‘Breathtakingly Slack’ – PTV’s Official COVID Response!
MP Bev McArthur has slammed the extraordinary response from PTV to a Western Region constituent who complained about the complete lack of social distancing controls on V/Line replacement bus services over the weekend.
Mrs McArthur’s constituent - like thousands entering the city on the Geelong and Ballarat lines – was forced to leave her train and board a replacement bus service at Sunshine – itself in the Brimbank COVID hotspot area.
Mrs McArthur said: “Instead of the required 25 commuters on each bus, these services were crammed full. That is, every single seat was occupied, and people were also standing in the aisles.”
“Nor was this a one-off – the situation was repeated on succeeding buses, and on my constituent’s return journey.”
“It is absolutely extraordinary that this has been allowed to happen at a time when COVID cases are beginning to multiply out of control.”
“Travellers from Ballarat and Geelong, who may have planned their journeys to avoid Melbourne hotspots, were forced to exit their trains and board buses in Sunshine, an area with the second highest incidence of active cases in all of Victoria. It is utterly shambolic, and deeply worrying.”
Mrs McArthur expressed her further astonishment at the response her constituent received on complaining to the public transport authority.
PTV replied on 29 June, stating: “We will not be limiting the number of people on board trains, trams and buses because this is likely to cause crowding in other areas such as platforms and stops and enforcement is difficult.”
Said Mrs McArthur: “This is truly breathtaking. PTV made no effort to ensure vital social distancing on busy buses, because ‘enforcement is difficult’. Little wonder that Victoria’s COVID outbreak is spiralling out of control. It’s not just hotel quarantine the Andrews Government and their agencies cannot manage, it’s the public transport system which keeps the whole city moving.”
“I have serious questions about this. Is this now official policy? It is clear that the situation my constituent faced was not simply a single lapse, but a sustained failure to act. PTV’s subsequent statement seems to confirm their policy. As Victorians we need to hear the view of the Premier and his Ministers – is PTV right?”
1 July 2020