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Transport zoning costing patients thousands
22 May 2011
Anyone who commutes to Box Hill Hospital or the Monash Medical Centre are paying too much to take the train, AMA Victoria President Dr Harry Hemley said today.
AMA Victoria has increased pressure on the Department of Transport to change public transport zoning boundaries to reflect the travel needs of people accessing these vital health services.
“It’s outrageous that this issue keeps getting pushed under the table,” said Dr Hemley. “The difference may seem like small change, however to the outpatients, visitors and staff who frequently travel to these hospitals it all adds up.”
Box Hill and Clayton are just one station out of the zone boundary overlap, forcing passengers to pay for a zone 1 and 2 ticket if traveling from the city, costing almost four dollars extra if purchasing a daily return ticket.
Dr Hemley has called on the Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder to reconsider a zone adjustment for the Box Hill and Clayton railway stations.
“AMA Victoria raised this issue on several occasions with Minister Mulder’s predecessor. We hope that the new Government is more receptive to the needs of patients and hospital patrons.
“It is only fair that every consideration is taken to ensure patients, visitors and staff have convenient and cost effective transportation options to access these vital health services,” Dr Hemley said.
Box Hill hospital currently employs 3000 staff, services almost 53,000 patient admissions and over 52,000 outpatients.
“The capacity of these hospitals is going to increase with their redevelopment and the Government should be more proactive by planning ahead for this rapid growth in the hospital’s intake and traffic,” said Dr Hemley.
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