Thursday, 2 April 2026

 Gabrielle WILLIAMS (Dandenong – Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Minister for Public and Active Transport) (09:54): Residents of my community are telling me that with rising fuel prices their household budgets are under significant pressure. While as a state government we cannot control global oil prices or indeed overseas conflicts, we are committed to doing what we can to take pressure off household budgets when people need it most. That is why, for the month of April, public transport is free across Victoria on every train, tram and bus – metro and regional. For families in my community in Dandenong, that means real savings. It means students getting to TAFE or university with money to spare for food.

It means parents getting to go to work and being able to have an option to leave the car at home, leaving more money for them to pay the bills that are stacking up on the kitchen table. It builds on Labor’s introduction of free public transport for kids under the age of 18, which is already saving families up to $755 per child per year. Importantly, it also helps take cars off the road, easing congestion on key local routes like Princes Highway and the Monash in my local community, which benefits those who still need to drive, including tradies, for example, and local businesses transporting goods around the area. This builds on the significant amount of work the Allan Labor government has been doing to ease cost-of-living pressures for families. We are focused on the community, not like those opposite, who are focused on each other and themselves.