Extra services to help ease the squeeze

TWO extra train services are set to offer some minor relief to Casey commuters.
An extra train will depart from Westall station at 6.53am and an 8am service will leave from Oakleigh station during the morning peak.
Both trains, which started running last Monday, will go to Flinders Street station.
Connex announced the additions to the timetable last week in the hope that it would ease some congestion on the rail network.
The Pakenham line has been plagued with problems throughout the first half of this year. On the Pakenham line during March, one in every four trains was late, with that result improving only slightly in April.
Connex CEO Bruce Hughes said patronage on the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines had grown by about 23 per cent over the past two years.
“This level of patronage growth is totally unprecedented in the railways,” he said. “In the past, growth of 3 per cent a year would have been very respectable.
“The Pakenham and Cranbourne lines, which combine at Dandenong and run together into the city, are the most crowded on the network and experience the most delays due to crowding.
“This corresponds with what our customers have been telling us about their travelling experiences on those lines,” he said.
Narre Warren North ALP MP Luke Donnellan also welcomed the additional services.
“Due to the increase in petrol prices and the abolition of zone three pricing, patronage has grown,” he said.
“The State Government has a good working relationship with Connex and this is a good example of the Government and Connex working together to provide a safe and efficient train service to the population in the south-east.”
Mr Hughes said Connex was stretching its existing train fleet to run the two extra services.
“We have been working with the State Government and our maintenance providers to squeeze further efficiencies out of our maintenance programs,” Mr Hughes said. “This means we are confident we can provide the extra train we need, alongside existing services and maintenance commitments.”
The two extra services are being paid for by Connex and will come off the company’s bottom line.