THE wheels have fallen off a plan to run a private charter bus service for Doreen residents to commute to work in the city daily.
Resident Rebecca Sharkie’s plan to launch the Doreen Express on May 1 was welcomed by locals, but not Public Transport Victoria.
“Their lawyers told me that if I did start it, they would close me down,” she said.
“I argued that it was a charter bus service, not public transport, and that we would be running directly from Doreen to Federation Square without picking up passengers on the way.’’
Ms Sharkie, who came up with the idea because her husband spent up to 90 minutes each way commuting to the city, said the response from locals had been “awesome”, with 200 people interested.
PTV spokeswoman Helen Witton said bus routes 562 and 572 connected Doreen residents to the South Morang train station.
She said legislation made it “clear” that only accredited bus operators with a PTV contract could run regular passenger services. “The PTV is currently assessing the situation,” Ms Witton said.
