Wednesday, 20 March 2019

 Ms ALLAN (Bendigo East—Leader of the House, Minister for Transport Infrastructure) (11:39): I am once again pleased to rise to update the house on how the Andrews Labor government is getting on with removing dangerous and congested level crossings across Melbourne. As the house knows, in four years we got rid of 29, and I am pleased to say that there are more to come. In the last week or so I have been pleased to visit Mentone, Cranbourne and Dandenong to announce five more level crossing removals.

When it comes to the Frankston line, on the Frankston line we are removing 18 level crossings, with five already gone and three currently under construction. The next lot to go will be those three dangerous and congested level crossings at Cheltenham and Mentone. And after extensive consultation, superbly led by the member for Mordialloc, last week I was pleased to be with the member for Mordialloc to release the designs for the new stations at Cheltenham and Mentone. Can I say, and I want this to be clear on the record, we have been delighted with the response of the local community to those designs.

The member for Cranbourne will be the member for the first train line in Melbourne that will be level crossing free. We have already got rid of 11 level crossings on the Cranbourne line and we have committed to getting rid of the four that remain. I was pleased to join with the member for Cranbourne at Evans Road last week to announce that that one has also been fast-tracked and it will be removed by the construction of a road bridge over the track. I was delighted to be with the member for Cranbourne as the local community responded so positively as they were crossing that closed road across the level crossing, having dropped their kids off at the local school on one side of the tracks and trying to get home on the other side. It was a great local response.

Finally, I was then pleased to join with my ministerial colleague and the member for Dandenong at the South Gippsland Highway level crossing that will also be removed. Tragically this has been the site of a fatality, and we are getting on and removing yet another dangerous and congested level crossing.