Page 3901 - Week 09 - Thursday, 25 August 2011
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Transport mode shift is the percentage of journeys across different transport modes. The distance travelled is not directly related to transport mode shift.
Nevertheless, I did see that report and that ABS material. Obviously, there are a range of factors driving that. The government will be interrogating that data further to understand what is behind those shifts in the total distance driven by motor vehicles. It could be driven by—forgive the pun—a range of factors, including factors such as not only travel within the city but also inter-city travel between, for example, Canberra and Sydney—
Members interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Order, members! Thank you, members. I cannot hear the minister.
MR CORBELL: or, indeed, Mr Speaker between Canberra and Melbourne.
Members interjecting—
MR CORBELL: We will need to drill down and have a closer look at that data and I will be happy to provide some further information to the member in due course.
MR SPEAKER: Ms Bresnan, a supplementary question?
MS BRESNAN: Thank you, Mr Speaker. Minister, what is your response to the NRMA, who said that the statistics were not a surprise because Canberra has the highest proportion of private vehicle ownership in the country and does not have a public transport system that suits the city?
MR CORBELL: As I have outlined in answers to the previous questions I have received today, the government is investing significantly in making a shift from a city that has been based on a strong level of reliance on the private motor vehicle to a city that gives commuters a greater range of options when it comes to their transport decisions. That is the approach we will continue to adopt.
MS HUNTER: A supplementary, Mr Speaker?
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Ms Hunter.
MS HUNTER: Minister, does the government have any data on how many less cars were on the road or how many more passengers were on buses last Monday when the protest convoy came to Canberra?
MR CORBELL: Yes, the government has received some preliminary advice on that issue, Mr Speaker. I have not yet seen the data in relation to transport patronage on that day, but, certainly, the government has been advised of some preliminary data on changes in motor vehicle use on the Monday.
For a couple of key transport corridors we saw reductions in traffic during peak hour times of up to 25 per cent. So obviously we saw Canberrans making some choices about when they were travelling or, indeed, whether they would travel on that day.
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