smell of fried chicken at the 4AM meal break stop.
• $11 a day for two zones' travel seems a bit steep.
• Police operations held up a train. It seemed like twenty PSOs and police converged to encourage one young man out of a carriage, while his companions continued leaping around inside.
• Contrastingly cheap weekend fares and good 10 minute frequency in the middle of the day.
• Original wording of City2Sea public transport options could be trying to hide the fact that there is no easy way into the city on Sunday morning!

Before: Public transport travel in Zones 1 and 2 is free for your journey home from the event on event date only.

After: “Trains, trams and buses are the best way to get home from the City2Sea run on Sunday 11 November with public transport travel included in the cost of the event ticket.  

Public transport travel in Zones 1 and 2 is free from first to last service on Sunday 11 November by simply presenting your chest bib when requested by public transport staff.”

• Indeed the first trams of the day were full of participants.
• Trams are slow and stop too often!
• New fences won't do much to stop people jaywalking:

• Lots of small random shops moving into the shopping centre:

 

• Also: saw an elderly Caucasian lady drinking a can of Mother energy drink while dragging a shopping cart