By GEORGIA WESTGARTH
LIBERAL member for Bass, Brian Paynter is disappointed in the lengthy silence over the Cranbourne Pakenham Rail Corridor Project.
“The need for the line is unquestionable and I just want to know when they are going to commit and start construction,” Mr Paynter said.
The rail line is currently under review by the Andrews government after the Rail Transformation Consortium (RTC) submitted a new interim offer to the government several weeks ago.
The Andrews government have committed to removing 50 level crossings over the next eight years which will include 14 on the Cranbourne-Pakenham line.
“We need railway crossings removed as well so that’s a start,” Mr Paynter said.
“Main Street and McGregor Road are on that list but we need to get moving on those as well as the 50 they’ve promised,” he said.
“It’s just getting busier, we are a major growth corridor and will continue to grow, it’s very important with existing roads at capacity and it won’t improve with more estates thrown on those roads,” he said.
The project would add 25 new high capacity metro trains to operate exclusively on the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines which would increase the train services during peak periods to 18 per hour.
“It will take people off the roads, create jobs and the ability for people to get to work more efficiently and live happier lives without spending countless hours on a train system, let alone the roads,” Mr Paynter said.
The coalition government also planned to build a depot in outer east Pakenham to house and wash trains.
“The storage facility was also going to include a new sophisticated bio wash facility to clean the new trains and the depot in itself would have created 300 jobs in the construction phase and more jobs after that,” he said.
Mr Paynter is attending parliament this week and will be putting his questions to the Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan.
“We were never given a date for the RTC interim offer findings, but the demand for the upgrade is obvious,” Mr Paynter said.
