VLine is in crisis under Daniel Andrews Leader of The Nationals and Member for Murray Plains Peter Walsh has said.
The latest PTV performance data shows Swan Hill line services are increasingly unreliable under Labor with fewer services arriving on time ‘“ or at all.
Punctuality was down to 86.7 per cent in June 2018 falling far short of the target of 92 per cent.
Mr Walsh said Daniel Andrews and Jacinta Allan had abandoned Swan Hill line travellers leaving VLine in crisis.
“Swan Hill line travellers deserve better than we’re getting under city-centric Labor” Mr Walsh said.
“Daniel Andrews is prepared to invest billions in metro rail but he has abandoned country travellers leaving more and more Swan Hill line passengers arriving late or stranded on replacement buses.
“While Labor refuses to invest the Liberal Nationals have announced a $633 million plan to buy new fast reliable trains for country Victoria. Under the Liberal Nationals plan an order will be placed in June 2019 with the new fleet delivered during our first term in government.”
Mr Walsh said Labor also failed to invest in its own ‘˜Regional Rail Revival’ project with $1.6 billion of the $1.75 billion project funded by the Federal Liberal Nationals Government.
Shadow Minister for Public Transport David Davis said the plummeting performance recorded under Labor left regional Victorians without reliable public transport options.
“The Andrews Government recently appointed PTV CEO Jeroen Weimar as Chair of VLine in a thinly veiled move to centralise country rail services.
“Not content with smashing VLine’s performance Daniel Andrews and Jacinta Allan appointed a Melbourne-focussed bureaucrat to one of the top positions at our country rail operator” Mr Davis said.
“Make no mistake Daniel Andrews and his Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan are beginning the process of destroying V/Line country Victoria’s rail operator.