TT 238: The amazing Route 451 timetable

Buses are a write-off for most Melburnians travelling after dark. After 7pm bus frequency is typically down to every 40 minutes and service has often finished by 9:30pm. Trains are a bit more frequent, run longer hours but are frequently replaced by buses. Trams are the best of the three modes but are largely limited to inner suburbs. This is one reason why Melbourne ranks with Brisbane as being the Australian capital with the least equal public transport service provision.However exceptions exist in unlikely places. Like Thornhill Park, a growth area suburb most Melburnians have probably never heard of. On July 26, 2026 new bus route 451 commenced between Cobblebank Station and Thornhill Park. Like what is becoming a welcome trend with growth area bus routes (other examples being 154, 390, 405, 475 and more) its interpeak weekday frequency is a respectable 20 minutes, matching trains in the area. That's a big advance on the 40 minute frequency that is typical for local bus routes in…