Page 6139 - Week 14 - Thursday, 9 December 2010
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recovering from serious illness; they will simply continue to bounce in and out of acute hospital beds.
We have also seen the government start to deliver on the increase in public housing stock. I believe that many of the aged people who live in public housing will be grateful for the GFC stimulus spend and the chance to move into a new public housing property that is much more suitable for their needs as they age. Questions remain, however, as to what the government’s commitment is to increasing the public housing stock once that stimulus funding ends. Public housing stock must continue to grow as the population grows; we are naive if we think that we see growth only in that segment of the ACT population which is affluent, especially if the Gini coefficient—that is, the spread between those on the lowest income and the highest incomes—continues to worsen, as it has in recent years.
I turn to transport. As a result of the parliamentary agreement, we have begun to see a shift in transport investment priorities towards improving public transport. As part of the agreement to improve frequency, the government operated the Redex from Gungahlin as a trial service. The overwhelming success of that service has ensured that it has been made a critical part of the current and future networks. A broader improvement in investment in public transport infrastructure—the expansion of park-and-ride facilities, building busways and other projects—is building a better public transport system. We have probably seen more action in two years than in the previous terms of this government.
The ACT Greens will continue to push for further investment in better public transport throughout the remainder of this term of the Assembly, particularly for the people of west Belconnen, Weston Creek, Tuggeranong and the new Molonglo development. These areas do not receive adequate public transport, and we need to provide better services to do more to encourage people to use public transport.
A recent survey conducted by the Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies at the University of Sydney shows that over half of Australians consider public transport improvements to be the highest priority transport issue for governments. This shows that the ACT Greens, by pushing for a public transport focus through the agreement, have not only been supporting sustainability in transport but delivering the improvements that the public believe are most important.
The Greens have also ensured the provision of the Nightrider bus service over the summer period. This is an important step in reducing late night violence and reducing the incidence of drink driving by providing a cheap mass transport alternative. We make it easier for the residents of Gungahlin, Weston Creek and Tuggeranong to enjoy a night out without being compelled to pay upwards of $50 for a ride home. It is an excellent service and we sincerely hope that the government chooses to extend the service in order to improve the safety and affordability of a night out on the town.
The parliamentary agreement has also delivered many new cycling and walking infrastructure projects for Canberra, such as the new path signage, the new Jerrabomberra wetlands cycle path and the Mouat Street share path that is currently under construction, as well as the resealing of many paths and footpaths.
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