Enhanced School Bus Services in Expanding Melbourne Suburbs
Residents of Point Cook, Melton, Mt Atkinson, Clyde, and Miners Rest will soon have access to new or enhanced school bus services. In the first two terms of 2025, 15 new school bus routes will be added to these expanding areas. In Ballarat, additional bus services will be provided for Miners Rest and Macarthur Park, connecting to Mount Rowan Secondary College.
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The start of the year will see students in Mt Atkinson and Deanside benefit from six new bus routes serving Mt Atkinson Estate, Grandview Estate, Olivia Estate, and Deanside. These routes will facilitate students attending Rockbank Primary, Brookside P-9, Yarrabing Secondary College, Lakeview Senior College, Deanside Primary School, and Springside West Secondary College.
Melton students attending Staughton College will also have access to six new bus routes, two of which will link students in Weir Views with the College from Term 1, and four more services will connect students in Brookfield, Cobblebank, and Stathtulloh with Staughton College in Term 2.
In Point Cook, a new bus route will be introduced in Term 2, providing Sanctuary Lakes students with more public transport options to Homestead Senior Secondary College, Alamanda K-9 College, and Saltwater P-9 College.
In Melbourne’s south-east, the 2025 school year will commence with a new bus service connecting students in Smiths Lane Estate in Clyde North to the new Wulerrp Secondary College. An additional bus route will be introduced in Term 2, linking students in Smiths Lane and St Germain Estates to Kambrya Secondary College. Modifications to existing bus services in the area will also be made to accommodate more students attending Clyde Secondary College.
In Ballarat, bus services for Miners Rest and Macarthur Park will now connect to Mount Rowan Secondary College starting from Term 1, in response to local population growth and changes in school enrolment zones.
These improvements are part of a $25 million investment from the Victorian Budget 2022/23 to introduce, modify, and extend school bus services across the state, with an initial focus on growth areas.
Public and Active Transport Minister Gabrielle Williams said, “This builds on the $730 million we’ve invested since 2014 to deliver thousands of new and improved bus services across the state.” Other members also expressed their support for the initiative, highlighting the importance of listening to local parents and students and providing them with better school bus services.
