Category: Media releases
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Transport blitz welcome, but serious value-for-money questions linger
The Public Transport Users Association has commended the Andrews State Government for its renewed commitment to suburban and regional public transport with new projects including the Western Rail Plan, Cranbourne train line duplication, Hurstbridge and Sunbury line improvements, new trams, and a solid start on the Airport Rail Link in cooperation with the re-elected Morrison…
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Value for money must inform State budget reset, says PTUA
The Andrews Government should be putting gigantic new transport projects on hold while it properly assesses their value and takes stock of the state’s fiscal capacity, according to the Public Transport Users Association. In the wake of the weekend’s Federal election result there is ample scope for Victoria and Canberra to work together on what…
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Rail cash welcome, but for Melbourne’s sake we need a plan
The $10 billion pledge by Federal Labor toward Melbourne’s Suburban Rail Loop is a massive vote of confidence in restoring Melbourne’s reputation as a liveable city and responding to the climate emergency, but the size of spending underscores the urgent need for a coherent, community-led transport plan, according to the Public Transport Users Association. The…
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Public transport users welcome Geelong rail duplication agreement
The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed the commitment by the federal government to fully fund its share of the planned duplication of the rail line from South Geelong to Waurn Ponds. PTUA Geelong Branch convener, Paul Westcott, said that the project had been on the agenda ever since the opening of Marshall station…
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State concludes its re-centralisation of transport planning: but to what end?
The Public Transport Users Association has responded with caution to Thursday’s announcement that State transport agencies PTV and Vicroads will be merged into a new ‘omnibus’ Department of Transport. “In some ways this is just the logical conclusion of a process that’s been underway for some time,” said PTUA President Dr Tony Morton. “But it’s…
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PTUA welcomes government intervention to save The Overland
The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed the announcement that the Victorian government will provide additional funding to assist the Overland passenger train to continue running between Melbourne and Adelaide – and has renewed calls for the government to support reinstatement of regular passenger trains to Horsham. The Overland has been supported by the…
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Election 2018: our scorecard
2014-2018 has seen significant public transport investment under Labor, and they have delivered on their major promises. But as Melbourne continues to grow, and demand for regional travel increases, the challenge ahead is to build a public transport network not only copes with patronage growth, but also provides usable services into areas which currently don’t…
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PTUA launches Connecting Ballarat proposal
The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has launched an ambitious policy document, “Connecting Ballarat”, which calls for dramatic improvements to Ballarat’s bus network. Ballarat’s bus network currently has a lot of problems with indirect, inefficient routes through the CBD, which turn back on themselves in order to call at key destinations in a specific order,…
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IA assessments questionable
The Geelong Branch of the Public Transport Users Association has queried the logic of Infrastructure Australia’s negative response to the business case for the duplication of the South Geelong-Waurn Ponds rail line. Branch convener Paul Westcott noted that Infrastructure Australia seems to be saying that the project would stack up if some changes were made.…
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PTUA welcomes rail pledges
The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed state Labor and Coalition pledges to expand Melbourne’s rail network. Labor today pledged funding for a plan for airport rail via Sunshine if re-elected. In recent weeks the Coalition has pledged suburban rail extensions of the Cranbourne line to Clyde, and the Frankston line to Baxter. PTUA…
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PTUA welcomes rail investment in Ballarat
The Public Transport Users Association has today welcomed the government’s announcement of the details of a $130m project to untangle freight and passenger services in Ballarat. The project will largely separate freight and passenger trains west of Ballarat station, and upgrade the signalling system in the Ballarat area, to allow for more efficient movement of…
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Magic numbers distort North East Link business case
Cost and benefit figures presented in the North East Link business case by the Victorian Government suggest a “massive shifting of the goalposts” in an effort to make the $16 billion project stack up, according to a preliminary analysis by the Public Transport Users Association. “Comparing these new figures with those presented just 18 months…
