Northern Metropolitan Region
Samantha RATNAM (Northern Metropolitan) (12:47): (102) My constituency question is for the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. Residents in Kalkallo, in my electorate, have been in contact about severe congestion caused by poor planning and a lack of transport infrastructure in their community. There is just one road connecting Cloverton estate in Kalkallo to the main Donnybrook Road, which means it can take residents over an hour at peak times to exit the estate. There is only one bus, which comes once every half hour, and some residents have to walk for 40 minutes to reach the bus stop. There is no pedestrian access over the Merri Creek for residents to reach Donnybrook station, and on Donnybrook Road there are no footpaths or bike lanes. Poor planning means too often new communities in the outer suburbs are approved without proper public services and essential infrastructure like public transport connections. Communities like Kalkallo desperately need better planning outcomes to ensure the necessary transport infrastructure is in place from the beginning or as soon as possible. Minister, what future projects and planning are underway to ease congestion and provide more public and active transport infrastructure for Kalkallo residents?