Northern Metropolitan Region
Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (12:58): (334) My question is to the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure Jacinta Allan. Patronage on the V/Line service is yet to hit pre-COVID levels, yet many of my constituents travelling to Wallan, Donnybrook and Broadmeadows are having to stand for up to 50 minutes on packed trains. Is the minister doing anything to address this headache that commuters from Melbourne’s north face daily, or is this just another example of Labor taking the northern suburbs for granted? Recently, according to local media reports, things have become so bad that some service conductors have had to stop people from boarding and others have been forced to sit in baggage areas. One local resident, Tanya, said her commute has become such a nightmare that she has altered her employment contract to two days of working from home. This level of service is completely unacceptable, and it seems like a continuation of Labor’s poor form in looking after growth areas. Labor’s north needs to be looked after.