Page 4052 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 30 November 2022
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Mr Hanson: He cut the number of public housing dwellings—
MADAM SPEAKER: Mr Hanson I did not ask for your opinion and you are warned. Mr Barr, are you finished?
MR BARR: I have completed, thank you Madam Speaker.
Transport Canberra—buses
MR PARTON: My question is to the Minister for Transport and City Services, and it pertains to the 35 orange and blue Renault buses we touched on yesterday in here, which must cease service at the end of December.
Minister, specifically, at that point at the end of December, once the Renaults are retired, how many buses will remain in the entire fleet?
MR STEEL: I thank the member for his question. It is in the four-hundreds. I am happy to take that on notice and come back with a more specific answer for Mr Parton on the number of buses we will have in the fleet.
At this point in time, we are replacing the existing bus fleet that is aging. We set out that renewal program for the fleet in our zero emissions plan for Transport Canberra, and we are following that plan. It starts with 34 diesel buses. It then continues on to the compressed natural gas buses, which have a hard-year end of life. Then we will, of course, start replacing the rest of the diesel bus fleet over time, as we bring in more zero emissions buses, and we are out for procurement at the moment delivering on our election commitment to purchase 90 electric buses.
MR PARTON: Minister, how many of the buses that are supposed to be replacing the old Renaults are, as of today, already in the ACT, and how many are still to arrive?
MR STEEL: I thank the member for his question. I know he is excited! I am too! The 12 electric buses are literally days away from arriving ready to start to be put into service—ready for next year. As I explained yesterday in the answer to Mr Braddock’s question, the buses have started to be finished in Adelaide. These are the Scania buses that are being constructed.
Ms Lee: Madam Speaker, I wish to raise a point of order. We are also very excited to hear about the buses. Aside from that they are “days away”, Mr Parton’s question was very specific: how many, as of today, are here already, and how many are still to arrive? I ask that the minister be relevant.
MR STEEL: Madam Speaker, I was addressing that point very specifically. And I do want to make a clarification. Yesterday I misspoke. The buses that have already been finished in Adelaide—coming from Scania—came from Sweden, not Spain. Spain is where our light rail vehicles are being manufactured. They come over to Australia—that is the chassis—and then Scania, with their partner companies, are putting on the bus bodies. They have been completed.
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