A Wyndham councillor’s call for more parking spots at Tarneit station has been labelled “ridiculous” by one of his colleagues.
Cr Intaj Khan said he would launch a petition next month calling on the state government to double the number of parking spots at the station.
Tarneit station, the busiest on the Regional Rail Link network after Southern Cross, has 1000 parking spots.
“I will be advocating the state government facilitate more parking in this growing area to decrease any health and safety risks the shortage of parking may have created,” Cr Khan said.
But fellow councillor Glenn Goodfellow, who holds the council’s portfolio for transport, said calling for more carparks was “short-sighted”.
“Council successfully advocated for 400 spots at Tarneit station to be increased to 1000 … now people are calling for it to be doubled to 2000. Where is the line?” he said.
“We need to encourage a holistic network that works together, encouraging people to use buses or bikes to get to the station and leave their cars at home.”
Cr Goodfellow said Wyndham’s population had grown, so more stations were also needed, which would result in fewer drivers using Tarneit.
“Instead of calling for more parking, we should be calling for the fast-tracking of more stations,” he said.
A state government network development plan identifies a station on Davis Road in Tarneit West as one of several earmarked for Wyndham, along with Black Forest Road in Wyndham Vale, Sayers Road, Tarneit and Truganina.
State public transport minister Jacinta Allan agreed that there had to be a holistic approach to public transport in Wyndham.
“Regional Rail Link delivered the new station at Tarneit and built it one of the biggest carparks in Victoria,” she said.
“There is also extensive bike parking at the station, and last year we introduced more frequent, direct and co-ordinated bus services to Tarneit Station with the introduction of the new Wyndham bus network.
“In the long term, new stations are planned for Wyndham to make it quicker and easier to get the train.”
