Page 1184 - Week 04 - Thursday, 26 March 2015
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and cycling issues, something key stakeholders have requested. It will include the creation of an active transport coordinator who will be a high profile public contact on these issues.
This will ensure a continued focus on walking and cycling, and ensure there is a clear active transport infrastructure and planning decision-making framework for the territory. Some of Europe’s most successful cycling cities have used a similar strategy, creating a cycling office or a cycling coordinator to unify the various strains of government that have a role in outcomes for people who cycle. The results have been good, with improved public engagement and more efficient outcomes for government and the community.
There are opportunities for collaboration with other Australian cities in order to share information on active travel and progressive street design standards. This project would be based on the National Association of City Transportation Officials—NACTO—and that project has been successful in North America. The government will also be implementing recommendations from the Standing Committee on Planning, Environment and Territory and Municipal Services’ report on vulnerable road users. The recommendations relate to several government agencies but will be coordinated by the Justice and Community Safety Directorate and me.
This is an area where we intend to move swiftly. Already we have implemented a motorcycle lane filtering trial. This year I expect we will implement other major recommendations, including commencing a trial of a one-metre minimum overtaking distance for vehicles passing people on bicycles, reviewing driver competencies required to pass the driver licence test, and publishing new awareness and education material. The government launched its road safety campaign “Same rights, same rules” in January this year, which promotes the safe sharing of the road by people on bicycles and people driving.
Peak oil and climate change are two challenges that will change the way Canberrans live and which I am committed to addressing, including in the transport reform agenda. Peak oil refers to the point where the production of global oil peaks and then slides into irreversible decline. Canberra, being built on cheap oil like so many other cities, is vulnerable to the impacts of peak oil—expensive petrol, increasing costs to the government and households, and, potentially, a sudden shortage of oil that threatens the delivery of goods and services. That is why, as part of the transport reform portfolio, the government will produce a local peak oil action plan.
The transport reform agenda will include ACTION buses. It must include ACTION buses. ACTION is a significant part of government and of Canberra’s transport system. It has 417 buses, carries around 18.5 million passengers a year and receives an annual government payment of almost $100 million. Benchmarking shows that ACTION is relatively expensive compared to many other states’ bus networks, but it is also an essential service that makes a critical and positive contribution to our city. If we are to guarantee the best public transport for Canberra into the future, we need to look at ACTION’s performance and ensure it can both meet the needs of the community and be financially sustainable.
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