Tuesday, 3 February 2026

 Tim RICHARDSON (Mordialloc) (20:45): (1498) My adjournment this evening is to the Minister for Public and Active Transport and Minister for Transport Infrastructure, and the action I seek is an update on how the big switch and the Metro Tunnel additional services benefit communities on the Frankston train line, particularly in the cities of Kingston and Greater Dandenong. This has been a massive change for our local community. We have seen significant investments in our community to support communities and residents in Kingston and Greater Dandenong to get home safer and sooner to the people they love. It all started with level crossing removals under this government, with Chelsea, Edithvale, Parkdale, Mentone and Cheltenham level crossings removed and new stations built, with Mordialloc under construction now and Aspendale not far away. The Mordialloc Freeway has transformed our community, taking trucks off local roads and getting you home safe and sooner, because we know time saved – even 10 minutes saved – is 10 minutes sooner with the people that you love and care about.

The Metro Tunnel was described by so many political opponents – people who wanted to talk down this project – as a hoax. It has been one of the biggest transformations since the city loop. There are extra services on the Cranbourne–Pakenham line, and, guess what, the Frankston train line is returning to the city loop. That is right, something that was thought to not be possible has happened. It is back into Parliament, Melbourne Central, through to Flagstaff station and out to Southern Cross and Flinders Street. These are the transformations that matter. It is not just the building of projects; it is the saving of time. It is getting you home to the people that you love and care about sooner, because time is a cost to people’s lives, and time is everything when we want to be with our kids and the ones that we care about. By 2029 we will make the Frankston train line level crossing free.

And then we think about a policy only supported by this Labor government: work from home, which will transform the support for families, saving time and saving money. There are the transport infrastructure projects and the compassionate policies that only a Labor government delivers. They all come together to ease the cost of living on Victorian families and also to support that critical time that they need for the people they love and care about. So the city loop returning means you can get to Parkdale through to Chelsea sooner. I am really excited to hear from the minister for public transport and transport infrastructure how the big switch of those services, the additional rail patronage, the removal of level crossings by midyear in Mordialloc and the return to a dual line service will up services in our area and support our local communities in Kingston and Greater Dandenong into the future. I cannot wait to hear that feedback as we get on and build the projects in our community supporting Kingston and Greater Dandenong residents.