Page 186 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 14 February 2018
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In October last year, all of that changed. The No 5 route was cancelled altogether and the No 4 route was changed in a poor attempt to fill the void left by the cancellation of the No 5. Two bus routes were hastily stitched together to create a monster route by the poor judgement and short-term thinking of its creator. Let us call this the Franken-route.
The Franken-route has a number of issues. First, it is poorly synchronised with the No 6 route, and leaves patrons waiting for nearly 30 minutes for a connection. It no longer takes residents of Narrabundah to where they want and need to go. It travels a long, convoluted route which cuts out many stops. As an example, Dani of Narrabundah observed to me that for her journey home from Woden, she would have to get on the No 6 bus at Woden town centre, travel for 14 minutes, a total of 11 stops, get off at Goyder Street, near Narrabundah College, and either walk home from this stop, a journey of about 1.3 kilometres, or wait 29 minutes for the next No 4 bus and travel on that bus for four minutes, another five stops, to get home. That is a total of 47 minutes for a journey which previously took 10 to 20 minutes. This prolonged wait for a connection at Goyder Street is because the timetable has been so poorly coordinated that the No 6 is repeatedly missing the No 4 by one or two minutes, leaving patrons stranded for half an hour.
Public transport should be accessible to all. However, the Canberrans who rely on buses the most are our young Canberrans who do not have a car; our mobility-impaired Canberrans who can only rely on carers or friends to drive them and so are in need of effective bus options; and our elderly Canberrans who either no longer drive or do not feel confident driving on a daily basis. I note that in the amendment circulated by the minister she has at least acknowledged these vulnerable Canberrans, although I suspect that may be an effect of Ms Le Couteur. In a cold Canberra winter, is this government really asking these Canberrans to wait at a bus stop for half an hour for a connection?
Second, the Franken-route has almost doubled the journey time from old Narrabundah to the city. Frank of Narrabundah says that his commute to work has gone from 15 to 20 minutes on bus No 5 to a 35 to 40 minute journey, and involves either swapping buses or a very long walk. As many torch-wielding villagers have done, Frank has run away from and abandoned the Franken-route and now drives. Susan of Narrabundah is forced to pay expensive parking fees because the alternative, spending the hour each morning and hour each evening that it takes for her to get into town and home, is just not worth it.
The minister may claim, as she has done before, that consultations were conducted; that these changes are only for the better; and that she has received only glowing, positive feedback about the new services. We all know that that is just not true.
Between the hours of 8.15 am and 5.45 pm, every second No 6 bus which arrives at the Goyder Street stop leaves passengers with an almost 30-minute wait between buses. How can the minister look old Narrabundah residents in the eye and claim with any credibility that the new bus network offers more services and connectivity for them?
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