Save the Gippsland Line

Dear Daniel Andrews,

We the citizens and people of Gippsland do not agree with the recommendation that regional train services be terminated at Pakenham and our vulnerable, disabled and elderly be forced to change trains on their journey to Melbourne. Many of these people are the disadvantaged of our community, often seeking medical assistance & appointments in metropolitan medical centres that are not available in our region.

This change would also affect the bike tourists and young families who would also have difficulty with young children, prams and bikes changing trains to and from crowded metropolitan rail. The Gippsland area is being promoted as a great tourist region with economic benefits and as a way of overcoming the demise of the coal and timber mill industry and continual rail service is a must for this to succeed.

Other frequent users of the system are our people who work in the metropolitan centres and choose to live in the regional and rural areas here for the lifestyle and community opportunities that we have. The current system is unreliable and often runs late, this additional transfer and changeover time will add to the already overly long trip and decrease the reliability of the transport system to them, not to mention the additional time needed to be added to the start of the trip, getting up earlier, the changes in timetables that will be required etc.

We understand that the cost of upgrading the metropolitan system is a burden, but can Gippsland at least have the same standard as the other Victorian regions, that our Melbourne trains actually go to Melbourne, as they now do.

The Federal Minister for Infrastructure who is a resident here has promised his support in working with the state government to help sort the congestion problem.

We ask that you do not accept this part of the report from the citizens jury on face value and seek further consultation with the impacted communities and federal counterparts as you work towards an upgrading of the lines to at least the standard that the other Victorian Regions rail systems already have.

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Showing 949 reactions

Tegan Spencer signed via Katrina Spencer 2016-08-08 10:47:42 +1000
Terese Bartlett signed 2016-08-08 10:45:33 +1000

Not acceptable!!!!
Katrina Spencer posted about this on Facebook 2016-08-08 10:36:32 +1000
A Melbourne train should go to Melbourne, why does the Gippsland regional line get substandard service recommended?
Matt Veenstra signed 2016-08-08 10:34:45 +1000

If you ask me and many other Gippslanders, Vline services shouldn’t stop at Pakenham anyway.
Keyanna Hood signed 2016-08-08 10:32:11 +1000
Christine McCarthy signed 2016-08-08 10:31:21 +1000

Please consider those amongst us who are disabled, chronically ill and the older generation ( who will shortly become the majority )

Those of us who can barely make the train trip, too ill to drive, no one to drive us, and must attend Medical Appointments in the City. Making a changeover in Pakenham, waiting around, in pain, feeling so ill, for another available train is madness and cruel…please DO NOT CONSIDER this as an option!
Monique Calabro posted about this on Facebook 2016-08-08 10:31:10 +1000
They want to stop the Bairnsdale and Gippy trains at Pakenham and make us get on their shitty trains!!
Benazir Yusuf signed 2016-08-08 10:30:42 +1000

Vline has literally been my home and still is when we come down.
Kylie Summers signed 2016-08-08 10:29:54 +1000
Monique Calabro signed 2016-08-08 10:29:42 +1000

We have the same rights as Melbourne people! Those Pakenham trains are overcrowded people movers, we pay for the use of those trains, don’t cut them off because you’re jealous you don’t have the luxury of a seat and a food cart!

I, like many others have to use the train for medical reasons to get to and from melbourne and having the luxury of first class and a human as a conductor has helped me many times when I’m in discomfort and looking for a distraction! Not all of us can afford to live in the city to have access to our doctors!
Donna Nash signed 2016-08-08 10:27:23 +1000

Country people need this service
Shannan Cockayne signed 2016-08-08 10:25:13 +1000
Teresa Hansen signed 2016-08-08 10:22:32 +1000
Jeffrey Sewell signed 2016-08-08 10:21:59 +1000

jeffrey sewell
Maree Hoy signed 2016-08-08 10:21:49 +1000
Andrew Fleiner signed 2016-08-08 10:14:51 +1000
Granny Chad posted about this on Facebook 2016-08-08 10:12:35 +1000
A Melbourne train should go to Melbourne, why does the Gippsland regional line get substandard service recommended?
Lyn Chadwick signed 2016-08-08 10:11:41 +1000
David Turnbull signed 2016-08-08 10:09:17 +1000

David Turnbull
Pam Lock signed 2016-08-08 10:09:02 +1000
Brenda McGowan signed 2016-08-08 10:08:30 +1000

I use Gippsland trains regularly for various reasons and would be totally lost without the service all the way through to Southern Cross station; quite often with luggage and many times early in the morning requiring the toilet service. We are trying to keep vehicles off the road and the car parking fees are phenomenal in Melbourne. Other Victorian regions have a designated line. Why is it that Gippsland is always last on the agenda for any positive progress?
Sylvia Stynda signed via Judy Davies 2016-08-08 10:06:53 +1000
Peter Chown signed 2016-08-08 10:01:43 +1000

Only place I’ve seen where the government seems intent on polarizing everything in the major cities at the expense of any regional or rural development.
Lyndsay Shanahan signed 2016-08-08 10:01:00 +1000
Kate Woodberry signed 2016-08-08 10:00:42 +1000
Andrea Petrie signed 2016-08-08 10:00:03 +1000

I can’t believe this is being considered when the Pakenham line is already one of the most congested Melbourne lines with no scope to increase capacity. Surely the Gippsland services into the city only decreases the burden on the metro services? In addition, adding extra carriages (6 from the current 3) would allow people form Pakenham, Berwick and perhaps Dandenong to take advantage of the service as was done in the past. This would assist to ease congestion further and provide added value to the Gippsland service without disrupting existing timetables.

Working in the city from Warragul and surrounds is already difficult and putting this idea into effect is going to have the immediate result of many workers having to leave their employment in the city as the extra time required to use the metro service is not sustainable. This idea was obviously put forward by some bureaucrat who has no actual experience with using the Gippsland services because it does not represent reality. Many people have moved to the area on the premise of the fast convenient rail transport and to undermine it in this way is a horrendous breach of faith. This is going to greatly hurt our regional economies if it goes through. Shame on you.
Lachlan Nikolajew signed 2016-08-08 09:57:00 +1000
Ingrid Barkei signed 2016-08-08 09:47:55 +1000
Sharon Davies signed 2016-08-08 09:46:36 +1000

The people in power, do not live here. So how can they make a decision that would ultimately cost people their lively hoods, as well as treatments that many can’t access from their home town.
Angus McKay signed 2016-08-08 09:44:32 +1000