Westfield Knox tram: Liberal Nick Wakeling to push for Route 75 extension
A veteran MP has vowed to put a tram extension to Westfield Knox back on the agenda as he contests a new seat at the state election.
Outer East
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A veteran Liberal MP has vowed to reignite the push to bring a tram to Westfield Knox as he looks to stay in state parliament beyond this year.
Ferntree Gully MP Nick Wakeling has confirmed he will be the Liberals’ candidate for the seat of Bayswater at November’s state election.
He will face off against sitting Labor MP Jackson Taylor, who will seek a second term after being elected by less than 400 votes in 2018.
Mr Wakeling, first elected in 2006, is contesting Bayswater after the Ferntree Gully seat was abolished by the VEC in a boundary redistribution last year.
The redistribution has turned Bayswater into a marginal Liberal seat with a swing of about one per cent to the party.
Mr Wakeling said extending the Route 75 tram from Vermont South along Burwood Highway to Westfield Knox would be an issue he would draw attention to in his campaign.
He claimed Labor, then in opposition, first promised the extension in 1999 and had “ignored the (public transport) needs of Knox residents”.
The government instead extended the route from Burwood East to Vermont South shopping centre in 2005, with a shuttle bus to take passengers along the rest of Burwood Highway to Westfield Knox.
“They (Labor) have been unwilling to revisit the issue and it hasn’t gone away … the Knox tram is clearly something that needs to be considered,” Mr Wakeling said.
“There is a clear need for this to occur, I’ve certainly been pushing for this in the past, and I will continue to advocate for improved services in our community.”
Mr Taylor advocated for the Route 75 tram extension while serving as a Knox councillor in mid-2018, but has been quiet on the topic since entering state parliament.
He said the tram extension remained an option and “has been discussed for some time”.
“I’ll continue to have discussions within government to improve and provide more efficient transport options, whether it be trams, trains or buses,” he said.
Mr Taylor said Knox residents would also benefit from the government’s planned Suburban Rail Loop, which the opposition wanted to scrap.
The first stage of the SRL is set to be finished by 2035.
Polls on Knox Leader and Whitehorse Leader’s Facebook pages in December received overwhelming support for extending the tram to Westfield Knox.
Meanwhile, Boroondara councillor and former mayor Cynthia Watson has been confirmed as the Liberals’ candidate for the seat of Ringwood at November’s poll.
She is likely to face off against Burwood state Labor MP Will Fowles, whose seat is being abolished.
Mr Fowles announced in December he would seek Labor preselection for Ringwood, replacing sitting MP Dustin Halse who is not seeking re-election.
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