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Monday March 22, 2010

What we're talking about

Robert Doyle wins election

Posted by: 3AW.com.au | 30 November, 2008 - 11:58 PM

Robert Doyle will be the next Lord Mayor of Melbourne, after winning the Melbourne City Council elections ahead of Greens candidate Adam Bandt and former deputy lord mayor Peter McMullin.

Listen to Doyle, a former Liberal Party state opposition leader, outline his plans to 3AW's Sunday Morning team in the above media player.

Doyle plans to re-open Swanston Street to cars, but will no doubt face stiff opposition in realising this goal.

He also details his 'Sim City' plan, which he hopes will bring more families into a city centre which has been rubbished in the media in 2008 for having a binge-drinking, violent culture after dark.

"I've heard people during this campaign promising that they'll put 300 police into the City Of Melbourne - well you can't do that," Doyle told 3AW.

"Let me tell you what you can do. You can go to the police and say: 'Listen, let's make a case to you'. We own, for instance, the building at 225 Bourke Street - it's a big Commonwealth Bank - and there are a whole lot of community organisations in that bank. But the whole ground floor is vacant and will be available early next year."

"Why wouldn't you go to the Chief Commissioner and say 'we'll fit it out, we'll make it an inner-city police station if you put the coppers there'. It will save the money on infrastructure."



Are you glad Doyle will be Melbourne's next lord mayor or are you one of the 93 per cent of 3AW.com.au voters who believe a local government system is not needed in Australia?

Blog comments Your Say

  • Certainly an improvement on John Soo as Lord Mayor.
    I try not to come into the city because it is unsafe, dirty and on hot days smelly with all the take-aways burning oil and various sauces. The public transport is good when it runs but parking is ghastly. I do not care about Swanston St one way or another but I hate the pedestrian river crossing via the underground at Flinders St Station and then the rickety footbridge across to Southbank.

    As for your sister city in Russia who cares!

    Azinnia Saturday 21 February, 2009 - 1:22 AM

  • I think is is absolutely out of touch that Doyle thinks re-opening traffic on Swanston street is a good idea. Not withstanding the thousands of environmentally and health conscious cyclists that use Swanston street to get to and from work/uni but also the fact that Swanston st is home to a large number of tram routes frequented by tens of thousands of passengers everyday.

    Tamara Tuesday 2 December, 2008 - 3:19 PM

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