The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) and Templestowe Road Reference Panel have joined forces to demand the State Government provide funding for a new bus service along Templestowe Road joining Heidelberg Station and The Pines. This important Manningham arterial road, the “missing link” in Manningham’s transport network, is one of the few without an adequate public transport service and links two of the government’s “Principal Activity Centres” outlined in Melbourne 2030.
“Bus services along Templestowe Road are amongst the worst in Manningham, with only a single-directional infrequent bus route operating on weekdays during shopping hours (route 283). The only solution is for a new bus route to operate from The Pines to Heidelberg operating half-hourly, seven days a week connecting shopping and leisure activities with residents homes,” PTUA spokesman Christopher Trikilis said.
“This new bus route is desperately required to give the people of Manningham a greater choice in travel by giving people along Templestowe Road and Reynolds Road a bus service that is both usable and reliable and would connect with trains at Heidelberg”, said Mr. Trikilis. “Melbourne 2030 sets out to link all Principal Activity Centres by public transport, and not immediately installing a frequent bus between the two centres goes against the Government’s own planning strategy and authority. It is particularly important for The Pines to be linked to other centres as it is extremely isolated from all other activity centres — which are often linked by train or bus.”
“Transport Minister Peter Batchelor chooses to ignore the work that the community is doing advocating the basic safety of pedestrians and vehicles, and the necessary improvements to public transport that are required in the area”, said Templestowe Road spokesman Mervyn Hayman-Danker. “Residents in the vicinity of Templestowe Road would be delighted to finally have a proper bus service that we could use 7 days a week.”
“A proper bus route along Templestowe Road would also require proper pedestrian crossings and bus stops to be installed on the road making it safe for the whole community. It is time for the Transport Minister to stop avoiding the issues and provide funding to Templestowe Road for its immediate upgrade before another terrible fatality occurs,” concluded Mr. Hayman-Danker.