Melbourne's Famed Vintage Tram Restaurant Has Left the Tracks Amid Safety Concerns
At this stage, the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant might not be back till 2020.
One of Melbourne's best-known food experiences might have served up its final dish, with the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant revealing it's been taken off the tracks after its famed vintage trams were deemed unsafe.
In an announcement on the tourist attraction's Facebook page, CEO Paul O'Brien cites "a bureaucratic deadlock with Yarra Trams" as the reason behind the shutdown. After successfully passing weekly safety inspections by the transport body since 2010, the restaurant trams have now been labelled unsafe. The company has reportedly been told to upgrade its carriages in order to keep running, though is facing what it calls "an impossible deadline" of two weeks and is unable to schedule in for the necessary works until at least 2020.
O'Brien is currently calling on the Victorian Government to step in and set a more manageable deadline for upgrade works, so the award-winning tourist trams can continue its daily jaunts through the CBD.
The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant has been operating for 35 years, hosting more than three-million customers without any serious injuries to date. Before its suspension, the roaming restaurant travelled through Albert Park, St Kilda and South Melbourne, serving up breakfast, high tea, lunch and dinner.
The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant is not currently accepting bookings and any future reservations have been cancelled. We'll update you as soon as any further announcements are made.
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