Heidelberg Leader: Banyule Council hosts Metropolitan Transport Forum with Ivanhoe electorate candidates Anthony Carbines, Carl Ziebell and Paul Kennedy. Laura Armitage. 13 August 2014
Banyule Mayor Craig Langdon hosted last night’s forum. Picture: Kylie Else
More than 120 people heard how Ivanhoe state election candidates’ plans to fix road and rail issues at Banyule’s Metropolitan Transport Forum last night.
Ivanhoe state Labor MP Anthony Carbines, Liberal candidate Carl Ziebell and Greens candidate Paul Kennedy outlaid their transport policies while discussing Ivanhoe-related issues at The Centre Ivanhoe.
The night’s hot topics included trucks on Rosanna Rd, Hurstbridge railway line woes and a lack of public transport.
The forum — the first of 14 forums to be held across Melbourne — was hosted by Banyule’s Mayor Craig Langdon.
Mr Ziebell said the Coalition Government would build the East West Link, Melbourne Rail Link, Airport Link, and “reduce” dozens of level crossings.
But Mr Carbines said Labor would build Melbourne Metro to deliver an extra three Hurstbridge railway line trains in morning peak times and double the city loop’s capacity.
Mr Kennedy said the Greens would create a better public transport system, including more trams and buses and railway lines to Melbourne Airport, Rowville and Doncaster.
Residents, including Mario Panaccio, asked candidates for real solutions on the chaos trucks were causing along Rosanna Rd.
Mr Ziebell said the East West Link would keep trucks on the freeway system.
Ivanhoe state Labor candidate Anthony Carbines.
Mr Carbines said he supported a Rosanna Rd truck curfew and promoting better enforcement from VicRoads.
He assured voters Labor would release its plan for a solution in the coming weeks.
Mr Kennedy said other than better public transport solutions, VicRoads should be forced to police the truck curfew.
“The key to remember is that VicRoads is our servant not our master … it would be an easy curfew to implement,” Mr Kennedy said.
Ivanhoe state Greens candidate Paul Kennedy.
La Trobe University Student Union President Rose Steele asked candidates to prioritise students in the north.
Ms Steele said the State Government rejected a two-year university campaign for a shuttle bus service from Macleod Station to Bundoora.
“Bus services to Latrobe have always been pretty shocking, but we’ve had 175 weekly services cut in the last few weeks,” Ms Steele said.
Cr Langdon announced Banyule Council and VicRoads had been discussing implementing a 40km/h speed limit reduction in areas around Burgundy St, including Banksia to Darebin and past the Austin Hospital.
The next Metropolitan Transport Forum — which aims to get short, medium and long term transport commitments from candidates — will be held at Melbourne Town Hall tomorrow night.
The forums are supported by Leader Community Newspapers.
To find a forum near you, go to the MTF website here.
