Page 1584 - Week 04 - Thursday, 29 March 2012
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Belconnen and the city during the day. The Blue Rapid travels between two major employment and residential areas, via two major universities and a hospital, the kinds of places that have considerable all-day demand.
Improved pedestrian and cycling facilities and transport services will connect neighbourhoods and suburbs to the centres. With more people living in the centres, it will be more financially attractive for retail and commercial developments to establish themselves around them. In turn, this will bring more choices of goods and services closer to more people, both immediately around the centre and in the suburbs nearby, renewing and revitalising these vital community hubs. There will be less need to get in your car to get to work, socialise, shop and get to health facilities and recreational and cultural facilities.
Transport for Canberra establishes the frequent network of permanent public transport corridors, with public transport services operating at 15-minute or better frequencies. The frequent network will be the backbone of Canberra’s growing public transport system. It will connect Canberra’s districts and town centres and be the focus for Canberra’s city building. The Rapid services between town centres and frequent locals in denser areas and in between group centres and major employment zones provide fast, frequent services where people need to go. As well as committing to the frequent network, the government has committed to 30-minute services across the city by 2021.
We are committed to exploring alternative transit options to help our city grow more sustainably and minimise the impact of congestion that would be generated with a growing population. To this end, we have invested $2.8 million for a study of the Gungahlin to city corridor, including Northbourne Avenue and Dickson station. This study is looking at light rail and bus rapid transit options to help reduce congestion and create a more sustainable, liveable locale, a fitting entrance to our city.
Expanding the frequent services and introducing services into new suburbs is also a priority. Last budget, we announced $21.4 million over four years to improve ACTION bus services. A new network from May-June 2012 will include the extension of the Blue Rapid to Kippax, improving frequency for Fyshwick, ANU and the Canberra Hospital and new services for new suburbs in Gungahlin.
Bus priority measures will help save time and make public transport more attractive. Investments in bus priority measures include $7.3 million to construct stage 1 of the Belconnen to city transitway, and this work has just started in the last few weeks and will include bus lanes and priority bus signalling on Barry Drive and a new ANU transit station integrated with the ANU exchange development and $8.2 million to build a transit lane on Canberra Avenue by 2013 to speed up the Red Rapid bus service.
A $4.1 million investment in a network of park-and-ride facilities along the transport corridors and at group centres will enable commuters to easily cycle or drive to their nearest facility, park their vehicle and hop on a fast public transport service. Park-and-ride facilities have been constructed at Purdue Street in Belconnen, at Exhibition Park in Canberra and at the expanded Mawson site. The park-and-ride construction
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