Skybus Super Shuttle
Encyclopedia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n airport bus
Airport bus
An airport bus, or airport shuttle bus or airport shuttle is a bus or coach used to transport people to/from, or within airports. These vehicles will usually be equipped with larger luggage space, and incorporate special branding....
service that runs between Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport , also known as Tullamarine Airport, is the primary airport serving the city of Melbourne and the second busiest in Australia. It was opened in 1970 to replace the nearby Essendon Airport. Melbourne Airport is the sole international airport of the four airports serving the...
at Tullamarine
Tullamarine, Victoria
Tullamarine is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 17 km north-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Hume, Brimbank and Moreland. At the 2006 Census, Tullamarine had a population of 6,541....
and Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross is a major railway station and transport hub in Melbourne Docklands, Victoria, Australia. It is located on Spencer Street between Collins and La Trobe Streets at the western edge of the central business district...
in the city of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
. In 2008, Skybus carried over 1.6 million passengers a year.
Skybus commenced operations on 6 June 1978, running a shuttle service between Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport , also known as Tullamarine Airport, is the primary airport serving the city of Melbourne and the second busiest in Australia. It was opened in 1970 to replace the nearby Essendon Airport. Melbourne Airport is the sole international airport of the four airports serving the...
and the city. On 2 August 1982, Skybus took over the airport bus services run by the now-defunct airlines Ansett
Ansett Australia
Ansett Australia, Ansett, Ansett Airlines of Australia, or ANSETT-ANA as it was commonly known in earlier years, was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne. The airlines flew domestically within Australia and to destinations in Asia during its operation in 1996...
and TAA
Trans Australia Airlines
Trans Australia Airlines or TAA, was one of the two major Australian domestic airlines between its inception in 1946 and its sale to Qantas in May 1996. During that period TAA played a major part in the development of the Australian air transport industry...
.
Until 6 November 2000, the Skybus headquarters and terminus was at a coach depot in Franklin Street. It would pick up passengers at the then Spencer Street Station (now Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross Station
Southern Cross is a major railway station and transport hub in Melbourne Docklands, Victoria, Australia. It is located on Spencer Street between Collins and La Trobe Streets at the western edge of the central business district...
) and various city hotels before continuing on to the airport. In November 2000, Skybus relocated to Spencer Street and drove directly between there and the airport, cutting the journey time to 20 minutes and allowing more services to be introduced. Minibus
Minibus
A minibus or minicoach is a passenger carrying motor vehicle that is designed to carry more people than a multi-purpose vehicle or minivan, but fewer people than a full-size bus. In the United Kingdom, the word "minibus" is used to describe any full-sized passenger carrying van. Minibuses have a...
es were introduced to continue the hotel transfer/pickup service.
In 2002, the Victorian government
Government of Victoria
The Government of Victoria, under the Constitution of Australia, ceded certain legislative and judicial powers to the Commonwealth, but retained complete independence in all other areas...
opted to contribute $3 million to a $10 million plan to expand and improve Skybus services, after a feasibility study into a city to airport rail link
Airport rail link
An airport rail link is a service providing passenger rail transport from an airport to a nearby city; by mainline- or commuter trains, rapid transit, people mover or light rail...
found the number of passengers using a train would make the scheme economically unviable. The initiative funded the purchase of new high-tech buses, and improvements to the Tullamarine Freeway
Tullamarine Freeway
The Tullamarine Freeway is an urban freeway in Melbourne, Australia, linking Melbourne Airport to the central business district.-History:Tullamarine Freeway is one of the oldest freeways in Melbourne, originally constructed in 1968-1970...
, to give Skybus vehicles priority in traffic.
On 27 August 2008 their contract was extended by 5 years, which was not put to tender. In 2008 patronage grew by 17 per cent over the previous year, to 1.6 million passengers a year. The State Government is still negotiating to integrate Skybus ticketing with Melbourne's integrated public transport ticketing system, Metcard
Metcard
"OneLink" redirects here. For the computer/cable company, see OneLink Communications.Metcard is the brand name of an integrated ticketing system used to access public transport in Melbourne, Australia. It is a universal ticket which allows users to ride on the city's Metlink network, consisting of...
.