THE jury is out on whether sky rail influenced this month’s Isaacs federal election result but July still looms as a major milestone in the future of the Frankston rail line when options for the separation of road from rail at eight level crossings along the line will be revealed.
Federal Labor MP Mark Dreyfus was returned for the fourth time as the Isaacs electorate’s representative in Canberra with a 5.8 per cent margin, up from 3.9 per cent, with 79 per cent of the votes tallied by the Australian Electoral Commission against an average swing of 3.42 per cent to Labor nationally.
The Level Crossing Removal Authority, a state Department of Transport body, will release options for level crossings removals along the Frankston line this month but opposition to elevated rail under any circumstances is mounting.
Kingston councillors voted to formally oppose elevated rail but hope this decision will not exclude council officers from further consultation with state government officials over level crossings removals.
“Although Kingston welcomes more information about level crossing removals on the Frankston train line, we are concerned that Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allen did not address the question of single-crossing elevated rail and only ruled out so-called ‘sky rail’,” Kingston mayor Cr Bearsley said in a statement late last month.
“I believe the government’s definition still needs to rule out single-crossing elevated rail. At Kingston our residents have spoken and we are opposed to all elevated rail – whether it be for a single crossing or multiple crossings on the Frankston line.
“For a single level crossing, elevated rail would still be a very intrusive structure. It will be elevated for at least 1km throughout bayside suburbs,” Cr Bearsley said.
State Labor Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan said last month that there never has been any plan for “extended elevated rail on the Frankston line” (‘Sky rail ‘grounded’’, The News 15/6/16).
Decisions on whether elevated rail or road under rail is more appropriate are still to be made for crossings at Balcombe Rd (Mentone), Charman Rd (Cheltenham), Edithvale Rd (Edithvale), Eel Race Rd (Carrum), Seaford Rd (Seaford), Skye/Overton Rd (Frankston), Station St (Bonbeach), Station St (Carrum).
Rail under road works are underway at three level crossings at North Rd (Ormond), Centre Rd (Bentleigh) and McKinnon Rd (McKinnon).
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 13 July 2016
This article was amended on 15 July 2016 to state rail under road works, not road under rail works as originally reported, are underway at level crossings at Ormond, Bentleigh and McKinnon. Elevated rail is not being built at those three level crossings. The News regrets the error.
