Liam McNally
With the Melton electorate shaping up as a key battleground for the major parties this state election and persistent advocacy by Melton council, more investment has been promised for the region than ever before.
Both major parties have committed to delivering several key projects across the city and made promises to deliver strong outcomes for Melton residents.
The new commitments include:
• A $900 million roads commitment by the Liberal Party including upgrades to the Western Highway, and duplicating the Melton Highway and Taylors Road
• A $650 million commitment by the Labor Party to extend the train platforms on the Melton line to accommodate nine-carriage VLocity trains, for increased capacity and frequency
• A new TAFE in Cobblebank focusing on construction skills if Labor wins
• Both major parties have committed to deliver a new Melton Hospital
Melton Mayor Lara Carli said council listened to residents and advocated for what is important to them.
“As a result, our advocacy has delivered more commitments than ever for our community,” she said.
“We welcome the commitments made by the major parties and look forward to seeing these projects make the City of Melton more liveable. We want this to be a place with easy access to health, education, jobs, and a healthy lifestyle.
“I look forward to working with the state government following the election to deliver the key projects they’ve committed to.”
Liberal candidate for Melton Graham Watt said Labor has “only now” announced so much for the electorate “due to their fear of losing the seat”.
“I will be a local advocate who will continuously fight and deliver for the people of Melton if elected at this election,” he said.
Melton MP Steve McGhie said Labor was doing “what matters for Melton”.
“Only Labor will back Melbourne’s west and deliver the essential schools, hospital, road and rail projects the community needs,” he said.
A list of announcements made by the major parties for Melton is available on council’s website
Details: melton.vic.gov.au/stateelection