The upper house MP said the region would benefit from 12 extra train services a week, including a daily return service between Warrnambool and Geelong. 

“Warrnambool passengers will now get four return services every weekday and three return services on weekends,” Ms Tierney said

It means passengers wishing to continue to Melbourne, or returning to Warrnambool from the state capital, will have to switch trains in Geelong. 

An existing coach service on Sunday will also be replaced with trains.

Timetabling for the new weekday service is yet to be determined. 

“We have listened to the community and they have told us they want better trains and more services for our community,” Ms Tierney said. 

“The south-west community has been waiting for this additional service for a long time and I am pleased to be able to deliver for the local community.” 

The state budget, handed down on Wednesday, invests $1.3 billion to make regional rail services more frequent and reliable across Victoria.

Also included is $141 million for major periodic maintenance on the regional network including reliability and amenity improvements to the “classic” fleet of carriages that run on the Warrnambool line.