Thursday, 20 February 2020

Ministers statements: level crossing removals

Ms ALLAN (Bendigo East—Leader of the House, Minister for Transport Infrastructure) (11:14): On Monday I had the great pleasure of joining the member for Carrum to announce that Carrum is now level-crossing free for the first time. We not only did that; we opened the new station at Carrum and celebrated the removal of three dangerous and congested level crossings. I know, with my colleagues, that one of the most rewarding experiences we have is delivering on those election commitments. We have done that on 34 occasions with the removal of 34 dangerous and congested level crossings.

As we know, major projects of this size and scale do have their challenges from time to time, but I tell you what: building them is much harder than not building them.

Members interjecting.

Ms ALLAN: Wait, I am coming to you.

When it comes to Carrum, there is no doubt at times this was a challenging and complicated issue. I commend the member for Carrum because she sat down respectfully with members of her community, listening to them, working through issues with them but always reporting back to me that there was great support in Carrum for these level-crossing removals.

Now those opposite based their entire campaign in Carrum on opposing these level-crossing removals. How did that go for you? We know how that went.

We know it was also similar in Oakleigh, where there was opposition every step of the way from those opposite to the removals on the Caulfield–Dandenong corridor. And we are seeing consistency. There is opposition to the North East Link, opposition to the Suburban Rail Loop, opposition to the Toorak Road level crossings by those opposite. But I will leave the last word to Sharon Grace, the 70-year-old Carrum resident who was quoted online in the Herald Sun yesterday:

I used to be dead against this project ... but it’s sensational.

I’ve lived here for years and I was handing out pamphlets against the sky-rail. But it’s fabulous.