By JESSE GRAHAM
YARRA Glen and Healesville community members were treated to a special morning tea over the weekend, when Prime Minister Tony Abbott dropped by.
Mr Abbott visited the Yarra Glen and Healesville railway stations on Saturday 13 June as part of visit to see the work to restore the Yarra Valley Railway line.
After arriving in Yarra Glen with Casey MP Tony Smith and getting an update on the project by YVR vice-president Brett Whelan, the group drove down to Healesville for a morning tea with community members and volunteers.
In an exclusive interview with the Mail, Mr Abbott said he was impressed with the work by YVR volunteers.
“This is a tribute to the commitment, the passion and the expertise of people who are just so totally engaged with the project,” he said.
He said the initiative shown by the community to get the line re-opened from Yarra Glen to Healesville was one of the considerations when the Liberal Party pledged $3.56 million before the 2013 Federal Election.
“With all of these Community Support Grants, we want to see evidence that other people have got skin in the game,” he said.
“The State Government has made a substantial contribution, and local people have made a very substantial contribution in cash and in kind.
“You’ve got hundreds of people who are investing hundreds of hours – weeks, months, years of their lives – that’s something the Commonwealth should look at for support.”
In a speech to the attendees, Mr Whelan said that more than 500 volunteers had clocked up more than 50,000 hours of work to restore the railway line.
With the railway line set to re-open by 2017, Mr Abbott said he would again visit the area and make use of the service himself.
“Next time I’m here, I might actually ride the bike out from Melbourme and hook it onto the back of the train… then I might sag in the back of a COMCAR or something and go back the easy way,” he said to the crowd.
Mr Abbott then took a tour of two of the railway’s trains, had morning tea and took photos with the attendees before his departure back to Sydney.
