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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 4 Hansard (21 April) . . Page.. 1058 ..

MR CORBELL (continuing):

Mr Speaker, this Government, has something to answer for in terms of public transport in Gungahlin. I live in the suburb of Palmerston. Residents in the suburb of Palmerston who want to catch a bus between Palmerston and the city have just faced a 100 per cent fare increase. Before this Government goes around and talks about the wonderful things it is doing for public transport, and all those other issues that need to be addressed in Gungahlin, let us think about how a 100 per cent fare increase encourages people to catch the bus.

Mr Smyth: It is also fair that everybody pays their share. You know that.

MR CORBELL: Does a 100 per cent fare increase encourage people to catch a bus? You know that the patronage levels on buses in Palmerston have declined since that fare increase has come in. They have declined, and the Minister knows that. That is a real plus for buses, is it not, Mr Speaker? A resident I know who lives in Ngunnawal had a broken-down car the other day. He could not drive his car into Civic and he had to catch a bus. It took him 45 minutes to get from Ngunnawal to the city. The same journey in a car would take, at peak hour, no more than 25 minutes.

MR SPEAKER: Would this be on the Gungahlin Drive extension, Mr Corbell? If not, please get back to the subject.

MR CORBELL: Mr Speaker, you can attempt to be flippant about this, but the point I am attempting to make is that this Government has no credibility when it comes to providing for the transport needs of residents in Gungahlin. For the Government to stand in this place and speak holier than thou is simply ludicrous, Mr Speaker.

I know they do not like it, Mr Speaker, but let me reiterate the point. Labor supports the need to plan for the provision of the road. Labor supports the need to do that, just like this Government does.

It is interesting, Mr Speaker, that there was only one little mention, in all of Mr Smyth's and Mr Humphries' diatribes, about why they are pushing ahead with this draft variation now. It has nothing to do with the interests of residents of Gungahlin. It has everything to do with selling Territory land in the Bruce precinct that they can get some money from by deleting one of the road transport corridors. That is exactly what the agenda is here. What a dash for cash for land, Mr Speaker. That is what this agenda is. That has always been the Government's agenda. They want to delete the provision of a corridor so that they can sell the land. That is what they want to do, Mr Speaker, so let us not see any more crocodile tears from the Government over the poor citizens of Gungahlin.

I am very well aware, perhaps more than anyone in this place, about what Gungahlin citizens face day to day because I live there. I know exactly what the issues are and I understand the impact, because I face that impact every day.

You have to remember that this same Government, six months ago, was not even prepared to contemplate a duplication of Gungahlin Drive. They said there was no need. Less than six months ago they said there was no need to duplicate Gungahlin Drive.

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