By XAVIER SMERDON
Exclusive
A FERRY service that will transport residents from Wyndham to the Melbourne CBD will change the western suburbs forever, the Victorian Minister for Planning has revealed.
In an exclusive interview with Star, Minister Matthew Guy earmarked a ferry service operating from Werribee South as the next big infrastructure project to come to Wyndham.
“I think one of the pivotal services that is likely to come to Wyndham in the future is the ferry service to the City,” Mr Guy told Star.
“The possibility of a ferry service between Wyndham and the Melbourne CBD is very real and it would be a huge fillip for Wyndham and transform it into an outstanding location in the West.
“To have rail, road and water transport in Wyndham will be transformative.”
Mr Guy also said that Wyndham was quickly cementing itself as the “capital of the West” in light of news last week that Deakin University would be establishing an education facility in the municipality and recent announcements that the State Government would invest $72 million in the Sneydes Rd interchange.
“Wyndham is positioning itself as the capital of the West. We are seeing a lot more services in the areas of health, transport and commercial come to the area,” he said.
“In 20 years’ time Wyndham will be an area that will have a very large portion of Melbourne’s white collar jobs and they will be in the areas of health, education and research.
“There will also be more high density living, so people living in townhouses and apartments.
“That will work to change the perception of central Werribee.”
He said that Wyndham was an asset that had not yet been utilised to its full potential.
“We can’t have this Melbourne and Geelong attitude anymore because soon it will be Melbourne, Wyndham and Geelong,” he said.
“It has been a long time coming but Wyndham is starting to come into its own.
“It has gone from being a country town to an outer suburb and now it will be a major employment precinct.”
Mr Guy said there were still major challenges facing Wyndham.
“We are aware that we need to do a lot more work to make the outer West more liveable to ensure that people in Wyndham and the rest of the West are living in one of the best places in Australia,” he said.
“Transport and mobility are still major issues in the area and creating jobs closer to where people live is going to be exceedingly important.
“We know that none of this is short term, it is a long term investment but the returns will be well worth it.”
