The Wodonga region has been left with a single general duties van to attend incidents, with the unit sometimes tied up for hours with jobs.

Concerns have been raised about incidents in recent weeks and months, including a reported offence at a Wodonga home where a man intervened in a violent incident and was smashed over the head with a beer bottle.

Member for Benambra Bill Tilley recently told Parliament officers never attended, despite multiple Triple-0 calls.

He said in another incident in February, a car was driven at a mother in a street and it took police more than four hours to do a drive-by of the scene.

Mr Tilley, a former officer, said other incidents included an incident where it took nine months for police to act on an intervention order breach.

"I could go on with all these case histories, but at the start of [March] I understand there were 28 police members in eastern region division four sick or broken as a result of workload and or management practices," he said.

"It is not only responding to incidents, it is the follow-ups, investigations and paperwork that are falling by the wayside.

"Mental health injuries and the causes of those injuries cannot be ignored."

Mr Tilley called for an urgent investigation and police association secretary Wayne Gatt called for change.

"Having enough police in stations to cover staff who are on leave for a number of reasons, is critical to running a local police station, and indeed a police force," he said.

"We need to get police back into police stations and into the community, where they belong.

"This requires more police resources and a commitment to place those resources in the areas where staffing shortfalls exist.

"The community expects and deserves a prompt police response when they need it."

Mr Tilley said the local officers weren't to blame for the situation.

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He said during the incident where a man was assaulted with a bottle, an ambulance had to wait at the top of the street for police to arrive.

The victim eventually took himself to hospital when officers failed to arrive.

One divisional van was permanently taken off the road last year.

Police command said it was incorrect to link the absences to mental health issues.

Superintendent Joy Arbuthnot said more staff were heading to Wodonga, with some of the members to begin working next month.

"While there are a small number of local officers currently on unplanned leave and some vacancies that are currently under recruitment, we want to assure the Wodonga community that we still have police officers out on the road, keeping the community safe and responding to incidents as they occur," she said.

"A number of new police officers will commence in Wodonga in the near future, with three new sergeants set to start in May, while another two officers will commence in the next month.

"Local general duty police are supported by other police officers from other units in the event of any major incidents requiring police attendance."

Superintendent Arbuthnot said the Wodonga station was open 24 hours a day.

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