By LUKE VOOGT
Geelong commuters will get some welcome relief by the end of this month, with six Geelong-Melbourne services returning to the rails, the state government announced this week.
The rail services will return on 26 April, leaving two remaining coaches – both peak services.
Travellers on the 8.04am from South Geelong and 5.40pm from Southern Cross will still have to sit through heavy traffic to and from Melbourne.
Transport Minister Jacinta Allan said 97 per cent of V/Line services would run via rail by 26 April, with full restoration by midyear.
More than 40 services returned to the tracks last month.
“Since January this year, regional train passengers have been subject to unacceptable disruption,” she said.
“This is the next step in returning full V/Line train services for regional passengers.”
Ms Allan recently announced an independent review of V/Line, an organisation she said “had been asked to do more with less for too long”.
She said the previous government cut V/Line’s funding by $120 million, putting pressure on it at a critical time in its development.
The state government is searching for a new CEO for the troubled organisation.
V/Line also commissioned a review, detailing inadequate lubrication and rail and wheel wear as the main causes for the disruptions.
Paul Westcott from the Geelong Public Transport Users Association said the route change for the line and increased services pushed V/Line beyond its coping point.
“V/Line just wasn’t ready for that level of service,” he said.
“In theory it could have been predicted, and the solutions are fairly simple. Greasing of tracks has been done around the world for yonks.”
Mr Westcott said the crisis had been unprecedented in V/Line’s history.
“It’s been a disaster, hasn’t it?” he said.
