Wednesday, 13 May 2026

 Tim READ (Brunswick) (17:17): (1665) My adjournment speech is for the Minister for Transport Infrastructure, and the action I seek is to duplicate the last section of single track on the Upfield line from Gowrie to Upfield stations without further delay. The Upfield line carries around three trains per hour in each direction, with a 16-minute wait between trains at peak hour, a 20-minute wait during the day and half an hour between trains after 7 pm. Nine trains run between 7 and 8 am on both the nearby Mernda and Craigieburn lines, compared to three on the Upfield. Despite this, high-density accommodation is being built along the line, perhaps on the assumption that it carries a similar number of people to other train lines. Recent planning changes will see buildings up to 16 and even 20 storeys built along the line. This would make sense for a line running nine trains per hour, but the Upfield is not offering that.

For a decade my constituents have been promised increased frequency on the Upfield line once the Metro Tunnel was complete. It is, and nothing has changed. In fact trains were more frequent a century ago. In 1924 trains ran every 10 minutes during peak hour from Coburg to the city. The single track from Gowrie to Upfield limits frequency on the whole line. For more frequent trains we are told we need either a turn-back at Gowrie or duplication of the last leg of the track. The latter would give more public transport options for the northern suburbs, residents of which drive to Upfield to get into the city. Last week’s state budget contains money for a final program business case, but this is not a new route. It is more akin to completing an unfinished project. The land is there; all that is required is the will to start it.