Thursday, 1 August 2024

Pascoe Vale electorate bus services

Anthony CIANFLONE (Pascoe Vale) (17:30): (758) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Public and Active Transport, and the action I seek is for the minister to provide my community with an update on the rollout of the Victorian government’s bus plan across my community of Pascoe Vale, Coburg and Brunswick West. All locals should be afforded access to sustainable and safe transport options. Along with ongoing investments and opportunities to improve the Upfield rail corridor – including through the removal of the level crossings through Coburg – the Craigieburn rail corridor, local tram routes and other road safety upgrades for local roads, streets and active transport corridors, improving our local bus connections will also continue to be an ongoing priority for my community, because buses go where rail cannot.

In our growing suburbs buses will become increasingly central to our local community’s public transport network. As set out in Infrastructure Victoria’s Get on Board discussion paper, Melbourne’s bus network is actually the largest of all public transport services in Melbourne, carrying 120 million passengers per year on more than 400 bus routes through 19,000 metropolitan bus stops and operating almost 2000 buses. It is buses that are often the closest form of public transport for many Melburnians, with around 82 per cent of Melbourne’s dwellings situated within 400 metres or a 5-minute walk of a bus route, compared to 30 per cent for trains and 20 per cent for tram services. However, despite this coverage, which represents around 30 per cent of funding of four metropolitan public transport operations, buses typically account for just 20 per cent of public transport commuter trips.

Across my community of Merri-bek we are serviced by well over a dozen north–south and east–west local bus routes serviced by a number of diligent bus operators. These routes are also serviced by many hardworking local bus drivers who are proudly Transport Workers’ Union, TWU, members. However, whilst my community has some of the highest public and active transport take-up rates in the state, when it comes to commuting to work only 3 per cent have been reported to catch a bus, compared to 14 per cent who catch a train, 14 per cent who catch a tram and 7 per cent who ride bikes. That is why the Victorian Labor government has recognised the ongoing potential for a better bus system through the Victorian bus plan. The bus plan signals a refreshed approach to renewing Victoria’s bus network, with key priorities including reforms that will help make the network simpler, faster and more reliable; introducing a cleaner, smarter and more sustainable fleet with 100 per cent electric buses from next year onwards; having better performing buses, enhancing the community experience; improving systems management; and delivering better value for money.

However, crucial to delivering on these ongoing reforms will be to ensure that we are working closely with local communities, bus operators and transport workers – namely, with the TWU. That is why today I was so proud to have hosted the first TWU parliamentary bus forum, which brought together a number of people from across the bus industry to meet MPs to discuss, consider and work towards responding to the challenges and opportunities on the horizon. Along with key operators, including Dyson Group, Kinetic, Transit Systems Victoria, CDC Victoria and Christian’s Bus Company, it was a pleasure to have welcomed the Premier of Victoria; the Minister for Public and Active Transport; Mem Suleyman, the Victorian state secretary for the TWU; Dissio Markos, the TWU assistant secretary; Emily McMillan, the TWU national assistant secretary; Matt Rocks from TWUSUPER; and the many other ministers, MPs and delegates who attended. TWU hosted this forum to improve on-road facilities, design safer and sustainable timetables and create better infrastructure for drivers and transport workers and communities.