The Info Hub "One Stop Shop" has moved

The Info Hub information service has relocated to 92 Nicholson Street, Footscray (in the Nicholson Street Mall).

The One Stop Shop is a public information centre staffed by representatives from the Maribyrnong Council, the Department of Transport and the Department of Planning and Community Development. Visit the Info Hub to ask questions, pick up fact sheets and see existing project designs for infrastructure projects like the Regional Rail Link.

Opening hours are 9-5 Tuesday to Friday. If you are unable to visit the Hub during regular working hours, try contacting them on 1800 078 387 or ask@transport.vic.gov.au.

RRL Community Reference Group

A reminder that the Regional Rail Link has put together a Community Reference Group (CRG) to better allow residents to have a voice at the planning table. Footscray's representative is Mr Hugh Oates - please feel free to contact him via setao@connexus.net.au or on 0413 591 342 if you have any issues you would like raised at a CRG meeting.

The CRG meets monthly; the next meeting is this Wednesday, 13 July.

Here's Hugh in the Maribyrnong Weekly.

Write to the Minister for Planning!

There's still no news on the environmental effects study promised some months ago, regarding the damning 2010 EPA report on the noise and pollution effects of the Regional Rail Link. There's still no indication that the Department of Transport and the RRL project team will factor noise or pollution controls into the design of the new tracks.

Maribyrnong Council hopes to push the Federal Government for national rail standards. In the meantime, we can all help to lobby the government by writing to the Victorian Minister for Planning, Matthew Guy. (Details below).

Some Railway Place residents have written letters (see example 1 and example 2), feel free to borrow from these letters or write your own. The major themes we see as important are:

• A lack of state or national rail standards relating to noise and pollution
• An imbalance between road and rail projects - some noise/pollution standards exist for residents affected by major road construction; there is no protection for those affected by rail works
• A lack of transparency regarding design elements included in the tender documents for the construction of various rail sections - are noise control strategies included or not? If not, why not?
• A lack of protection for communities – we want a proper assessment, we want the results to be made public, we expect mitigation strategies to maintain levels of noise and pollution to national and international and national best practice.
• An unwillingness to discuss the most appropriate solutions for individual sections of the track - there won't be a "one size fits all" solution to noise mitigation.

Write to:

Matthew Guy
Minister for Planning
Level 7, 1 Spring Street
Melbourne, VIC 3000
matthew.guy@parliament.vic.gov.au