Public transport push for Trentham

Only two buses stop at Trentham each day at 7.56am and 5.46pm, meaning Mr Morris must wait for hours after travelling to Woodend for work or a doctor’s appointment. 

“I have to catch the morning bus and hang around for five hours to get the night bus home,” he said.

“A third service would be a reliable mode of transport for a lot of people to get to medical appointments and shopping and work. It is terrible that we have only two a day.

“It holds people back if there are not enough services.”

A petition of around 180 signatures calling for a third bus service was presented to Hepburn Shire Council, MP Mary-Anne Thomas and parliamentary secretary for public transport Roz Spence earlier this year. A response to the petition requesting further data has lead to the creation of a community survey.

Trentham resident Helen Macdonald said the survey would be a strong indication of the town’s needs. 

“A wide range of ages are responding to the survey,” she said. 

“We are getting quite an interesting mix of people respond who use the bus to get to work and people who want to use the bus to get to other centres for shopping and medical appointments. A lot of people find they are having to use their cars rather than stand around for hours waiting for the next bus.

“As Trentham grows, we are also starting to have people who want to come here, but there are only two buses. It is not great for a growing population. Commuters are finding they can’t get to the city in time for work and there are narrow windows to do things such as getting to appointments. 

“Some people may not have a choice whether to take public transport. It’s a big problem for the elderly.  And lots of people want to use public transport rather than cars because it is more environmentally friendly.”

The community survey can be accessed both in hard copy and online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TrenthamBus