Beware of tramstop 13

Now, I am not a superstitious person. I have never worried about whether something is 'lucky' or 'unlucky'; for example, I have no issues with walking under ladders (of course, after checking that there isn't someone above likely to drop something on me), and I actively encourage black cats to cross my path (or rub against my legs, sit on my lap... and come to think of it, they don't have to be black, I am not colourist when it comes to cats! :-)

However, today it occurred to me that there just might be something in the idea of 13 being an unlucky number. On days when I have classes, I usually catch a tram down Royal Parade into college, getting off at the stop at the intersection of College Crescent. On many occasions, far too numerous to list, in attempting to alight from the tram I have been almost collected by one or more cars illegally passing- often at great speeds- the stationary tram at this particular stop. It happened again this morning. Not one, but two cars, went speeding past the tram, as the driver manically dinged his bell and almost jumped out of the tram to chase the offending cars. (He also yelled a few choice words that I won't repeat in this polite company).

The strange thing is, that this has happened to me many times at this particular tram stop, but I can't recall it happening at any other stops when I have travelled by tram to other parts of the city (or even alighted at a different stop on Royal Parade). Today, for the first time, I noticed that this tram stop is in fact stop number 13. (I hadn't noticed this before because I don't navigate by stop numbers, but rather by colleges. From where I get on at Brunswick Rd, there are two preliminary stops, followed by stops at: Ridley - or at least the street that leads to Ridley; Whitley; JTC; Ormond; Trinity, and then the main Melb Uni campus stop...)

Perhaps this particular intersection constitutes a "Bermuda Triangle" of Melbourne where motorists' sense, sanity and ability to see stationary trams with flashing lights, mysteriously (and temporarily) disappears somewhere into the aether.

So, to all commuters on tram Route 19- beware stop 13- make sure you look very carefully for oncoming traffic before stepping off the tram at that stop!