More support needed for Seymour train line
I largely agree with the recent Letter to the Editor about Seymour Line problems. As a fairly recent resident of three to four years even I can see the enormous population growth along the entire corridor; the frequency and number of cars on the services is woefully under what it should be.
Wallan and Donnybrook, for example, as the two closest V/line stations to Melbourne, are roughly the same as Tarneit and Wyndham Vale in proximity and development. The level of train service feels like they’re catering for a barebones community with no ties to the city.
I will slightly disagree with the original letter about car parks and waiting rooms—these need to be supported alongside train schedule. Most of the time, these are closed, so you can’t even use the basic facilities. It’s all well and good to have well-equipped trains, but if the train is overcrowded you still can’t use what you need, and that’s if you’re in good health. Anyone with special needs or having a bad day is out of luck – so the staffing at the stations also needs to improve.
Car parks are perhaps secondary. But looking forward it’s easy to see how it would turn into an issue if the current growth continues, and the summary underinvestment creates a much bigger compound problem that could be avoided with a long-term vision for the area in place of band-aids.
Alexei Gudimenko
Use a pencil to make changes
As a former resident of Kilmore and member of the Wallan/Kilmore Bypass Group, I can understand the frustration of the Seymour Train Line Action Group, which has been fighting for 10 years to get more carriages on the Seymour line. I thought that Jaclyn Symes said a few years ago that the Victorian Government had added another carriage to the Seymour line. Perhaps she meant the extra carriage would be sitting in the maintenance yards or depots and not actually connected to the other carriages? It’s a pity that Jaclyn and the rest of the Allan Government never actually use the public transport system, except of course when there is a media release or photo opportunity.
Why is the Allan Government spending an astronomical amount of money on the SRL when we have a train line going from Frankston to Werribee that is above ground?
We will never have decent roads in Victoria or extra carriages on the Seymour line when all the money and increased fire services levy will be going into this financial Black Hole of a Surburban Rail Loop.
The only way to get more carriages on the Seymour line is by using a pencil at the polling booths in November 2026 and putting Labor last on the ballot paper.
Brian Mawhinney,
Traralgon
Attempted fraud by NBN pretenders
We recently had our NBN service improved by legitimate NBN workers. This required a number of home visits and phone calls.
We then had a phone call supposedly from NBN claiming that our internet speed was slow and unstable and offering to fix it as the genuine NBN employees had recently done and then directing us to a fraudulent Telstra number.
In doing so, the fraudsters obtained access to our computer and claimed that we were due for a refund from Telstra for persistent slow service.
We then had a message from Bendigo Bank freezing our online access to our account and saying that an attempt had been made to draw a large amount from it.
Many thanks to Bendigo Bank and Commonwealth Bank for their vigilance and for stopping a fraudulent withdrawal.
It would appear that our NBN repairers were hacked by criminals. We do hope that this warning will help others who have calls from people identifying themselves as being from NBN.
Name and address supplied
