Facebook reaction - News sites promoting their own apps which aren't needed.

The removal of news from Facebook has prompted a number of news media outlets to start promoting their own apps. It should be kept in mind you don't need to install an app to use these sites. Both News.com.au and ABC News are promoting their apps when people visit their websites.

There's no need for another app that may or may not be tracking your movements. You can simply bookmark the sites and visit the sites when you want. No app required. 

Whilst there's a big outcry with Facebook removing news content there is a bright side. If there's no news sites that means all news on Facebook can treated with suspicion. Right now people are getting tricked because they often can't tell the difference between real news, self promotion and scams. Now all articles can be treated the same and if you want to check the facts on something that interests you, you can visit a news site.

Kelvin Eldridge

Has removing signage in NSW for mobile speed cameras really made that much difference?

There has been quite a bit written in the press since the mobile speed cameras' signage has been removed in NSW, but the real question is, has it really made that much difference?

Whilst the press highlights the removal of mobile speed camera signage as the main point, there's two other points that are probably making most of the increase in speeding fines.

First the NSW's government has increased the number of hours for mobile speed cameras from 7,000 hours a  year to 21,000 hours a year. An increase by a factor of three.

Secondly, by removing the requirement for an mobile speed camera operator to place signage before and after the mobile speed camera car (which means the cameras only cover one side of the road), mobile speed cameras can now cover both sides of the road by doing nothing extra. That's an increase by a factor of two byt covering both sides of the road.

In total we have an increase in coverage based on increased hours and increasing coverage to cover both sides of the road, giving us an increase by a factor of six.

So how does that compare with the increase the government has seen in revenue?

Based on the figures released for December 2020, there's been a large increase to $2.5 million from $400,000 for the same period last year. Now if we increase $400,000 by a factor of six we end up with $2.4 million, or roughly what we'd expect to see based in increase coverage and increased hours. Overally the loss of signage appears to have made little difference.

Speeding fines in NSW skyrocket after warning signs for cameras removed (9news.com.au)

The reality is if you're not speeding your won't get booked. If you're observant whilst driving, the mobile speed camera cars generally stand out. They're generally parked in ways most people don't park, on a naturestip by themselves. Some do park in lanes on the road where there's parking, but most appear to park out of the way of traffic on naturestrips or kerbs. An observant driver will make sure they're not speeding. 

For me the one concerning piece of information is the NSW government stated the change will reduce the death toll by 34-43 a year. That means if increasing mobile speed camera coverage by a factor of six reduces the detoll by 34-43 a year, if we take one sixth (the current coverage) mobile speed cameras currently possibly make a difference of 5 - 7 deaths a year and fgiven the size of the death toll, that's quite a low impact in terms of saving lives on our roads given the size of the revenue being raised and speed to enforce speed limits. I can't help feeling a better way would be to provide every driver with a device that alerts them to when they're speeding. I know using Waze or AmiGo certainly helps me drive within the speed limit.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.SpeedCameraLocations.com.au

Melbourne Metrolpolitan Trains Lilydale line, buses replacing trains from Ringwood to Lilydale 9/2/21-19/2/21

There was a notice at the Mitcham train station today notifying passengers buses will replace trains between Ringwood Station and Lilydale station from the 9th of February to the 19th of February 2021.

With the new overhead bridges being built at Lilydale Station and Mooroolbark Station there's going to be some big channges. I decided to video the Ringwood to Lilydale section of the Lilydale line today and you can find the video at https://youtu.be/KmxXmnF9qqA. I've also taken a video from Lilydale to the city and return to Mitcham which I'll make available in the near future.

My aim is to link the videos into my Mapz site (www.Mapz.com.au/nearesttrainstation/) so people can easily get additional information on the train stations around them.

Kelvin Eldridge

Efficacy of the Pfizer/BioNTech, Oxford/AstraZeneca and Noravax.

I thought I'd link to the following article as it details the efficacy of the three vaccines currently considered for Australia.

Efficacy of the Pfizer/BioNTech, Oxford/AstraZeneca and Noravax

Kelvin Eldridge

Wasted time using PetrolSpy to get cheaper petrol.

The other day I worked out using PetrolSpy I was going past a cheaper petrol station and could save around 30 cents per litre. The detour was minimal so well worth the effort. Here's what PetrolSpy displayed.

However when I got to the 7 Eleven petrol station this is what I saw.

"Shop still open, fuel upgrade underway". As they say, "not happy Jan".

With PetrolSpy I've found a number of times the low priced petrol listed isn't correct so I like to have a second source to crosscheck the price. For example using the 7 Eleven Fuel app or the Woolworths Fuel app.

What was interesting is when I later checked the 7 Eleven website I found 7 Eleven had not updated the price of petrol for nearly two weeks. 

So 7 Eleven was feeding bad information to the PetrolSpy app and since the PetrolSpy app was updating the information regularly was just putting when PetrolSpy updated the information (in this case about an hour ago). So PetrolSpy gave the impression the price had recently been submitted making it more credible, whereas the information posted by PetrolSpy was recent, the information was nearly two weeks old. PetrolSpy should be vetting the data they receive more carefully.

One of the problems obtaining cheap petrol is the apps are only as good as the information provided. Sometimes the apps receive poor information from the petrol companies (such as this case), sometimes the apps are slow at getting the latest information (I've seen this at a Woolworths Petrol station where the price was lower than PetrolSpy and Woolworths own app) and my biggest concern is users providing misleading information either in error (E10 being listed as unleaded) or for some agenda that I'm not aware of. To get around these situations I usually find it best to have a couple of options. In this case I went a Woolworths Petrol station further along my route and saved around $9-$10. This doesn't seem like a lot of money for the effort, but I'm happy to save money when I can, as long as I don't waste money (fuel and other costs) doing so.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.PetrolCostCalculator.com.au

Maroondah Highway, Lilydale, red light camera/speed camera speed limit reduced from 50 km/h to 40 km/h

For those travelling on the Maroondah Highway through Lilydale it appears the speed limit has been changed from 50 km/h to 40 km/h due to the works on the railway line. This was reported in the HeraldSun (access to subscribers only) and I also found a Facebook post reporting the same information.

I decided to take a trip to Lilydale and took a picture of the 40 km/h sign. I saw one sign indicating the change of speed limit was related to the railway line works.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.SpeedCameraLocations.com.au

Melbourne's top five mobile speed camera locations.

After reading the 7 News article on the top five fixed camera locations I followed the link to the article they referenced and the site CarExpert also lists the top five mobile speed camera locations.

Victoria’s top earning speed cameras | CarExpert

The following is a list of the locations.

Black Forest Road in Wyndham Vale, between Brimpton Grove and McGrath Road with 3740 infringements

Wetherby Road in Doncaster, between Doncaster Road and Koonung Creek with 3422 infringements

Oak Street in Parkville, between Park Street and Manningham Street, with 3338 infringements

Bell Street in Preston, between Harold Street and Watson Street, with 3321 infringements

Ballarat Road in Footscray, between Geelong Road and Jamieson Avenue, with 2930 infringements

For fixed cameras I've been able to take videos of nearly all the location around Victoria, but for mobile speed cameras it's much more difficult to get a video when there's a mobile speed camera car at the site. I've managed to video a few but none of the above locations. The link above only shows the road and not the mobile speed camera.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.SpeedCameraLocations.com.au

 

Jumping the queue at KFC Eastland.

I was recently at Eastland and decided to have KFC. The problem is the queue was quite long. I wondered what would happen if I used the app. I had checked the app and the special on the app meant it was also cheaper.

I decided to go for it. I opened the KFC app, selected the store and placed the order. The order came up with my initials but not the order number number shown in the app. My order also appeared high up on the list so I may have jumped some existing orders (hard to tell) but certainly ended up jumping the queue of people waiting.

Perhaps not the most socially responsible thing to do, but certainly saved some time. Possibly one of the fastest services I've received at KFC Eastland.

One downside is if you're a senior and have a Seniors Card, you can't get the senior's discount using the app. No free offer either that appears on the receipt if you provide feedback. However, the special in the app in this case was a better price.

Kelvin Eldridge

Victoria's top five speed cameras now includes Rosanna Road and Darebin Street.

I noticed on the nightly news recently there was a mention of the top five fixed camera locations around Melbourne and how many fines were issued. The following link provides the information from the 7 News site.

Melbourne's top earning speed camera locations revealed including Heidelberg, Chadstone, St Kilda | 7NEWS.com.au

Below are links to videos for each location.

Intersection of Rosanna Road and Darebin Street in Heidelberg (northbound) with 23,807 infringements

Intersection of Warrigal Road and Batesford Road in Chadstone with 23,401 infringements

Intersection of King Street and La Trobe Street in West Melbourne with 18,502 infringements

Intersection of Fitzroy Street and Lakeside Drive in St Kilda with 18,107 infringements

Intersection of Terminal Drive and Centre Road at Melbourne Airport with 11,593 infringements

It is interesting to note Rosanna Road and Darebin Street in Heidelberg is now the top location in terms of fines. As a new red light camera/speed camera people are often not aware of the location. Also there's a large amount of traffic.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.SpeedCameraLocations.com.au

Thirty three elderly people in Norway who had received a coronavirus vaccine, subsequently passed away.

This week we saw the first article relating to deaths of 33 elderly people in Norway who had received a coronavirus vaccine. There is no evidence the people died as a direct result of the vaccine.

Pfizer vaccine deaths: No direct link between vaccine and 33 Norway deaths (news.com.au)

What is interesting is I recall when in one country the elderly weren't vaccinated, but the young. If I recall correctly, I believe this was for the flu. By vaccinating the young the elderly were protected. In Australia we  vaccinate the elderly against the flu.

Given there may be some concern for the elderly with vaccination against COVID-19, it may be worth considering if vaccinating the elderly is the best option. If all people that come in contact with the elderly needed to be vaccinated, is that enough to protect the elderly.

When you get vaccinated for the flu you can have a significant reaction. Some people actually feel so bad they feel like they've caught the flu from the vaccine, but that's not possible. Their body however appears to react as though they have. If an elderly person's body responds as though they have caught the virus, the question becomes, is that sufficient for the elderly to experience severe complications, possibly leading to death? 

I certainly don't know, but with around 1 in a 1,000 people dying in Norway who have received a vaccine, it's important people remain very aware.

Kelvin Eldridge

Almost a third of people who go to hospital, return to hospital and of those one in eight may die.

I thought the following article was particularly eye opening. It turns out almost a third of people who go to hospital, return to hospital and of those one in eight may die.

Almost a third of recovered Covid patients return to hospital in five months and one in eight die (yahoo.com)

Kelvin Eldridge

Perhaps it's time the government used larger events to find if there's COVID-19 cases in the community.

I was reading the news article on the partying at Bondi Beach and whilst I'm not in favour of large scale gatherings in general due to the risk of COVID-19, particularly in hotspot areas, it did give me an idea.

Coronavirus live updates: Backlash grows over North bondi party (news.com.au)

In Victoria COVID-19 cases are currently zero in terms of community transmission. There may still be infected people that don't know they're infected and in time those people will infect others. Either that or there is really no community cases of COVID-19.

The idea that came to mind is if there are hidden cases of COVID-19, if we had large controlled events where people registered (think The Australia Open or football matches) then if a COVID-19 case did occur, the contact tracers could more easily trace where the case came from. Yes it does mean there is a risk of people getting infected, but if there's no cases in the community, there's no risk. If there are cases it's one way the government can find the cases and enable people to do what they want to do, knowing there's a risk involved.

Even a party at Bondi could be held as long as everyone who went registered. People would actually be helping the community by partying.

Perhaps it's time the government was a little more creative and looked for ways to give people more freedom rather than their current strategy of excessively removing freedoms.

Now it could easily be argued that to allow people to participate in risky activities should never be allowed, but we also have to remember in the early days of COVID-19, Queensland held two elections where millions of people turned out and not one case of community transmission was reported to my knowledge (although I'm happy to stand corrected). We can live in fear or we can look for ways where people can do more in a controlled way.

Kelvin Eldridge

Bike trail videos now released twice a week on Wednesday and Saturday.

As my use of YouTube evolves I like to release videos in a way that makes sense to people. I've decided for that reason to release new Bike Trail videos on Wednesday and Saturday. Real-time drive videos will be released on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday.

There's always the possibly of other videos being released such as new or updated red light camera/speed camera locations. Also there may be one off videos I wish to share with others. These videos will mean that on some days two videos will go live. One in the morning and one at night.

The following is the current list of Bike Trail videos

Bike Trail, Main Yarra Trail, Part 2, Heidelberg to Abbotsford

https://youtu.be/9dQVwdAc-J8

Bike Trail, Southbank Promenade, Yarra Promenade, Orrs Walk, South Wharf Promenade, River Esplanade

https://youtu.be/rgg0AGmLXwA

Bike Trail, Main Yarra Trail, Part 1, Templestowe to Heidelberg

https://youtu.be/r9zzB8pyxWQ

Bike Trail, Koonung Creek Trail, Donvale to Ivanhoe East

https://youtu.be/UmudYoScZ24

Bike Trail, Green Gully Trail, Templestowe

https://youtu.be/GVC29JW7clY

Bike Trail, Edithvale Seaford Wetlands Environment Area

https://youtu.be/o1x7UPPDLik

Bike Trail, Wingrove Park Trail, Eltham to Eltham South

https://youtu.be/Dh6b_qc2htw

Bike trail, Fitzsimons Lane, Diamond Creek Trail, Templestowe to Eltham Aldi via Eltham Lower Park

https://youtu.be/JSBodbYLoJw

Bike Trail, Albert Park Lake

https://youtu.be/pcpICD8M42A

Bike Trail, Westerfolds Park Circuit, Templestowe

https://youtu.be/Qst6Q8bzGec

Bike Trail - Ringwood Lake Park, Ringwood

https://youtu.be/Bx_GogHdz-g

Bike Trail - Mullum Mullum Creek Trail, Ringwood, Croydon

https://youtu.be/Ycpjqcqn_rA

Each week two new adventures will be shared with those who are interested.

For me taking videos and sharing the videos helps to keep me motivated to get out and try to stay in some form of shape. Thank you for watching the videos as it makes me feel others are interested in the videos and that also encourages me to keep making the videos.

Another reason I take the videos is for when the weather isn't so good, I can use the videos to ride the exercise bike and enjoy the ride again whilst I exercise. Hasn't happened yet, but I also hope to have a virtual ride with family where we both pick a ride and share the ride whilst we both use the exercise bikes.

For whatever reason you choose to watch the videos, thank you.

Kelvin Eldridge

Nearest Train Station site moved to Mapz.com.au

On a regular basis I review the websites I've created and determine whether or not they should have their own domain name, or live under a group domain. This is largely a cost decision based on usage. If enough people are visiting the site then a separate domain is justified, if not then, due to cost, it's best the site is moved to one of the common group domains I use.

Low usage doesn't mean the site isn't useful to people, it's often that Google is not giving priority to the site so people can't find the site. For example during Victoria's COVID-19 outbreak I found the site I had where I shared public locations (at that point the government wasn't sharing the information), that Google really only seemed to share/prioritise government sites and news sites. It makes sense as we all want quality information, but also it shows us how the information we receive is considerably filtered. At other times sites that I build may simply be of little use to others. The only way to know is to build the site and see how the site goes.

In the case of Nearest Train station, I created this site as my daughters would often have me pick up a friend or two and then ask to be dropped off at the nearest train station. At the time finding the nearest train station using Google wasn't easy and hence the web site was developed. Google sees what people search for and over time they'll make the information available within Google Search. The more people that stay within Google Search and don't leave increases the display of ads and thus revenue for Google. This is one reason many sites may become less relevant and get less traffic.

Personally I still find the sites I created handy and use them regularly. So instead of killing off the sites when usage decreases I incorporate them into one of my group sites. Sometimes www.JustLocal.com.au, but in this case www.Mapz.com.au.

The Nearest Train Station site and Nearest Tram Stop and Nearest Vline Station pages can now be found on Mapz.com.au using the following links and are also available from the Mapz site.

www.Mapz.com.au/nearesttrainstation/

www.Mapz.com.au/nearestvlinestation/

www.Mapz.com.au/nearesttramstop/

I hope others find these pages to be useful as I do.

Kelvin Eldridge

www.Mapz.com.au

Bike ride around Southbank

I recently decided to ride the Gardiner Creek Trail and Main Yarra Trail into the city. I like to take videos of the bike trail rides to share on YouTube. At the end of the ride I decided to continue riding along Southbank. It was such a pleasant day and it was an enjoyable ride to simply take the time to enjoy the city scape.

https://youtu.be/rgg0AGmLXwA

Kelvin

Bike Trail, Albert Park Lake

I looked forward to riding around Albert Park Lake and it didn't disappoint. Although I really should have tightened the handlebars better on the new electric bike.

Kelvin

Free parking in the City Of Melbourne from 1st of December to January 3rd 2021

It almost seems like councils want to keep slugging us with ever increasing parking fees, or issue parking fines, so it's unexpected and welcome when the City of Melbourne issues free parking vouchers from the 1st of December to the 3rd of January.

Of course it does make sense. In this extraordinary time of coronavirus it appears the gloves are off to encourage us to shop in the city with free parking. Never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, you can find the free voucher at https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/parking-and-transport/parking/parking-locations-fees/Pages/free-parking-december.aspx.

Enjoy,

Kelvin Eldridge
www.JustLocal.com.au

When our leaders get it wrong during the coronavirus pandemic, it's a reminder that anyone can get it wrong.

When one of our leaders breaks the very rules they're asking the rest of us to follow, it's a reminder that all of us, no matter who we are, or the position we hold, are just as fallible. It is a reminder that we should be tolerant of those who make mistakes and don't do what we'd normally expect of them during the coronavirus pandemic. 

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian admits she didn't isolate after coronavirus test last week - ABC News

It's very easy for us when we see news items to judge others, but in the moment we can all make mistakes and errors in judgement, even our leaders do.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.Mapz.com.au/coronavirusvictoria/

Dan Andrews flip-flops between using dates and trigger points.

I noticed at one point the Dan Andrews announced the opening up of Victoria would not be based on dates but reaching trigger points.

https://www.news.com.au/national/victoria/news/coronavirus-victoria-new-date-for-step-three-in-melbourne/news-story/f80b425404010ab75273586a872bcbb5

If you were to revisit earlier roadmaps for Victoria you'd notice the next step for easing restrictions was when Victoria reached no new cases for 14 days, yet a few days ago the Victorian government flip-flopped from using the trigger point of now new cases for 14 days to the next step being on the 22nd of November, well over a week later.

From roadmap on the 9th of November.

From roadmap on the 11th of November

As of today there's 13 consecutive days with zero cases of coronavirus in Victoria, tomorrow hopefully that will reach the 14 days. If that happens Victoria would have reached the milestone required for the last step, yet the government has yet again moved the goal posts. You would think reaching a virus free target would be far less arbitrary than a nominated date, yet the government has flip-flopped on Dan Andrews statement. You have to wonder why?

Kelvin Eldridge
www.Mapz.com.au/coronavirusvictoria/

An interesting observation. How many coronavirus cases were there that started with a healthcare workers in Victoria?

It occurred to me that an interesting figure would be the number of cases of coronavirus occurred as a result of an infected healthcare worker passing coronavirus on to family, friends and coworkers. This isn't to highlight one group, but to highlight the importance of ensuring our healthcare workers are given the best possible equipment and support to keep themselves and the community safe.

When I was growing up I recall there was the Fairfield Infectious Diseases Hospital and I couldn't help wonder what is done now in terms of infectious diseases. With a relatively low number of cases of coronavirus, a single hospital with the best facilities and controls could keep or minimise infections reaching the community via healthcare workers. It appears there's now infectious disease departments in multiple hospitals which means multiple points of exposure for the community.

As an example, if we look at the most recent outbreak at the East Preston Islamic College, there was a total of 39 infections across 11 (/13) households. The originating case for this outbreak appears to be a healthcare worker from the Box Hill hospital.

As of November 8th there were 3,574 healthcare workers that had been infected. One of these healthcare workers in theory was the origin of possibly 38/39 cases. With a total of 20,345 coronavirus cases so far in Victoria, it's not inconceivable to think that perhaps the majority of coronavirus cases may have come about from healthcare workers if one infected healthcare worker can result in 38/39 cases. This highlights how critical it is to ensure everything that is possible is done to ensure healthcare workers are given everything above and beyond what is needed.

It would certainly be interesting to see what the final number of cases of coronavirus were that started with a healthcare worker as it might highlight where one of the greatest exposures are in terms of the spread of the coronavirus and where more resources could be focused.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.Mapz.com.au/coronavirusvictoria/