Commuters flock to Tarneit station

Tarneit’s new train station is a hit with commuters, ranking it the second-busiest V/Line station in the state after Southern Cross.

V/Line spokeswoman Ebony Jordan said that since the station opened in June when the Regional Rail Link was fully activated, there had been no shortage of patrons on the line.

“Tarneit is now the most popular station on the V/Line network, apart from Southern Cross,” she said. “Our figures show that, on average, 2300 customers board our trains at Tarneit station on weekdays.”

On average, 1300 people boarded from Wyndham Vale on a typical weekday, which also put it in the top 10 of V/Line’s most popular stations, the spokeswoman added.

The rapid growth in train patronage has led to timetable adjustments.

At Wyndham Vale station, this means:

• The 7.16am from Wyndham Vale will depart three minutes earlier, stopping at Ardeer instead of Deer Park. It is scheduled to arrive at Southern Cross one minute later than previously.

• Two Wyndham Vale morning peak services will have adjusted journey times – with the 7.36am leaving a minute earlier, and arriving three minutes later, at 8.14am. The 7.55am will now depart at 7.54am and arrive at Southern Cross at 8.34am.

Services on the Werribee line achieved a 95 per cent punctuality rate during December last year – the line’s best monthly result since 2005.

Werribee MP Tim Pallas said the line had achieved punctuality above 90 per cent for seven consecutive months.

“This is the best punctuality result on the Werribee line in over a decade and we expect it to be maintained,” he said.

“We’re getting more people to work and home quicker so they can spend more quality time with their families.”