Govt plan for West: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Colleen Hartland says the government's transport plan for the West is "the good, the bad and the ugly".

THE GOOD - Rail upgrades and infrastructure.

THE BAD - Locking in car dependency.

THE UGLY  - The tunnel under Footscray must be stopped.

THE GOOD
Rail upgrades and infrastructure.  "I'm particularly keen on the rail upgrades that will get rid of the V/Line bottleneck.  I love the Tarneit line idea, but I'll be campaigning for it to be electrified – this is a golden opportunity to create public transport infrastructure ahead of development in the new suburbs.  I’m thrilled that electrifying the Melton line is on the drawing board, but I wish they’d do it sooner, and by 2017 it will be out of date – they’ll need to electrify to Bacchus Marsh."

"The rail tunnel from Footscray via Parkville to the Domain is ambitious, but I'll support it so long as it doesn't hoover up all the public transport budget."

"Newell's Paddock reserve in Footscray has been spared, extra services on the Sydenham and Werribee lines, more buses.  All good."

THE BAD
"Wherever houses are threatened, there's no detail in the plan.  This spreads fear through the community.  Brumby would be better off just telling the truth from the word go."

"There's no plan to extend the Werribee Line, no plan for tram extensions or routes like Footscray to Docklands.  There are dozens of smaller projects that could move people efficiently, and they could be done right now, because we need them now.  See the People Plan website*."  

"Caroline Spring station is planned to knock out a remnant grassland, one of the rarest ecosystems in the country.  It's also in the middle of a planned industrial area, miles from Caroline Springs.  I can’t imagine people will want to use it at night, and they won’t be able to cycle safely off-road to the station.  This locks people in to car dependency."

"Although I support the concept of the truck plan off-ramps, I'm concerned about the lack of detail.  I wouldn't want it to go through Stony Creek parkland, and destroy City of Maribyrnong's plans for a wind farm, and we don't know how it's going to affect Hyde Street and residential areas."

THE UGLY
"The tunnel under Footscray must be stopped.  I will do all I can to help the community campaign against it, and we will win.  The government also remains committed to the elevated road that will plough through residential streets in West Footscray and West Sunshine.  This is a nightmare.  Again, the lack of detail in the report is distressing residents whose houses are threatened."

See also:

We will oppose the road tunnel under Footscray

Report shows overwhelming opposition to Eddington tunnels

The Greens alternative transport vision - The People Plan

Public meeting: Wed 17 Dec 7:30pm - No Freeway 4 West Footscray