Page 983 - Week 03 - Thursday, 10 March 2016
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However, these facts never seem to enter the dialogue of the Canberra Liberals. I understand that they have decided they need to take this approach to win this year’s election. I think it is unfortunate they feel the need to talk Canberra down instead of presenting a positive vision of Canberra’s future, like this government is doing.
One of the ACT government’s key priorities is to improve our transport system. To manage Canberra’s growth, reduce congestion and protect our livability, we are committed to improving our whole public transport system. This is a key plank of this government’s vision to create a vibrant, sustainable and livable city that upholds our recently gained titles.
The ACT government’s public transport improvement plan sets out how we will improve our public transport system so it becomes more convenient, efficient, affordable and reliable, a genuine alternative to driving. On 1 July we will establish a new agency, transport Canberra, which will be responsible for integrating buses with the new light rail, ensuring a single ticketing system, a central contact for information and coordinated timetabling. We have also committed to redistributing buses freed up by the light rail line within the bus network, creating an even better service for suburbs across Canberra.
The government is committed to innovation in public transport. Already travellers on ACTION are able to access wi-fi on some of our businesses through our wi-fi trial. More than 80 per cent of our fleet is equipped with bike racks, and we are looking at ways to expand it to more buses. We have made it easier for people to carry goods such as fold-up bikes on board.
Of course, there is the government’s flexible transport service, which provides door-to-door transport for vulnerable members of our community, including the elderly and those with a disability who lack access to regular transport services.
Despite what we hear from those opposite, it is often remarked that Canberra has some of the best roads in Australia. Indeed, in TAMS’s latest annual satisfaction survey, it was found that the ACT has the best roads in Australia when benchmarked against 52 similar councils. This included in the areas of road construction and maintenance as well as traffic and parking management. The ACT’s footpaths and cycle paths were also the highest ranked.
Canberrans make close to one million trips a day for the purpose of attending work, commercial, educational, social and/or recreational activities. In addition to this, there are many more trips generated from outside the ACT that pass through or have the ACT as a destination. To support these transport movements in a safe, effective and efficient manner, the ACT has in place an infrastructure network that includes over 3,300 kilometres of roads, 964 bridges, 2,400 kilometres of footpaths, 77,000 streetlights, 3,700 kilometres of stormwater drains, 420 kilometres of cycle paths, over 410 kilometres of on-road cycle lanes and over 300 sets of traffic lights. Each part of this infrastructure network supports the important and essential transport services that are required for the economic and social development of a city with a population closing in on 400,000 people.
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