For more than a decade, the "City to Surf" camp has been a rite of passage for year five students at Mansfield Primary School (MPS). The highlight for many of the kids isn’t just the beach at Anglesea or the bustle of the Victoria Market, according to the school it’s also the novelty of catching a V/Line train from Benalla into the heart of Melbourne, and then from Melbourne out to Geelong. But for the third year running, that tradition has been derailed. Four years ago, V/Line stopped taking bookings for large groups, and while the transport authority managed to accommodate the students in 2023 this was the last time the school was able to use the train for the camp. In more recent years, the school was directed to use V/Line buses, but this has also become problematic with the authority unable to provide the required number of seats on the service. As a result, despite the state government’s 2026 rollout of free public transport for all Victorians under 18, Mansfield families say they are effectively being hit with a "regional tax", forced to fork out thousands of dollars for private coaches because the public system can no longer accommodate them. The logistical nightmare reached a breaking point this year. After years of uncertainty, being bumped from trains to buses, along with last-minute cancellations and navigating a booking system that does not accept bookings for groups over 20 passengers, MPS leadership made the difficult call to bypass V/Line entirely. "This year, after three years of trying to make this happen... we feel like we’ve been forced into not using public transport at all," said MPS principal Nicole Salmon. "We don’t have the time or energy to keep fighting a broken system that only supports city kids." The financial fallout is significant. By hiring two private coaches through Fallons the school has had to increase camp fees from $375 to $440 per student - a jump that hits hard in the current economic climate. “While Fallons have offered us the best possible price, this has significantly increased the overall cost of camp," Ms Salmon said. "I don’t know how I’m going to ask families to incur this cost. "It’s heartbreaking. “My frustrations are still the same: yet again country kids miss out and it’s not good enough!" The issue was taken to the floor of the Legislative Assembly in February by Member for Eildon, Cindy McLeish, who challenged the Minister for Public and Active Transport Gabrielle Williams to explain why a successful 10-year partnership has collapsed. "The school staff and local V/Line service staff have tried hard to keep this experience going for the kids, but the system is working against them," Ms McLeish said. "This situation is unfair to school staff, it’s unfair to families who need to fork out extra fees, and it’s unfair on the students who miss out on their highlight of catching a train into the city." The irony of the situation is not lost on Ms McLeish or the school community. While the state government’s "Big Switch" timetable changes in February 2026 promised over 1000 extra services, regional schools report that capacity for large groups has actually tightened. Beyond the dollars, there is an educational loss. Jen Driessen, Leading Teacher for Wellbeing and Outdoor Education, noted the camp is designed to build "public transport literacy". "The unpredictability, lack of communication, and logistical challenges make it too difficult for our students, staff and families," Ms Driessen said. "We would very much like to return to using train travel next year, but at present, it is too difficult." The good behaviour of Mansfield’s students on public transport is also well-documented. In 2023, commuter Rohan Dent was so impressed by the "friendly, respectful and positive behaviour" of the year fives on the Seymour line that he now sponsors an annual award at the school, presenting a plaque and voucher to a student chosen to have exemplified the school’s code of conduct at the camp. A spokesperson for V/Line stated that the operator "works closely with schools and groups to accommodate booking requests" but that group travel depends on "space being available” with “group size limits set so all passengers can travel comfortably”. “We look at every request individually, and if a group can’t travel on their preferred service, we do our best to find alternatives – like different times or splitting into smaller groups.” For this year’s cohort of 77 year five students this is not a viable option. "V/Line has not received any requests from the school in 2026, but is happy to assist the school with its group travel needs," the spokesperson said. For Ms Salmon, the lack of a formal request in 2026 was a matter of necessity, not choice. "In 2026 we couldn’t take the risk of not having transport," she said, citing the previous year when the train wasn’t an option and V/Line was also unable to provide a second bus for the Mansfield-to-Melbourne route, costing the school $3500 at the last minute. As this year’s students prepare for their trip, they will travel by road, missing the click-clack of the rails and the chance to navigate Southern Cross Station—an experience their teachers say they deserve as much as any student in Melbourne.
