NEWS DESK
Commuters may face parking fees at station Continued from Page 1 While Mr Edbrooke said paid parking could be on the agenda he said “it’s very premature” to know whether fees for parking will be introduced but “it’s quite a possibility in my mind”. Mr Edbrooke said the myki card system could be used to pay for car parking but the taskforce had not yet discussed this option. The taskforce will formally meet each month. Frankston councillors met behind closed doors last Tuesday evening (10 March) to discuss council input into the station revamp. Deputy mayor Cr Glenn Aitken said “council is working to ensure it has a well-considered position regarding the redevelopment of the railway station precinct to present to the government taskforce”. Council’s draft interim submission will be available for community
feedback before an official submission is made to the taskforce. A public meeting will be held on 1 April before council’s formal submission is finalised. The previous Coalition government promised $33 million to upgrade the train station area before its November state election defeat. n The Frankston Station Precinct Taskforce has nine members. They are: Paul Edbrooke (Frankston Labor MP), Sandra Mayer (Frankston mayor), Maria Peters (Chisholm TAFE CEO), Anthony Silva (Victoria Police), Karin Hann (Frankston Business Network executive officer), Jasminder Singh (Public Transport Victoria), Rob Robson (Public Transport Victoria), Julian Lyngcoln (Department of Environment and Primary Industries), Geoff Oulton (Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure).
Looking tired: Frankston train station set for more than a facelift. Pic: Gary Sissons
On the level: Mordialloc MP Tim Richardson, left, and Premier Daniel Andrews at Mentone’s Balcombe Rd crossing last year and, above, a traffic monitoring device at Bentleigh train station. Picture: Gary Sissons
First signal of crossings removal plan Neil Walker neil@baysidenews.com.au THE first hints about where level crossings may be removed first along the Frankston line have emerged. Traffic measurement devices were installed around Bentleigh and McKinnon train stations last week. The state government has pledged to separate 50 road level crossings from rail tracks across Victoria with 20 to be separated within four years. Eleven Frankston line level crossings have been earmarked for removal. Before November’s state election Premier Daniel Andrews called level crossings Victoria’s “number one traffic nightmare”. “They hold up cars, they slow down trains, they take young lives, they’ve got to go,” the then opposition leader said. Last month the Labor state
government announced the formation of a Level Crossings Removal Authority to oversee the vast project to remove the 50 level crossings. While there has been no official confirmation of where the level crossings will be removed quickly along the Frankston line, the installation of the traffic measurement devices at Bentleigh and McKinnon would suggest those two stations may be high on the priority list. First term Labor MPs Paul Edbrooke (Frankston), Sonya Kilkenny (Carrum) and Tim Richardson (Mordialloc) will hope level crossings in their electorates will face the axe sooner rather than later before they face voters at the next state election. A Labor insider has told The Times the level crossing at Balcombe Rd, Mentone in the Mordialloc electorate is almost certain to be removed within four years. Public transport is seen as a highly
visible votes winner or loser along the Frankston line ‘bellwether’ seats which effectively hold the Spring St balance of power. VicRoads metropolitan projects project director Brendan Pauwels confirmed the Bentleigh and McKinnon station devices are part of the project to remove 50 level crossings. “VicRoads has started investigations at various level crossings to better understand traffic, congestion and community use,” he said. “As part of this work, we will be undertaking survey counts at a number of level crossings set for removal across Melbourne, including at Centre Rd, Bentleigh and McKinnon Rd, McKinnon.” An Andrews government spokesman said no Frankston line level crossings had yet been chosen for urgent removal since the government is “still in a pretty early stage of planning”.
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Frankston Times 16 March 2015