Victorian Liberal Leader Jess Wilson speaks during the Australian Liberal Party annual meeting in Melbourne, Australia, on May 29, 2026. Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images
The coalition has made an appeal to voters’ hip pockets while Labor touts its law-and-order credentials in rival election pitches ahead of a looming state poll.
The Victorian opposition put forward a $90-million-a-year toll cap for road users on Sunday—modelled on a similar scheme from the NSW Labor government—describing the plan as a “game changer” for families and small firms.
Road users could be eligible for a $50 weekly toll cap for two years if the Liberal-National coalition forms government.
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson announced the pledge, which she said was based on the cap NSW introduced in 2024.
The proposed Victorian cap would rise to a permanent level of $60 from July 2027.
The limit on toll charges would kick in from July 1, with cars, motorbikes, small trucks, vans, and small business fleets of up to five vehicles included.
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The toll cap would cost taxpayers an estimated $180 million over two years, to be applied for via Service Victoria as a quarterly rebate.
Wilson said her government would sit down with toll operators to broker a win-win for taxpayers, adding the cap would form part of a broader review of tolling arrangements.
“This is a game changer for Victorian families, tradies and small businesses,” she told reporters.
The Labor government has moved to relieve road transport costs in recent months, including with a 20 percent vehicle registration discount, extended by Premier Ben Carroll to the end of August.
On Aug. 16, he unveiled plans to recruit 200 former police officers as “reservists,” handling back-of-house duties, including preparing briefs of evidence.
“Victorians have told us they still want to see someone at the counter when they walk into their local station and I’m listening,” he said.
The $57 million pledge adds to an earlier commitment to hire 200 former officers as reservists by the Allan government.
The first 200 are due to be fully deployed by December with the remaining 200 to be rolled out from January.
The move is designed to help serving officers to return to the front line, adding an estimated 16,000 policing hours a week.
“In my 14 years in parliament, I’ve never come across a community that wants less policing,” Carroll said.
The Police Association of Victoria welcomed the announcement, but said it must be complemented by efforts to fill vacant police roles.
The union has previously estimated about 1,500 positions remain unfilled within the state’s police force.
Opposition police spokesperson Brad Battin echoed those concerns, claiming the hirings paled compared to overall police shortages.
“We think the government have left a zero off,” he said on Sunday.
The coalition has pledged to recruit an additional 3,000 police officers, reopen more than 40 stations, and hire 200 extra protective service officers.
Carroll on Wednesday unveiled plans to hire 150 protective service officers, adding they would be given stronger powers.
By Nick Wilson and Emily Woods
