The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed to extra train services delivered with the full opening of the Metro Tunnel on 1st February.
The Metro Tunnel shifts the busy Sunbury and Cranbourne/Pakenham lines out of the City Loop, freeing up track space for more trains.
The initial timetable will include trains every few minutes at peak commuting times, a 10 minute frequency to Watergardens every day until at least 7:30pm, and out as far as Dandenong until midnight each night.
“More trains running every 10 minutes is just what Melbourne needs on its suburban rail network.”, said PTUA spokesperson Daniel Bowen.
“It will make trips between the CBD and suburbs easier for people on the upgraded lines.”
The PTUA has long called for more frequent train services across Melbourne, to boost capacity and – critically – cut waiting times. This has become more important with projects like the Metro tunnel, which will make it easier to get to and from destinations such as Parkville, but require more passengers to change trains along their journey.
“We know that long waits of 20, 30, 40 minutes for a train are a huge deterrent to more people using the rail system”, said Mr Bowen.
“This new timetable is a great first step towards the train network Melbourne needs. But it must not be the last step.
“The Metro tunnel adds a huge amount of capacity to the network. The State Government must continue to fund more train services more often, right across the network, all day, every day, to bring Melbourne up to scratch with other cities of its size.
“More frequent public transport is the key to getting more Melburnians out of their cars, and out of the traffic, and to keep our city moving.”