Students and staff attending Deakin University's Melbourne Burwood campus will soon have access to more and better-connected services across more days following an overhaul of the University bus network.
People travelling to and from the University will have significantly improved public transport links with the the upgraded network removing duplication and increasing frequency across several routes.
Among the changes being introduced on 15 October, the SmartBus Route 903 between Box Hill and Mentone will be rerouted to now service Deakin University via Elgar Road, with this change alone adding more than 1000 services to the University each week.
Extra Saturday morning short trips have also been added to this service increasing capacity where it's needed most.
The frequency of Route 201 will be upgraded to every 15 minutes becoming a key shuttle connector between Box Hill Station and Deakin University, with the days it runs increased to also cover Orientation weeks.
Route 766 Box Hill to Burwood via Surrey Hills will operate across more hours on weekdays and Saturdays, with the frequency of Saturday services increased from every 40 minutes to every 30. Sunday services will also be introduced, and the existing route realigned to better connect with the new Union Station.
Route 271 Box Hill to Ringwood via Park Orchards service will also be upgraded to include a Sunday service for the first time, with the Saturday service also running later until 9pm.
Duplication of routes has been removed with little used Route 768 being discontinued and Route 281 now ending at Box Hill station but with weekday services being extended until 7pm. In both cases any savings have been redirected into upgrading the other University bus services.
These latest improvements to the south east bus network add to upgrades in April to Routes 733 and 767 which are already delivering better interpeak frequency and better weekend services in several key areas including Box Hill, Deakin University, Monash University, Clayton and Southland.
More information on the upcoming changes can be found on the PTV website at ptv.vic.gov.au or by calling the customer information centre on 1800 800 007 from 15 September.
As stated by Public Transport Minister Ben Carroll
"We know how important public transport is to the residents in Melbourne's south east and the thousands of students and staff at Deakin University's Melbourne Burwood campus which is why we're making the network even better.
"With Melbourne's tram network on their doorstep and multiple bus routes offering more services and better links to trains, we're making education even more accessible."
As stated by Member for Box Hill Paul Hamer
"Deakin University's campus in Burwood is a great place to study and we're making it even easier to get there and to other key locations in south east Melbourne with improvements to public transport links."
As stated by Karly Lovell, Director, Campus Experience, Deakin University
"Deakin will now be serviced by an integrated bus network that paves the way for easy, affordable and sustainable access to the Burwood Campus for thousands of students and staff every day.
"We value the efforts and commitment of the state government to upgrade these critical bus routes."
