Page 5140 - Week 14 - Wednesday, 18 November 2009
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and hop onto a Redex service which is going on the same road as the bus they just got off. It seems absurd to me that anyone would actually use this service.
An analysis of the timetable shows that, for 92 per cent of these services for Gungahlin residents in Nicholls, Ngunnawal, Forde and Amaroo on a route 51, 52 or 59 service, it is better to stay on that bus rather than change to the Redex service at the Gungahlin Marketplace. Changing buses would result in extra travel time, not less.
Yesterday’s Canberra Times on page 5 talks about the Redex service which “gets the thumbs up”. It talks about a commuter living in Ngunnawal who got the 8 am Redex service. An analysis of the timetables will tell you that if that person got on a route bus from Ngunnawal, he was better off staying on the 51 or 52 and going straight into the city than he was to get on a Redex service at the Gungahlin Marketplace. Why? Because before 9 am it is impossible to arrive in the city faster from Nicholls, Ngunnawal, Forde or Amaroo using a Redex connection than it would be if he used the one route bus.
Some people may say that the benefits are mainly for people in off-peak times. If so, why is there already a route 5 service which has been running on the same roads as the Redex, only during off-peak, for many months? This service is all about spin. It is not about delivering a better bus system or better services for Gungahlin. It is about ticking the box next to one of the lines in the Greens-Labor agreement. Unfortunately, the desperate and ideological Greens will not stand up for what is fundamentally not the best way to spend $1 million on ACTION buses.
This brings me to my next point: if commuters from Gungahlin suburbs are to use the Redex service efficiently, they have to get to the Gungahlin Marketplace. As I have already discussed, changing to Redex from Gungahlin suburban routes extends rather than shortens the commuters’ trips. So the only other option is to use a park and ride service. At the moment, because there are no park and ride facilities at the Gungahlin town centre, commuters are forced to park in private parking spaces at the Gungahlin shops. This means that traders in the Gungahlin town centre are disadvantaged because customers are discouraged from parking and shopping at Gungahlin. When traders start to complain that their businesses are being hurt by people parking in the Marketplace or “the G” undercover car parks, hopping on a bus and not shopping in Gungahlin, it will be because of Labor’s and Green’s lack of vision and lack of planning. If these shopping centres have to close their car park doors until after peak hour, have to put up boom gates or start charging for parking, it may well be because of this government’s poor decision making regarding park and ride facilities.
The Canberra Liberals have a better plan for Gungahlin. The Canberra Liberals would invest in free parking to expand areas for park and ride commuters. It would also include cycle and ride facilities so that commuters could ride to Gungahlin and utilise public transport from there. Lockers would be available to protect bicycles from vandalism and theft, and would also provide storage for bicycle accessories such as helmets, pumps and clothing.
A safe location in Gungahlin, close to lighting, buses and local shops, and in consultation with the community, would be chosen. It would also be based on a site
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