DELAYED and overcrowded services on Geelong’s new Regional Rail Link to Melbourne should be reviewed immediately, according to Western Victoria MLC Simon Ramsay.
Hundreds of regional passengers “were treated like cattle, herded to coach bays, then told there were no coaches and promptly herded back to the platform to board overcrowded carriages that were delayed by over an hour”, Mr Ramsay said.
The shadow parliamentary secretary for rural and regional transport, Mr Ramsay said both Geelong and Ballarat services ground to a halt, throwing commuters into confusion.
He said he had experienced commuters’ frustrations firsthand, travelling the Geelong/Melbourne service, with the incoming trip being delayed at Deer Park and the return 8.15pm service being cancelled.
Mr Ramsay also said revised bus schedules in Geelong were causing concerns in the community with bus connections and train timetables “out of sync”.
Travelling by coach and train to Mildura this week, to personally experience public transport services across the state, Mr Ramsay will hold a community forum to hear public concerns and views.
Mr Ramsay said regional Victoria should have a public transport system comparable to the metro service “which allows those in remote communities the opportunity to access public transport as a right, not as a privilege”.
“It is inconceivable that the Andrews Government can turn a regional rail project delivered on time and under budget by a Coalition government into the total shambles it currently is,” he said.
