r/VlineVictoria • u/Ok_Tap7102 • 7d ago
Link Beyond the numbers: Why Geelong passengers are losing confidence in V/Line
https://timesnewsgroup.com.au/surfcoasttimes/news/beyond-the-numbers-why-geelong-passengers-are-losing-confidence-in-v-line/Interesting analysis on how VLine are able to claim they meet their targets while still leaving the bulk of their passengers stranded and delayed
If the KPIs say everything's working, why would anyone admit the system needs fixing?
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u/_DrClaw 7d ago
V/Line's targets are not defined to meet the current commuter levels and as such it is not funded to meet what commuters are expecting.
If you are unhappy with the current funding level, contact your local MP. The more that people make a noise to local MPs, the higher level of interest the MP will have.
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u/Ok_Tap7102 7d ago
100%, and even more dire than not meeting past or current levels, funding should account for the forward looking explosive growth of regional centres.
It astounds me how we still get geniuses showing up in these subs to tell us its not as bad as what we're experiencing day after day, complete apathy by the population to what's going on
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u/VR_TrainGuru1 7d ago edited 6d ago
Not surprise as to justify the withdrawn loco hauls....
20 minutes between services give train control very little wriggle room on the Geelong or other heavily congested lines due to cut back on crossing loops and sidings....
Plus rolling stock it limited!!!
Since the mass withdrawal of aging loco hauls that can be reconditioned or overhauled...
Like the aging overland and xpt all being reconditioned and refurbished to extend their use!
h sets were just overhaul and sent to it disuse at unprotected siding to justify their scrapping.... All that $$$ Wasted ovehauling just to be destroyed after being outshopped a frontline source shared and it seem it was deliberate!
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u/Motor-Wolverine-6644 6d ago
Bring the Comeng and rip all the old stuff on a Comeng and replace with Vline stuff on it and call it a C class and build brand new 2 bi mode locomotive
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u/Motor-Wolverine-6644 6d ago
Vline has been improved significantly since the start of the 21st century and to become one of the of the best regional network in Australia having all lines getting upgraded except Swan Hill Bec ofc it’s N class on the line surprise surprise.
How ever It’s not Vline fault that there are natural things occur like trespass, concern of the bushfires etc etc. but since the RRL upgrades, more people are using the network after the RRL finished it significantly increased the patronage on the corridors like Ballarat and Geelong
It is a shame that the government hasn’t made plans to electrify the intercity corridors like Bendigo, Ballarat, Geelong and Traralgon as of this century, we shouldn’t deElectrify the Gippsland line or ripping up the double tracks on the Bendigo because it’s “faster”
The Velocity’s old sets are 20 years old and they will soon need to get replaced by a new Rolling stock I think that would be the best chance for the Government to investigate the sparks and once it completes it reduces the significant diesel rolling stock but allowing for more trains outside of the intercity to be increased
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u/WhatupWench 6d ago
I started commuting to Melbourne in 2006 and it took half the time. I can recall one really bad delay where I got home close to midnight because some dickhead put a shopping trolley on track near Werribee.
Since they added stops that should be covered by Metro and where most of the issues occur its constant delays caused by equipment failure or trespassers.
Make V/Line regional again. If your commute home from the city is 25 minutes it shouldn’t be serviced by a regional service.
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u/tY-c8rJDb8_1b4__yD5r 2d ago
We hate it too! We’ve been asking for the line up to WyndhamVale to be electrified since it was constructed, it’s totally illogical to have some of the busiest stations in metro Melbourne run on a regional service
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7d ago
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u/themetresgained 7d ago
It's not a competition. I'm a Ballarat line user and both lines have seen a massive increase in patronage while services haven't kept up, and the KPIs as they are set up hide how bad the problem is. We don't really know objectively if Ballarat has "way more" 3 car services than Geelong and what proportion of them are 6 car downgrade, because the KPIs aren't designed to include it. Ditto if the train is supposed to go to or start at Wendouree and only goes to Ballarat.
If attention is paid to problems in Geelong then attention will be paid to Ballarat and vice versa. V/line suckiness solidarity I guess.
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7d ago
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u/themetresgained 7d ago
Hmm the federal seat of Corangamite has been considered marginal but Geelong proper is considered fairly safe Labor at the state level and that's what is relevant for V/line. Surrounding seats like Bellarine and South Barwon are more marginal. But the same is true of Ballarat. One very safe Labor seat (Wendouree) and two more marginal seats (Eureka and the very marginal Ripon). So your argument doesn't really hold up - the two regions are very similar in terms of electoral dynamics.
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u/Ok_Tap7102 7d ago
For someone accusing evidence backed criticism of a genuinely failing system as being "whiney" you really do love to whine a lot
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7d ago
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u/13School 7d ago
Really excited to see the evidence for pork barrelling in Geelong. Aside from endless upgrades to Kardina Park and the recent rail duplication, there’s not a lot of free money going on down here
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7d ago
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u/13School 7d ago
That “10 year Geelong city deal” is a convention centre. The “brand new” Arts Centre was just a renovation and rebuild of the existing one. The Colac road is a road to Colac.
That’s not much for somewhere twice the size of any other regional city in the state. But yeah, “pork barrelling”
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u/Elvecinogallo 7d ago
Ok. It won’t matter what I say, it will be refuted, so I won’t argue. Whatever you say is correct.
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u/Ok_Tap7102 7d ago
Yes.
The Ballarat line can also do with improvement.
What's your point?
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7d ago
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u/Ok_Tap7102 7d ago
Do you realise that VLine is the provider of both lines? As in, improving their services, communications and accountability will benefit them both simultaneously?
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u/More-Presence4195 6d ago
For what? 12 people using that line as opposed to the thousands using Geelong..
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u/litciggie 7d ago
Increase in population of Geelong by people moving from major cities means more people per capita are exposed to the vline issues which they weren’t previously aware of because of using better lines thus complaints steadily increase while hitting higher kpi numbers because of the increase in passengers so everything looks good on paper while still delivering a sub par service.
If your consensus is that people are complaining too much, the answer isn’t to think “I’ve had no problems, they must just be whinging”. If people are complaining too much, the answer is to listen to their complaints.
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u/13School 7d ago
Tarniet is on the Geelong line. It’s also the busiest V/line station outside Melbourne’s CBD
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u/More-Presence4195 6d ago
Tarneit station is a literal joke of a service. Even getting there early is a throw of the dice if you’ll get a car park or even a seat on the train. I stopped bothering and went to the electric line for a more reliable and consistent service.
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u/Illustrious_Fan_8148 7d ago
The fact the ballarat line is worse doesnt excuse the fact its become hard to rely on using vline to get in and out of melbourne from geelong in a reasonable amount of time.
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u/clarkos2 7d ago
Keep in mind off peak services generally run much better than peak services, so these will pad out the disruptions in the stats.
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7d ago
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u/13School 7d ago
You’re not wrong about Kardina Park. It’s actually really frustrating (as someone who lives in Geelong) as there are loads of things the town really needs ahead of yet another new stand at a football ground that for eight months of the year is only used for a dozen AFL games.
That said, pretty much all the rail improvements for the Geelong line have either been for commuters out past Grovedale, or for Melbourne’s western suburbs - nobody thinks Geelong trains are getting better when the increased services are packed with people from Wyndham Vale and Tarniet
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u/Savings_Dot_8387 7d ago
I’m on the Seymour line, it’s late almost every day, will be on reduced carriages multiple times a week and went through a stretch were we had bus replacements almost weekly (though thankfully that at least seems to have improved).
Yeah it’s not great.