Transport Minister Terry Mulder blasts Labor’s Mernda rail announcement

PUBLIC Transport Minister Terry Mulder has poured cold water on the Labor Party’s Mernda rail extension announcement.

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PUBLIC Transport Minister Terry Mulder has poured cold water on the Labor Party’s Mernda rail extension announcement.

Mr Mulder called a snap press conference in the city at noon today, sparking speculation the Liberal Government would match Labor’s commitment to extend the railway line to Mernda if elected in November.

Instead, he took aim at Opposition leader Daniel Andrews, referring to a busway plan mooted by the former Brumby Government which was later scrapped by the Liberal party after it won office.

“I’m not here to make an announcement. I don’t think anyone believes or trusts Daniel Andrews,” Mr Mulder said.

“In the dying days of the last election they came out with a busway.

“They said they would concrete over the rail reserve and run buses along it.

“I would suggest this plan still sits in Labor’s bottom draw.

“How could anyone possibly trust Daniel Andrews or Labor when clearly there was a plan (busway) prior to the last state election?”

State Transport Minister Terry Mulder. Picture: Lawrence Pinder

Mr Mulder said the Liberal Party was awaiting Public Transport Victoria (PTV) to finish costings for the Mernda rail extension before announcing its policy.

“Daniel’s announcement was very scant in terms of details. We want to make sure what the scope of it is and what the cost of it is,” Mr Mulder said.

“PTV has identified the rail extension to Mernda in the network development plan.

“They have been doing planning for Mernda and other projects around the state. They have had discussions with council on this particular project (Mernda).

“Planning works have to be completed.

“You have to know exactly what the cost of the project is. We’ll do it properly, go through the processes and once we’ve got that information from PTV, we will be in a better position to give an announcement.

“To come out and say we’ll build it smells of the regional rail link project we inherited from the former Labor government.

“Labor claimed it was fully funded. There was no money for trains and no money for signals.”

- with Sandro Olivo