Free bus set to stop

GREATER Dandenong Council has blamed rising costs for the decision to end its free shuttle bus service in central Dandenong on 8 March.
The Greater Dandenong Free City Shuttle Bus, which stops at Dandenong’s shopping district, market, railway station and hospital, has been operating for 10 years.
In a statement, the council stated that the shuttle’s patronage fell from an average of 160 daily passengers to 68 in the past four years.
In the meantime, its cost had nearly doubled from $2.25 a passenger trip to $4.58.
Mayor Heang Tak said the bus had been introduced as a trial to help shoppers move around the central activity district.
He said Harmony Square and Halpin Way developments had helped make it easier to walk from the train station to Dandenong’s centre.
Public bus routes also travelled to the same places visited by the shuttle service, he said.
For alternative bus information, go to greaterdandenong.com.