ALL ABOARD FOR BETTER TRAIN SERVICES

State Parliament has been told that the people of Wagga and surrounds are being let down by train services that fail to meet their needs. 

In a Private Member’s Statement to the Legislative Assembly this week, the Member for Wagga, Dr Joe McGirr, called on the government to introduce more rail services to Wagga when new trains and carriages are brought into service. 

The statement was informed by Dr McGirr’s recent survey of local people that found unsuitable travel times were a major deterrent to travellers. 

The survey data from 697 respondents revealed: 

  • A majority (61 per cent) rarely use trains between Wagga and Sydney/Melbourne 

  • About 15 per cent never use those trains 

  • But more than 80 per cent would use the trains if timetables were more convenient 

The survey also revealed mornings as preferred arrival and departure times: 

  • More than 82 per cent of respondents nominated 6am-12pm as preferred departure time from Wagga to Sydney 

  • 62 per cent nominated 6am-12pm as preferred departure time from Sydney to Wagga 

  • More than 76 per cent preferred 6am-12pm departure time from Wagga to Melbourne 

  • 62 per cent preferred 6am-12pm departure time from Melbourne to Wagga 

Afternoon arrival and departure times (12pm-5pm) on all services were the second choice of respondents, favoured by between 35 and 53 per cent of respondents. 

Other findings included concerns surrounding reliability (late trains), safety issues late at night, parking shortages around the Wagga station, inadequate alignment with V-Line services from Albury and a lack of on-board amenities. 

Dr McGirr told parliament that Wagga was served by four trains a day in the 1970s and 80’s, and even as far back as the early days of steam trains, but today, there were only two trains per day. 

He said extra services should be provided to give travellers new options at a time of rising fuel prices amid a cost-of-living crisis. 

“These findings reinforce what many regional travellers have been saying for years,” he said. 

“Train services should be scheduled around the needs of all passengers, not just those at either end of the journey. 

“If we could do it in the time of Queen Victoria's reign and again in the pre-internet days of the '70s, we should be able to do it today.” 

Full survey results can be found at https://joemcgirr.com.au/surveys

Joe McGirr