Page 2921 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 14 August 2019
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As shifts for drivers on weekends are voluntary, shift allocation for weekend services takes place throughout the entire week, and it is a constant aim to make sure that as many services as possible run on weekends. As such, we do not stop trying to fill shifts at a fixed period in time, two days out from the weekend, for example. We continue to look for drivers all weekend to ensure that we are delivering as many services as possible. That is why we do not publish cancelled bus routes earlier in the week as the Liberals are calling on us to do as that would mean that we would not be delivering all of the weekend services possible.
The effect of publishing information days in advance would be to release inaccurate information based on which weekend shifts have been rostered up to that point in time. It would be counterproductive to give Canberrans incomplete information about the services available and suggesting that many services which ultimately are delivered would not be.
The government has been urging people to use the NXTBUS system, which provides information up to 90 minutes before travel, to find out whether the service is running. Of course, they can also call Access Canberra on 131710 to obtain the same information. I realise 90 minutes is not a huge period of time before bus services are delivered, but it is what the current system does.
The government is also looking at how we can invest in a new generation ticketing system for our city and replacing the NXTBUS system with an improved modern, real-time system that will enable better information to be provided in a more timely way to Transport Canberra customers. I will be pleased to update members on the progress of this project when the procurement process is finalised.
Further transparency of weekend reliability will be made available, and I am looking forward to providing regular updates on reliability of services on the weekends and across the week. But my focus is really on making sure that we are recruiting more bus drivers. We can communicate as much as we want about the reliability of services on the weekend but in order to deliver more services on the weekend we need more bus drivers. The rolling recruitment program we now have in place with Transport Canberra will help to deliver those extra services. We will continue to explore other options to improve the reliability of weekend services, and I look forward to providing further updates to the Assembly and the community.
In anticipation of Ms Le Couteur’s amendments to the motion, I support what she has called on the government to do. I have already acknowledged the impact that weekend reliability has had on Canberrans, and I am looking forward to reporting back to the Assembly on the matters outlined in the amendment.
An amendment has also been circulated in my name to provide further contextual information to the noting section about weekend services. I am looking forward to continuing to work on this issue as a priority, as I have done since the first week that I came into the portfolio. I move:
Omit paragraph (1), substitute:
“(1) notes that:
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