Mr Pallas (Tarneit) — I rise to speak about the Get Wyndham  Moving campaign, which aims to tackle congestion issues across road,  rail  and  bus transport in Wyndham  and  highlight  the  need   for   adequate   investment   in  transport infrastructure.  As I have mentioned many times in this chamber, Wyndham is  the fastest growing  municipality  in  Australia, with a growth rate of around 8 per cent  every year, and last year  it had about 13 000  new residents. This growth has  put  a huge  strain  on the community’s  transport  system. Across Tarneit, Werribee and Hoppers Crossing traffic volumes  increased on average by a massive 17 per cent in 2013. Recently released Public Transport Victoria statistics show Werribee trains are  right  up  there  as  the  most  overcrowded  trains in the metropolitan train network across peak times. Bus routes in  Wyndham travel more than twice as far as most of the direct routes, making them the most inefficient in Melbourne.

While this  campaign originated within the council, the local community has been the real  driver behind  it. As  part of the campaign, the council has recruited transport champions — local residents who each use different types of transport and come from a  range of backgrounds. These champions have highlighted the need for the metropolitan rail link,  which  would  allow for a threefold increase in the number  of trains to and from Wyndham in peak hour,  grade separations and a duplication  of  arterial  roads at capacity, as well as an  increase  in  train services. The local community deserves better, and through this campaign it  has shown it is not afraid to advocate for better either.