Arabic version: تصاعد الضغط على مواقف القطارات في ميلتون قبل انتخابات فيكتوريا
According to ABC News, train station parking and transport infrastructure in Melbourne’s fast-growing outer west are becoming election issues before Victoria’s November state poll. At Rockbank, a sealed 350-space car park is full by 7:15am on weekdays, with vehicles spilling onto nearby streets, including beside Leakes Road.
Mt Atkinson resident and data analyst Manish Baisoya said commuters must try their luck for a space or travel to Caroline Springs, adding 20 to 30 minutes on an already congested freeway. He said a station at Mt Atkinson was the clear solution because the train line runs past the suburb’s northern edge. A 2024 petition seeking the station was tabled in state parliament with nearly 5,000 signatures.
Melton City Council has listed three new stations and road upgrades among its priorities ahead of the election. It wants stations at Mt Atkinson and Thornhill Park on the Melton line, which uses diesel-powered regional trains, and at Calder Park on the Sunbury line. The proposed Calder Park station would sit in a 10-kilometre gap between Diggers Rest and Watergardens.
The council says its population is growing by about 6.61 per cent annually, compared with Melbourne’s average of 2 per cent. Deputy Mayor Phillip Zada said the municipality has about 241,000 residents and is expected to reach 456,000. Council data shows 86 per cent of the local workforce leaves the city for work each day, while Infrastructure Victoria last year recommended starting Melton line electrification and the two new stations in 2027.
The council is also seeking upgrades to the Western Highway, which it says carries more than 86,000 vehicles daily and has sections without sealed shoulders or public lighting. The federal government has committed $1 billion for the highway. The Victorian government said Melton line electrification was progressing through site investigations, while opposition transport infrastructure spokesman Evan Mulholland said the Coalition had not committed to funding the projects if elected.
