Buses at Watergardens train station are “substandard”, often filthy, cold and driven by “maverick” drivers, a local resident has claimed.
Sydenham’s Mal Shah told Star Weekly some drivers fail to display route numbers until just before arriving at their designated stop at the station.
He believes four services – 465, 476, 460 and 462 – were not “in reasonable sync” with train services.
“Our local buses have some maverick drivers that would zoom at their stop at Watergardens, and then zoom out,” he said.
“They would not even put up their bus numbers until just before arriving at their stop.
“Why can’t the station have boards for buses, just like for the trains, so that commuters like myself can position at the appropriate stops without making a run for it.
“The buses are too cold for the winter period, and some are dirty.
“Are the operators responsible to anyone for their business, or is it a western suburbs thing to accept substandard services?”
He also said there needs to be clearer channels for customer feedback.
However, a Public Transport Victoria spokesman said bus timetables on those four routes were designed “to co-ordinate with trains where possible”.
“(We are) prioritising connection from buses to trains towards the city in the morning, and trains from the city to buses in the afternoon and evening,” he said.
“PTV expects operators to deliver a reliable service to passengers choosing to travel by bus, and we investigate any complaints made by passengers.”
Mr Shah’s comments come as a petition calling for more car parking at the station drew nearly 350 signatures.
The petition highlights an “inconvenient bus service that does not co-ordinate its schedule with the train schedule”.
To send feedback to PTV, call 1800 800 007 or go online to www.ptv.vic.gov.au
