Moonee Valley asks ‘What about the West?’
Moonee Valley City Council is seeking answers on future western suburbs public transport infrastructure following yesterday’s announcement regarding the suburban rail loop business case for the Eastern and Northern Suburbs.
With the Western Link of the Suburban Rail Loop now pushed out to after 2050, Moonee Valley is now urging the Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Jacinta Allan, to fast track progress for a station at Airport West – the Western Gateway station.
Council has been advocating for a train station in Airport West, which Moonee Valley Mayor Cr Cam Nation said has been promised to residents for more than 40 years.
“The Moonee Valley community in Airport West, Keilor East and surrounds have been patiently waiting for a train station. They are growing communities and need the public transport to service them,” Mayor Nation said.
“Residents of these suburbs are currently catching trams or are forced to drive with no rail option to the City or airport for work.”
With the Airport Rail Link and Suburban Rail Loop set to run through Moonee Valley without stopping, Council is concerned local residents and businesses will see all the infrastructure impacts – without any of the benefits.
“So we now have billions of dollars of proposed railway infrastructure running right past our municipality, but no capacity for our residents to board either of these services.”
“It is a significant rail transport black hole, and it’s actually just insulting to our residents that such a significant investment is being made on our doorstep but our residents will still be confined to an inferior bus network or their cars for at least the next four decades.”
Mayor Nation called on the local Member of Parliament, Ben Carroll, to assist in the delivery of the station.
“We will continue to work with our local member, who is also the Minister for Public Transport, to deliver a train station in his electorate of Niddrie – one of the few electorates in metropolitan Melbourne without a railway station.”
“They’ve only been waiting 40 years. It cannot be another 40 more.”
Mayor Nation also called on the Government to hold an urgent suburban rail transport summit where all the city’s infrastructure needs could be seriously and equally considered – including the needs of our growing North-West.
“Patience for a station is wearing thin and it’s time to fill the rail transport black hole in Melbourne’s North-West.”
Council’s advocacy has seen close to 1,000 submissions in support of a Western Gateway Station serving the Airport West and Keilor East communities.
This week Mayor Nation will be inviting Mayoral colleagues from neighbouring municipalities to join him in an urgent meeting to discuss these transport issues.