MEDIA RELEASE | 18 June 2026
The Outer Melbourne Councils (OMC) alliance says the Victorian Auditor General’s Office (VAGO) report Improving Bus Services (2026) confirms that outer suburban communities are being consistently underserved by an outdated and unreliable bus network.
The report highlights that many fast-growing fringe suburbs still rely on buses that run only every 30–60 minutes, lack evening and weekend services, and follow indirect routes that fail to connect residents to jobs, education and essential services.
OMC Chair Cr Stefan Koomen said the findings reflect what councils and communities have been raising for years.
“VAGO has confirmed what our residents experience every day: the bus network in outer Melbourne is not keeping up with the needs of our growing suburbs,” Cr Koomen said.
“Families shouldn’t have to plan their entire day around a bus that only comes twice an hour. This report shows the real-world impact of slow reform and underinvestment.”
The report also identifies poor reliability, outdated timetables, and a lack of a coordinated statewide reform program as key barriers to improving services. It warns that outer suburban residents face the greatest transport disadvantage in the state, with limited alternatives and rising cost of living pressures.
OMC is calling on the Victorian Government to adopt VAGO’s recommendations in full and prioritise investment in Melbourne’s outer suburbs. This includes more frequent and direct routes, seven-day services, bus priority infrastructure, better performance monitoring, and stronger integration with land use planning.
“This report gives the government a clear roadmap. What we need now is action,” Cr Koomen said.
“Outer Melbourne residents deserve a modern, reliable bus network— until then families will keep paying the price through higher fuel costs, longer commutes and difficulty accessing jobs and services.”