State election 2018: Liberals pledge daytime PSOs for Box Hill station

Box Hill’s overcrowded railway station will be manned by Protective Service Officers during the day — as well as in the evening — if the Coalition is elected to government this month.

Box Hill railway station during peaks hour. Picture: David Crosling

Box Hill’s overcrowded railway station will be manned by Protective Service Officers during the day — as well as in the evening — if the Coalition is elected this month.

Box Hill state Liberal MP Robert Clark has promised the busy station would be one of up to 20 stations to get PSOs on duty from 10am, in addition to their night patrols.

Mr Clark said the officers would help deter offenders and work with police to manage crime around the Box Hill station precinct.

“Daytime PSOs will help ensure travellers can be safer and feel safer at Box Hill station,” he said.

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Box Hill station’s surrounding areas have in the past been known as hot spots for drug dealing and other offences.

The pedestrian underpass to the station from Station St was last year identified as one of the top 10 places pedestrians felt unsafe in Melbourne in a WalkSpot survey.

Box Hill railway station during peak hour. Picture: David Crosling

Whitehorse Leader ran a poll on Facebook last week, asking if the station should have daytime PSOs without referencing political parties.

Two hundred and twenty people voted in favour, with just 29 against the idea.

One respondent, Meg Moscato, wrote: “If the trains are operating then there should be PSOs.”

Several people responded PSOs should work at the station in the daytime and additional officers should be stationed at Box Hill’s bus terminal.

PSOs patrol railway stations from 6pm until the last train.

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The Labor Government has also just introduced PSOs to rove travelling trains in the evening.

The officers work with Victoria Police, and are technically stationed at train stations, but have the capacity to patrol the wider vicinity. They have the power to search people for illegal items such as weapons and drugs.

Labor spokesman Nathan Motton said the Liberals could not be trusted with law and order issues.

“We’ve already funded more PSOs and expanded their powers so they can patrol a greater number of areas across the state,’’ he said.