Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) My question is to the Minister for Agriculture, Ms Pulford, representing the Minister for Public Transport. Public transport has really been the backbone for Northern Metropolitan Region and its ever-growing population. We have been fortunate in that we have got buses, trains and trams, and I obviously note, and everyone else here notes, the importance of that infrastructure. Lines such as the 96 and the 11 have been upgraded to accommodate the incredible growth we are seeing in the north. However, the 86 has been left behind time and again. It is the longest route in my electorate and one of the longest in the whole of Melbourne, and it is heavily congested almost all of the time. I have spoken to Yarra Trams and have been unable to find any definitive information about when there will be an upgrade to the 86 line, particularly for the new low-floor trams. I would like to know when that is going to happen.
Ms PATTEN (Northern Metropolitan) — I thank the minister and look forward to maybe taking her for a ride on the 86 one day. It has been long promised, and when you look at people with disabilities and the elderly, you see it is becoming harder and harder for them to use that route. I would also like to know when the 86 route will be extended through to South Morang, connecting with Plenty Road and The Lakes Boulevard to provide residents in the new suburbs of the north with desperately needed transport option
