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Wednesday, December 09, 2009
Adjournment
I call on the Minister for Public Transport to release the long-awaited review of Doncaster bus services. Bringing forward the time frame, the review was officially announced by the Minister for Public Transport during a visit to Manningham in October 2007. The government grandly announced it again in February 2008, and that was followed by a lengthy round of hearings and submissions with the community. Originally the review's results were due to be released in late 2008, then early in 2009. Their release was then delayed until mid-2009 and has now dragged on another six months. This matter has dragged on so long that we are now back to the original time frame, and commuters are still crowded onto buses. Even the Labor mayor of the Manningham City Council is frustrated with the delays and is on record in June as saying:
- ... Manningham has some of the most shocking public transport ...
- it is desperate ... we need (the results) as soon as possible.
Adding to this pressure is the government's recent announcement that Doncaster Hill will be the home to a high-rise social and affordable housing development, with a key argument for the proposal being that it is close to Westfield Doncaster bus terminal. This is a further reason for providing better public transport options. Currently Doncaster public transport users have bus services which are infrequent at weekends and non-peak times and are often overcrowded in peak times.
This is not the only public transport matter in Doncaster on which the government is dragging its feet. Meeting Our Transport Challenges outlines the Doncaster bus upgrade, which included more park-and-ride opportunities.
Two years ago council investigated and put forward three suggestions for preferred sites for the park-and-ride facilities in Manningham, but we have had nothing from the government.
In September 2008 the minister told me the government was investigating options at a number of sites within Manningham, including the council's options. Since then another year has passed and still we wait.
All we have had is the bright idea from Brian Tee, a member for Eastern Metropolitan Region in the Council, to install a bike cage at the overcrowded park-and-ride station. He said that residents riding to the park-and-ride station instead of driving would ease the problems of overcrowding.
I know Mr Tee does not live anywhere near his electorate, but even he should know that the Doncaster park-and-ride station is at the bottom of a large hill that is apparently so steep that this government has argued it cannot run a tram up the road to Westfield Doncaster. Yet this member believed that residents would happily don their lycra and helmets and cycle up this hill after a long day at work, so the existing bike lockers were replaced with brand-new ones, costing $60 000. But -- surprise, surprise! -- there is little interest. Someone from the Manningham Leader visited the new bike cage on four days last week and each time the cage was empty. The money would have been far better spent releasing the conclusions of the bus review and providing the public transport services that Doncaster residents want and definitely need.
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