All stages of upgrades to the Shepparton V/Line services have been announced as complete, but lots of questions remain for local commuters.
Across the Greater Shepparton area, there have been outcries about the state of the train lines, whether it be reduced services, cramming onto replacement buses, or trains running slower than expected. Numerous political voices have denounced the significantly delayed progress of the Regional Rail Revival Project under Victoria’s Big Build scheme, pointing out the years long delays, lacking services and overcrowding issues Shepparton’s V/Line services face.
As it currently stands, V/Line runs a total of 11 Shepparton services on weekdays, however, only five of these are full train services, with the rest either partially or fully operated with coach replacements. As well as having a smaller passenger capacity, coach services can take much longer than a full train service.
Regarding the status of additional return services, which have been under scrutiny by various local voices, the Department of Transport and Planning confirmed that later this year there will be 5 return services for Shepparton residents on Saturdays and Sundays. Seymour passengers will have hourly services on weekends from 8am to 9pm. The Department also acknowledged that work was still under way to support the promised nine daily return services on weekdays. However, no time frame was given for the completion of these works.
Whilst this gives local passengers a rough timeline to work with, there are still questions around when exactly these final upgrades can be expected and what has caused the significant delays.
Attention has been drawn to the sizeable difference in upgrades between Shepparton and its regional counterparts such as Seymour and Bendigo, with Bendigo having approximately double Shepparton’s weekday services. The Department has reported that in 2025, the Shepparton Line counted approximately 580,000 passenger trips, whereas the Bendigo Line counted over 2.2 million.
When asked about the promised increase of services to the Shepparton line, a spokesperson from the Department of Transport and Planning said, “Planning work is progressing for the delivery of the additional services and we will keep passengers informed ahead of any changes.”
