Read what you said about public transport two years after the Baillieu government was elected

Read what you said about public transport two years after the Baillieu government was elected. 

Nearly 1100 people responded to our survey about public transport. Read what they had to say about trains, buses and trams.


Half way through the Baillieu government’s term of office most respondents to our survey believe that public transport has not improved. Across the board, the most common response was that there was no change to overcrowding, frequency, amenity or overall services. While there were respondents that did report improvements, they were significantly outnumbered by those saying the service was somewhat worse or much worse.


We asked the respondents to nominate their best and worst decisions of the government regarding public transport, and to nominate the action that would attract their vote in the future.

The most frequently nominated best decisions included:
• The shuttle bus between Monash and Huntingdale
• Completing the South Morang line, South Morang train station
• Increasing the frequency of trains on the Frankston line 
• Increasing train frequency on some lines
• Establishment of PTV 
• The introduction of Protective Service Officers.

The most frequently nominated worst decisions included:
• Myki and removal of day tickets
• PSOs instead of more station staff
• Advocating the East-West road tunnel over public transport
• No comprehensive plan or commitment to public transport and cycling
• “Failed to articulate any real vision and failed to take any decisive action”
• Ignoring the needs of people living in outer suburbs - particularly for evening and weekend access  
• Lack of new bus services
• No decision on new rail lines, including Doncaster, Rowville and Tullamarine.

Among these responses, there is a strong perception that the government has not delivered on promises regarding public transport. Over 80% disagreed with the statement that the government had delivered on public transport promises.

There was a wide range of promises that respondents said would attract their vote in 2014. The following were the most frequently mentioned (in no particular order):
• Rail link to the airport
• Implementation of a program to grade separate all existing railway crossings
• Improved coordination between services
• Improved amenities on stations and surrounds
• Much more frequent, cheaper services
• More direct bus routes
• Better parking facilities in train stations
• Make all transport free for seniors as in UK and many places
• Greater frequency of all public transport, all night trains and trams
• Buses running later in the day and more frequently on weekends
• Commitment to build new rail lines, including Doncaster, Monash Rowville and Tullamarine.

Among our respondents there is a strong sentiment that the current government has done little to improve public transport and has failed to live up to pre-election promises.