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Labor sleight of hand sends regional trains funds to Melbourne

Labor redirecting train budgets from regional Victoria to metro trains project.

By news@gippsland - 2nd June 2021 - Back to News

The Andrews Labor Government has shunted V/Line train travellers again, with the 2021-22 State Budget papers showing Labor is ripping millions of dollars earmarked for country trains to plug cost overruns in metropolitan Melbourne.

Government has redirected budget for programs for country trains to plug cost overruns in metropolitan Melbourne

Redirecting from programs

More than $14 million has been redirected from programs for new V/Locity trains for regional Victoria, carriages and network development. The money has instead been put into the High Capacity Metro Trains project in metropolitan Melbourne.

Borrowing and taxing billions

Shadow Minister for Regional Public Transport Steph Ryan said, "Country train travellers have again gone to the bottom of Labor’s priority list. The government is borrowing and taxing billions of dollars to plug cost blowouts on major projects in Melbourne.

Needing plan to fix country train services

Ms Ryan also said, "Meanwhile regional train passengers are being robbed of the few dollars that were allocated to V/Line to buy new trains. We needed a plan to fix Victoria’s failing country train services but instead all this budget gave us was more taxes, more debt and fewer jobs."

Pictures from Rail Operations of Australia Facebook page.

Source: www.gippsland.com

Published by: news@gippsland.com