Parliament of Victoria | Legislative Council | Adjournment
17 February 2026
David ETTERSHANK (Western Metropolitan Region):
My question is to the Minister for Public and Active Transport. It has certainly been a bumper summer for Melbourne’s gunzels – public transport enthusiasts – and I count myself as one of them. I finally got to ride on the Metro, the new Metro Tunnel, which opened last year to much fanfare and no doubt some tossing of hard hats into the air.
Then we got the big switch in February, integrating the Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham lines. I must say the new stations do look great and the new timetables have made some long-awaited improvements to some established train lines. People who use the Sunbury line will no doubt be delighted by the announcement of around 198 new weekday services, 136 extra services on a Saturday and 128 on a Sunday, equating to 1254 extra services weekly.
However, they may also wonder why many of these services stop just shy of Sunbury and terminate instead at the much less frequented Watergardens station. Regardless, there has been a great improvement in train frequency, with a train arriving every 20 minutes from Sunbury and every 10 minutes from Watergardens.
However, there is still no joy for people living in the outer west. They continue to endure the most awful public transport, with scant integration between buses and train services. It seems that once again the west – Labor’s so-called heartland – is left underserviced and out in the cold. I have raised this so many times.
The outer west is the fastest growing region in Australia, but the Victorian government has no integrated transport plan for the region. While it continues to pour money into the Suburban Rail Loop, the people of the west must contend with this government’s piecemeal approach to adding a couple of extra bus services here and there or announcing a new station, which is unlikely to be a reality any time in the next decade if at all. Where is the plan to improve public transport in the west?
The north and west Melbourne bus plan went to cabinet in 2023 but was rejected. It needs to be either revisited or rethought, because the government cannot just write off vast areas of Melbourne as public transport deserts.
The action I seek is for the minister to present a coordinated western and northern metro reform plan for integrating buses and trains to deliver better transport options for the people of the outer west and the northern suburbs.
Written Answer
Received: 15 June 2026
Hon. Gabrielle Williams MP
(Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Minister for Public and Active Transport, Minister for Women and Girls)
I thank the Member for Western Metropolitan Region for his question.
Labor is getting on with delivering a sequenced, fully integrated investment program that unlocks passenger benefits for the west as soon as possible, while minimising disruption to passengers and the community.
The cornerstone is the Melbourne Airport Rail Stage 1: West Footscray to Albion Rail Upgrade, the critical enabler of a rail line to Melbourne Airport and Melton Line electrification. Transforming Sunshine into a transport superhub by 2030 will untangle one of the most complex rail junctions in Victoria, providing capacity for more than 1000 trains a day, linking passengers to the Metro Tunnel, regional services, trains to Melbourne Airport and an electrified Melton line.
The Melton Upgrade Project is also underway, meaning longer 9-car VLocity trains will be able to run from 2027 – one year ahead of schedule. Longer trains, means 50% more passengers in the morning peak. Meanwhile we’ve future-proofed the new stabling yard at Cobblebank to be ready for electrified Metro trains.
Concurrently, we’re delivering a new, modern and accessible Melton station with four-platforms and removing four level crossings by 2026 to slash congestion and improve community safety.
In the 2026/27 Victorian Budget, we announced we’re taking the final steps towards Melton Line Electrification – unlocking more trains, more often across the west. We couldn’t do this without removing the bottleneck at Sunshine, building stabling closer to Melton or removing those dangerous and congested level crossings – it is all part of our integrated, sequenced investment program to make it safer, easier and more convenient to catch public transport.
In this Budget, we also announced a $14.8 million investment for more 9-car VLocity trains in the morning and afternoon peaks – increasing capacity on uplifted services by 50 per cent, including for Tarneit Station once it opens later this year. This builds on our $98.7 million investment in last year’s Budget to deliver more frequent services across the rail network, making travel faster and easier for passengers – with benefits to be delivered via a timetable update this year. For Werribee Line passengers, this includes two additional trains per hour in the mornings and afternoons, increasing the number of trains in peak periods from six to eight trains per hour.
The Allan Labor Government also recognises the important role buses play in meeting the travel needs of people living in Melbourne’s growing suburbs. Buses are a vital part of Victoria’s integrated transport system, with around 400 regular bus routes servicing metropolitan Melbourne, and local bus networks operating in regional towns and cities.
This is why we have invested more than $990 million into new and upgraded bus services, adding more than 24,000 extra bus services to our network. This includes our investment in the 2026/27 Victorian Budget of almost $100 million towards new and improved bus services, including expanded bus hours and weekend services, new and upgraded routes in growing suburbs, and more services for routes connecting to universities.
This builds on the $162 million invested in the 2025/26 Victorian Budget and the $180 million invested in 2024, which focused on connecting communities in Melbourne’s growing suburbs to key local destinations, including train stations, schools, universities, health services, shops and employment.
In Melbourne’s west, this includes:
- Delivering a new bus network for Melton South with two new routes and a frequency upgrade and extension to Woodgrove Shopping Centre for Route 454
- More services for Route 476 between Moonee Ponds and Watergardens Station
- Longer operating hours and more Sunday services on Route 408 between St Albans Station and Highpoint
- A package of new and extended bus routes connecting passengers in growth areas to train stations, including Riverwalk, King’s Leigh, Mt Atkinson, Cobblebank, Thornhill Park, Rockbank, Aintree and Deanside
- New and upgraded bus services in Tarneit to provide access to the new West Tarneit Station
- Upgraded services to improve access to Caroline Springs town centre and Watergardens Station
- New bus route from Cairnlea to Deer Park Station.
I thank the Member again for his question, and his interest in more frequent, reliable and integrated public transport connections for Melbourne’s growing outer suburban communities.
[ENDS]
