Page 1197 - Week 04 - Wednesday, 6 April 2016
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The Auditor-General’s report No 9 of 2015 is, in effect, a scathing account of this government’s management of public transport. Under the former minister responsible for ACTION, patronage went backwards each year. Each year of Mr Rattenbury’s leadership of ACTION, patronage went backwards. And he comes in here today to try to lecture us about public transport. Public transport under Mr Rattenbury was a disgrace. The evidence is there in each annual report, culminating, of course, in the Auditor-General’s inquiry into the frequent network.
We very much believe Canberrans deserve a better public transport system than what they currently have. But we want to restore pride in ACTION. We want people to see ACTION as being the primary and preferred mode of transport in Canberra. However, under what the government is proposing, ACTION is going to be a poor cousin; it is going to be a second-class system to light rail.
As we all know, right across the ACT government funds are being drained from every agency to go into light rail. There was never the same attention paid to public transport in ACTION. There has never been any genuine willpower from the government to restore confidence in ACTION. But as soon as there is a light rail proposal on the table it seems everything stops and all attention is paid to that one line, despite the fact that it is going to cost a fortune and provide a worse public transport outcome than what we presently have.
The Canberra Liberals are going to prioritise all of Canberra. We are going to prioritise a genuine public transport system that is effective and efficient. Therefore, we urge members of the Assembly to support this motion and to affirm what every report tells us, that is, that buses are the most effective and efficient way to serve all Canberrans.
Question put:
That Ms Fitzharris’s amendment be agreed to.
The Assembly voted—
|
Ayes 9 |
Noes 8 | ||
|
Mr Barr |
Ms Fitzharris |
Mr Coe |
Ms Lawder |
|
Ms Berry |
Mr Gentleman |
Mr Doszpot |
Mr Smyth |
|
Dr Bourke |
Mr Hinder |
Mrs Dunne |
Mr Wall |
|
Ms Burch |
Mr Rattenbury |
Mr Hanson | |
|
Mr Corbell |
Mrs Jones | ||
Question so resolved in the affirmative.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.
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