Wednesday, 30 August 2023

Box Hill transit interchange

Paul HAMER (Box Hill) (19:20): (330) My adjournment matter is for the Deputy Premier in her capacity as the Minister for the Suburban Rail Loop, and the action that I seek is that the Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) precinct planning process, which has recently been announced, investigate and incorporate the upgrades needed to provide a modern bus interchange at Box Hill. The way that the Suburban Rail Loop connects with the interchange at Box Hill will be critical to the success of the entire project.

The Box Hill transport interchange is already one of Melbourne’s busiest transport hubs, with tens of thousands of bus, tram and rail passengers passing through Box Hill every day. While Box Hill’s transport interchanges were advanced for Melbourne at the time, they are now 40 years old and would not have been designed for a life cycle far beyond the present nor for current expectations of amenity or access. With thousands more daily passengers expected to pass through Box Hill when stage 1 of the SRL is completed in 2035, it is critical that the plan for Box Hill includes a new modern bus interchange that meets current and future demand and maximises the value of the SRL investment.

The Suburban Rail Loop will transform the way in which people in Melbourne move around our city, and that will deliver social, economic and environmental benefits to my electorate of Box Hill. For residents of the Box Hill electorate it will mean vastly more efficient access to thousands of jobs, education and health facilities right across Melbourne. It will provide better access to the jobs-rich area around the Box Hill CBD to workers from across the metropolitan area. The project presents a unique opportunity to re-imagine the entire precinct and to greatly improve the livability of the Box Hill CBD. A new bus interchange will form a critical component of that plan. I look forward to the minister’s response.