100 PER CENT of scheduled services were delivered to the Warrnambool train station last month but punctuality and patronage on the line has dropped.
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Reliability on the Warrnambool train line was 100 per cent in March, the best result since October 2018.
But punctuality, which takes in trains departing within 10 minutes and 59 seconds of its scheduled time, came in at just 81.5 per cent, a drop from February's performance result (90.3 per cent) and the worst month for the year.
V/Line's performance figures show more than 30 services ran late in March - an average of one per day.
Reasons for the delays included trains stopping at stations longer than scheduled to allow time for passengers to board or disembark, as well as infrastructure and train faults.
The Warrnambool train line has not reached V/Line's punctuality target of 92 per cent since June last year.
Maintenance and improvement works were undertaken on the Geelong and Warrnambool lines during late March and early April.
Crews renewed the surfaces of bridges along the line and replaced culverts, allowing water to pass under the tracks, as well as improving signal equipment and track surfaces at several places along the line.
V/Line said the works would help reduce the risk of delays caused by infrastructure faults.
Final works to test and commission the $172.9 million Wyndham Vale stabling yard also took place last month, while construction continued on level crossing upgrades as part of the Warrnambool Line Upgrade.
Following the works as a safety precaution, trains will run at slower speeds over the new infrastructure to allow the tracks time to bed down.
This means passengers travelling to and from Warrnambool are asked to allow an additional six to eight minutes for their journey until May 10.
Information received from V/Line revealed there were less passengers than normal travelling on the Warrnambool line due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A V/Line spokesman thanked passengers for their patience "while we completed essential works on the Warrnambool line over the past couple of weeks".
"Reliability was strong on the Warrnambool line in March and we're always working to ensure more trains arrive on time," he said.
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