Liam McNally
Melton council will appeal to Public Transport Minister Ben Carroll for an “urgent review” of public transport in Diggers Rest.
At a meeting on Monday, May 29, councillor Justine Farrugia moved for council to write to Mr Carroll to highlight the lack of public transport services from the Diggers Rest community to the surrounding suburbs, and seek an urgent review and increase in the level of service to cater for the growing community.
Currently, the 438 bus service connects Diggers Rest to Sunbury and Moonee Ponds, and the state government has committed to a bus route that will address coverage gaps on Elizabeth Drive in Sunbury and on the western side of Diggers Rest.
However, details for when the new service will begin are yet to be finalised and there is currently no plan for a bus service to connect Diggers Rest and Melton.
Diggers Rest resident David O’Connor said while he is looking forward to the new Sunbury connection, a Melton service is something the community has been asking for for “many, many years”.
“It doesn’t make sense that we live in the municipality of Melton and we don’t have public transport access to the central area of the municipality in which we pay our rates,” he said.
Another resident, John Verdon, said the lack of connection poses challenges for people that need to access services for parents, youth, and aged care in the broader Melton area.
“Of the 14 members of the mother’s group in Frasers Rise, 11 are from Diggers Rest. If they’re sending them to Frasers Rise, why isn’t there a bus service?” he said.
A Department of Transport and Planning spokesperson said the department is “continuously reviewing the bus network in Melbourne’s rapidly growing north-west to identify where improvements can be made to make it easier for locals to travel”.
“We’re introducing this new direct link between Sunbury and Diggers Rest stations to deliver better connections to shops, schools, train stations and other amenities,” the spokesperson said.
Mr Carroll was contacted for comment.
