Passengers were forced to stand on a coach between Warrnambool and Melbourne after the bus they were on broke down only minutes after departing the station on Friday.
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The V/Line coach, replacing the Melbourne to Warrnambool train service, didn’t reach the city limits before it broke down near Warrnambool’s Deakin University.
A Warrnambool resident, who chose not be named, who was on the 5.35pm coach and said it was full with 52 people on board.
She said the coach, which replaced the train due to hot weather, pulled out of Warrnambool’s Deakin University and had turned right onto the Princes Highway when it began to slow.
“The driver pulled over to figure out what was going on. We’d just left Warrnambool,” she said.
“He could only do 40 kilometres an hour. It would have been a long drive. I’m not sure what happened.”
She said they waited for about half an hour for a new coach to arrive.
Some of the passengers on the replacement coach were forced to stand until Terang as there were not enough seats, and there was no toilet on board.
She was 80 minutes late arriving in Geelong and said Melbourne passengers would have been delayed longer. “It’s not good enough, but what are you going to do?”
A V/Line spokesperson confirmed that the service was replaced by a coach on Friday due to the extreme heat.
“V/Line would like to apologise to passengers and thank them for their patience following the delay to their service on Friday afternoon.
“As a safety precaution, some trains are replaced by coaches when the temperature is forecast to be in the high thirties or forties because the steel tracks expand in the heat.”
Passengers delayed for 60 minutes or more in a single V/Line journey are eligible for compensation through the V/Line website by visitingvline.com.au or calling 1800 800 007.
