3 October 2019
On 26 August 2019, Mornington Peninsula Shire Mayor Councillor David Gill launched Council's Better Buses campaign with community members.
The Shire has received an overwhelming amount of feedback from residents supporting our Better Buses campaign.
Since the campaign was launched:
- 37,000 people have engaged with the campaign content on Facebook.
- 31,000 people have watched the campaign videos. You can watch the videos at mornpen.vic.gov.au/betterbuses.
- 714 people have written their stories on the Better Buses postcards.
The postcard boxes have been distributed across various sites across the Peninsula, including: Rosebud Hospital, Peninsula Grange Retirement Village, Hastings/Mornington/Rosebud/Somerville Libraries, Dromana Secondary College, Rye Hotel and many more locations.
The feedback received has allowed the Shire to understand attitudes, opinions and concerns of the Peninsula community regarding the bus network on the Mornington Peninsula.
Mornington Peninsula Shire Mayor Councillor David Gill said this uptake in support shows desperate residents are coming out in force to pick up a postcard and tell us why the Peninsula needs better bus services.
"We've read stories from mothers like Megan who lives in Somerville, who is shocked that she and her children need to catch two buses to get from Somerville to Mornington, and what that distance means regarding her children's safety.
"As Mayor and Ward Councillor for Red Hill, experiences from residents like Sarah from Shoreham who sent a postcard to us complaining about zero public transport in the township and how it affects her daily life, is very concerning for me.
"Margaret from Mt Eliza wrote in her postcard that better public transport would ensure residents on the Peninsula are not isolated and have access to the broader community without the need to rely on others to ferry them around – these are the types of responses we are receiving," said Councillor Gill.
Since launching the campaign, both Mayor Gill and CEO John Baker met with the Minister for Public Transport, the Hon. Melissa Horne MP.
Councillor Gill added "though we had an extremely productive meeting with Minister Horne, the harsh reality is that the Shire is not getting its fair share of public transport funding from past and current state governments, and I want this inequality to stop now."
Council is calling on residents to support the campaign via social media (#betterbuses) or by dropping a Better Buses postcard at one of its 30 collection boxes across the Shire.
New locations for postcard boxes from 30 September include Bunnings in Hastings and Mornington and Pelican Park Recreation Centre.
You can still Have Your Say online! Residents who would like to make an online submission can visit mornpen.vic.gov.au/betterbuses.
PHOTO CAPTION: Mayor David Gill; Minister for Public Transport; Minister for Ports and Freight the Hon. Melissa Horne MP and CEO David Baker.
