Page 2933 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 14 August 2019
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Anketell Street and around the laneways. From the 2015-16 financial year to 2018-19 the government has invested $7.5 million in the design and construction of the improvements I have mentioned.
The government has worked closely with businesses and the community to deliver and develop these projects to improve the public realm including: two rounds of public consultation via the your say website in 2016 for stage 1 one of the upgrades; consultation and workshops with targeted public stakeholders in early 2016 prior to the completion of detail designs, including Tuggeranong Community Council, Pedal Power and other relevant community, leaseholder and business representatives; a letterbox drop of thousands of residential community and commercial premises as well as three drop-in sessions to inform the design of stage 2 of the works; and direct engagement with South.Point and other businesses on Anketell Street on the progress of works from April 2018 and in the six months leading up to the commencement of construction in January 2019. That was predicated on the basis of feedback from businesses that they wanted to see works commence following the Christmas trading period. That was entirely reasonable and the government was able to accommodate that.
The government knows genuine consultation does not end when we break ground or cut a ribbon. My colleagues and I and the Transport and City Services Directorate are listening to the community in every district and working to find practical solutions to problems faced by Canberrans. Just this Monday, Joy Burch and I visited Anketell Street to talk with some of the businesses about the upgrades and their experience of them in the short time in which the construction has been completed.
I appreciated the opportunity to connect with some of the businesses there. I thank Joy Burch for her advocacy for Tuggeranong. Of course, it is very natural for me to consult with the local member for Brindabella who has been one of the strongest advocates for the upgrades to Anketell Street both during her time as a minister and a member. Joy Burch has been very much involved in the upgrades and will continue to be as we continue.
One issue that has been raised by Ms Burch on behalf of constituents is the bus services on Anketell Street. I have heard that from Tuggeranong Community Council. Ms Lawder recognised the fact that I was there listening to the community about the issues that are concerning them. This is something we have been thinking about, but the significant period of construction on both stages 1 and 2 of the works has meant that we had to reroute buses onto Cowlishaw Street while that construction takes place.
We are at a point in the sequencing of those construction activities that we can look at what we need to do from a capital upgrades point of view to accommodate buses in a different location. Of course we will do so in consultation with bus drivers themselves who have raised concerns in the past about safety on Cowlishaw Street. It is not the designated transport corridor for Tuggeranong. In order to accommodate buses on Cowlishaw Street in the long term we need to carefully consider what capital upgrades are required both on the corner of Reid and Cowlishaw streets and also on the corner near the Tuggeranong 55s club where there is a substantial dividing barrier between each side of the road making it quite a tight turn for large vehicles.
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