Page 3717 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 28 October 2015
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The rapid expansion of Canberra and the wholesale import of commonwealth government departments and staff happened from the 1960s. This was at the same time as those rickety old tram and street car light rail systems dating back to the start of the century or earlier were suffering their death rattles in cities like Sydney and Los Angeles, which were giving in to the great urban sprawl.
Back then, Civic was just a few buildings and we had plenty of space for acres and acres of parking, but we do not now. The car ruled in the design of Canberra as tram networks died in so many cities. This seems to be the golden age the Canberra Liberals are stuck in—the Liberals that time forgot.
Now so many cities such as Sydney, under the government of the New South Wales Liberals, are getting into light rail, with the route from Randwick to George Street underway. But the New South Wales Liberals, indeed the federal Liberals now, are not investing in the old noisy, uncomfortable rattlers running on bumpy, uneven tracks that some critics like to invoke, equating light rail with 19th century technology. These are 21st century, efficient, modern people-moving systems, with a smooth, fast ride and easy electronic ticketing.
As you will hear today, the light rail system we are introducing and eventually rolling out across Canberra will be fully integrated with our modern bus system. Passengers will be able to move seamlessly from one mode to another with the same ticketing system built on Canberra’s MyWay card.
With the opposition’s focus on rubbishing public transport and light rail, this government has not received the credit it is due for the innovations in the ACTION bus system. This includes the fairly smooth introduction of MyWay cards. We avoided many possible pitfalls with MyWay having learned from the failures of some interstate ticketing systems. As an aside, Madam Deputy Speaker, our new light rail system is also technology already proven and now used in many cities worldwide.
The rollout of ACTION’s NXTBUS system is another major advance. The NXTBUS app on a passenger’s mobile phone is a powerful tool. It is giving passengers accurate live information about routes and the next services to arrive at the bus stops the passenger selects. I am looking forward to the further developments with MyWay, including payment by mobile phone apps. Digital Canberra is getting aboard the buses in so many ways, including the rollout of wi-fi. I am sure we would be dazzled if we could see what will be available in the digital interface with our transport options in a few years time. Ride sharing, car sharing, Uber, taxi booking and tracking and on-demand public transport will all transform our options and rely on smart phone technology.
The finetuning of the ACTION bus network allowed by MyWay ticketing data is greatly improving the efficiency of the service and the ability to schedule the services people want. Of course, the Canberra Liberals say they will just sling a few more buses on Canberra’s roads, reduce overheads, sack a few drivers and a few bureaucrats and all will be okay. They think there is no need to think any more deeply about our transport needs over the next quarter century, or congestion or parking or
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