Question details
Northern Metropolitan Region
(1711) My constituency question is for the Minister for Public and Active Transport. Minister, my constituents who live in and around Brunswick are frequent users of the 506 Moonee Ponds–Westgarth station bus service. They were disappointed to see that in the May budget, 2025, several bus routes received funding, while the 506 service, despite its high patronage, was overlooked. The 506 is one of Victoria’s busiest bus routes and still lacks a Sunday service. On Saturdays the service averages 20 boardings per hour, a strong indicator of unmet demand. If the 506 bus were to receive a Sunday service, it would likely outperform many other routes in terms of productivity and patronage. This addition would improve the overall efficiency of the network and, most importantly, connect people to their jobs, education, health care and essential services seven days a week. Minister, will you commit to implementing a seven-day service for the 506 bus?
I thank the Member for Northern Metropolitan Region for their question.
The Allan Labor Government recognises the important role buses play in meeting the travel needs of people living in Melbourne’s growing suburbs. Buses are a vital part of Victoria’s integrated transport system, with around 400 regular bus routes servicing metropolitan Melbourne, and local bus networks operating in regional towns and cities.
Since launching Victoria’s Bus Plan in June 2021, more than 122 local bus networks have been improved, giving Victorian communities access to more than 9,400 extra services each week.
As part of the 2025/26 State Budget, we are investing more than $162 million into new and improved bus services, with a focus on connecting communities in Melbourne’s growing suburbs to key local destinations including train stations, schools, health services, shops and employment. This includes investment into Melbourne’s north, including:
- new and improved services for Wollert, which will see bus routes extended into growing estates in Wollert’s north,
- more frequent bus services for Beveridge, and
- upgrading Route 536, travelling between Glenroy and Gowrie, to be a 7-day a week service.
Work to deliver these new bus services is well underway, with more details available closer to implementation.
These uplifts will join several other recent improvements made to northern bus networks. From 5 October 2025, bus services were boosted around Craigieburn, Donnybrook, Kalkallo and Roxburgh Park, with 641 extra weekly services added across eight bus routes. This included extending Route 543 and Route 524, serving more residents in Greenvale North and Kalkallo, helping them get to work, the shops, and school. We also extended operating hours of Routes 525, 528, 529, 533, 537 in Craigieburn, with services now running late into the evening most days of the week.
In September, we upgraded Route 390, which connects passengers between Craigieburn and Mernda Stations. This upgrade saw 140 new weekly services for the route, providing consistent 20-minute weekday service from 6 am to 8 pm, and extending operating hours on weekdays and Saturdays until midnight.
Additionally, the upcoming opening of the Metro Tunnel provides an opportunity to review train service provision across the network. The 2025-26 Victorian State Budget provided $98.7 million of new funding to increase train services across a large part of the network. For the Craigieburn and Upfield lines, this will increase services so that trains run at least every 20 minutes on both lines, including off peak, late at night and on weekends.
The Department of Transport and Planning regularly reviews the bus network to identify where improvements can be made. When reviewing existing bus routes or planning new ones, DTP considers several factors, including the number of users, suitability of the road network for bus operations, development of a direct and easily understood network, and connectivity with other public transport services.
Regarding Route 506, I have asked the Department of Transport and Planning to investigate an uplift for the service as part of future network planning.
Gabrielle Williams MP
Minister for Public and Active Transport