The Andrews Labor Government will introduce 12 new train services every week on the Warrnambool line as part of a new V/Line timetable that will start on 29 January next year.
Member for Western Victoria Gayle Tierney said the new trains would make a real difference for people in Western Victoria, giving them more choice about when they travel.
On weekdays, there will be a new service from Warrnambool to Melbourne at 9:05 am, and a new service from Melbourne to Warrnambool at 5:13pm.
The new services will not stop at Wyndham Vale and Tarneit, making the journey to Melbourne quicker for local passengers.
The extra trains during the week will be bolstered by new V/Line coach services to and from Portland, which will connect with all the new weekday Warrnambool services.
On Sunday, there will be a new 11:25am service from Warrnambool to Melbourne, and 1:10pm to Geelong will be moved forward – so it departs Southern Cross Station at 1:00pm – and extended through to Warrnambool.
Following feedback from the local community, the first service on Saturday from Warrnambool will also be moved on January 29. Instead of leaving at 5:50am it will depart at 7:35am, so it arrives in Melbourne closer to the start time of major events.
The extra Warrnambool line services are the first in more than a decade, despite the line running through the then Premier and Transport Minister’s electorates under the former Liberal and National Government.
They didn’t deliver a single extra service, order a single new regional carriage for two years and ripped $120 million out of V/Line – failures that hurt regional services and ultimately regional passengers.
The new timetable delivers more than 80 extra V/Line services across Victoria and is part of the $1.3 billion the Labor Government investment in better regional public transport through the 2016-17 Victorian Budget.
The new V/Line train timetables will be available for download from 28 November at ptv.vic.gov.au. All timetable updates, including connecting bus links, will be added to PTV’s Journey Planner and PTV App from 5 January 2017.
Quotes attributable to Member for Western Victoria, Gayle Tierney MP
“We’re introducing 12 more services on the Warrnambool line every week to get local passengers home safer and sooner.”
“These are the first new services on the Warrnambool line in more than 10 years – that’s despite the line running through the Premier and Transport Minister’s electorates under the former Liberal and National Government.”
“The new coach service will run to and from Portland and meet every new weekday train, meaning passengers beyond Warrnambool will also benefit from this investment.”