How long has it been since Horsham and the Wimmera has had a daily return train service to Melbourne? Too long!
I have memories as a child of catching the train from Horsham, having lunch in Melbourne and then continuing our train journey to Seymour to visit my grandparents.
For young families, our elderly and everyone in between, navigating the required changes from buses to trains is a huge challenge.
I am sure there are many people who do not use our public transport service because it is not easily accessible for them.
Accessible public transport is important because it ensures our residents can get to medical appointments and treatment. It also helps to connect people socially with family and friends.
Horsham is one of the 10 regional cities in Victoria, we may be the smallest but we should not be without quality services or infrastructure that is available nearly everywhere else in the state.
So how do we make it happen? As a region we need to continually advocate for the return of daily passenger trains to Horsham and beyond.
We also need to campaign for better rail freight opportunities for our industries, as we can all name more than a few roads that are in poor condition.
If some of the freight could be returned to rail I believe there could be an improvement to our roads. You only have to compare the condition of Wilson Street with other urban roads to see the impact heavy vehicles have on our road network.
It is the time of the year where across the region we see the start of hockey, netball and football finals.
After COVID interrupted previous seasons, at last we are able to attend finals, catch up with some familiar faces and hopefully enjoy some sunshine. I would like to wish all those involved the best of good luck and thank the volunteers who without their contribution our many sports would not be able to operate.
May all the finals be played with enthusiasm and good sportsmanship.
