Page 4099 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 18 November 2015
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Therefore, given that the mode share for ACTION buses has gone down since Mr Rattenbury became minister, under Minister Rattenbury’s watch congestion has increased because the ACTION bus mode share has decreased. We now have only 6.9 per cent of people using ACTION to get to work. The target was 10.5 per cent by next year.
Yesterday was the first time the government has ever acknowledged that they are not going to get there. Mr Rattenbury said this in response to a question about whether we are going to make the 10.5 per cent target. It is extremely unfortunate that under this government’s watch we have seen a decrease in public transport usage despite all their rhetoric.
One of the changes that I mentioned earlier was the integration of the 200 series into the Gungahlin routes. Part of the rationale for that was that people do not like transferring at Gungahlin bus station. They would rather stay on the same bus and go all the way through. That was the same point when this government abolished the 333s, which many Canberrans would remember, and they introduced an integrated 300 series.
In effect, buses in Belconnen and buses in Tuggeranong do a suburban route and then turn into the 333. The government did that because they said people do not like transferring. The Auditor-General’s report states that there is a 55 per cent decrease in patronage when people have to transfer. Under a Labor government with a Greens minister, we have seen the 200 series integrated and we have seen the 300 series integrated to avoid transfers. Now what this government is doing is basing their entire transport policy on transfers.
Their entire light rail policy is dependent upon people either driving and parking, and then hopping on a tram, or getting a feeder bus and then hopping on a tram. The Auditor-General says that there will be a 55 per cent decrease in public transport usage when you have to transfer. This is a government that acknowledged that and therefore did away with the single 200 and did away with the single 333 by and large, albeit with a route 200 and route 300 that occasionally run. But by and large they have an integrated Gungahlin service and an integrated Belconnen and Tuggeranong service to avoid transfers.
There is a real disconnect with this government’s transport planning. That is exactly what the Auditor-General says. This is a government that cannot plan properly and it is a government that cannot deliver transport properly. Given these home truths, given the facts of their own administration with regard to the integrated services, their inability to ease congestion or to get more people riding public transport, I would therefore think that those opposite would reject the amendment and vote for the original motion.
Question put:
That the amendment be agreed to.
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