Page 854 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 6 April 2022
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although as of mid-March patronage was still down by more than 34 per cent on pre-pandemic levels.
We are primarily working towards this goal by investing in large-scale public transport infrastructure, building light rail to Woden, and the procurement of more than 100 new electric buses and their associated charging infrastructure. The first 12 of those electric buses will arrive this year into Transport Canberra’s fleet, offering passengers a cleaner, quieter and more comfortable ride. Those are the sorts of things that, in the long term, are going to increase our patronage. That is an important step forward in our fleet and a great opportunity to encourage more Canberrans to try out and return to public transport.
We do think that there may be some limited and specific instances in which free public transport could contribute to broader community and government objectives. As the Productivity Commission has noted, free public transport promotions can work when they offer something new and innovative to the community or incentivise people to try public transport and get over the various other barriers that prevent them from using it regularly.
Members would be aware that we are anticipating a significant period of disruption on our roads from the second half of this year onwards as we move forward with major infrastructure projects like raising London Circuit and light rail. There is other public and private infrastructure occurring as well. During that disruption period we will be asking Canberrans to rethink their route and routine, finding other ways to travel to the city, travelling outside of peak times, for example, and using public transport and active travel.
As part of the suite of initiatives to help manage and mitigate the disruption, there may be a place for a brief period of free public transport to give people a chance to get familiar with their closest rapid route or to try one of our new electric buses for the first time. This is something that we will consider as part of our ongoing planning to address the disruption associated with major infrastructure delivery in the coming months and years, but it will not be in the form that Mr Parton has suggested.
So, while free public transport makes a good headline, it does not necessarily result in good quality, reliable services that can support a lasting switch away from private vehicles. We are dedicated to strengthening public transport in Canberra. We are in it for the long haul, and we are not going to cut the ability of our transport system during a time when people need it to run reliably.
That means progressively working through the unique service delivery issues that our city has. It means adding services in a sustainable way over time, like we have done in Molonglo just recently with the new route bus service that services Whitlam and goes through to both Belconnen and Denman Prospect. We will prioritise at all times the reliability of services for those who rely on them to get around day to day across the city.
I move amendments to that effect circulated in my name:
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