Route 150 trippers adamant they want their service to stay
Regular users will know most bus trips are completed in silence, but many of the 56 passengers on our mid-day route 150 round trip to and from Osborne are happy to talk, at least about this issue.
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“So this is one of those ghost buses that nobody catches, is it?’’ jokes Margaret Colmer as she indicates with a wave of her hand some of about 20 people around her.
Ms Colmer mocked a State Government claim that bus service cuts announced yesterday were because some routes were almost unused.
Regular users will know most bus trips are completed in silence, but many of the 56 passengers on our midday route 150 round trip to and from Osborne are happy to talk, at least about one issue.
The State Government is cutting the frequency of their services, part of $3.5 million annual savings it hopes to make by cutting runs which have less than an average of five people, or are close to rail lines.
In the case of Route 150, Transport Minister Stephan Knoll argues it is very close to the Outer Harbor rail line, which during morning peak hour can get commuters to the city 36 minutes faster than the bus. The bus route is facing reduced frequency of runs between 9.40am and 3.25pm, Monday to Friday, under the cuts.
James Tollefsen, who is disabled by diabetes and walks with the aid of a cane, said he would have to walk 20 minutes to the nearest train station “even if I could make it with my bung leg”.
“The bus stop is two minutes away and it is convenient, and if I couldn’t get that I would only get around by getting a lift,’’ Mr Tollefsen, 49, said.
“I was disgusted and it will do nothing to help the public.’’
One of several trained nurses on the 150 yesterday said mobility was an important issue in maintaining the service.
Jess Quinn, heading into the city for Christmas shopping, said it would be much further for people to walk to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital if they caught the train.
“My train station at Woodville is creepy at night and it is an extra 10-15 minutes walk to get there,’’ she said.
Felicity Williams, 69, was visiting her sister in Allenby Gardens, and said she took the 150 or a similar route every few days.
“It is much longer to walk to the train and I am getting a bit older,’’ she said.
“There are more and more elderly people reliant on public transport and I am surprised to hear about the cuts because I think they should be making the service better and that would mean more people would use the service as well.’’
Hannah Taylor, 22, said she caught the train into the city through her school years but train stations were more dangerous after dark than bus stops.
“The bus route is also not always close to the train line all the way into the city,’’ she said.
“There is an increasing older population towards Port Adelaide also, and in areas nowhere near the train line, so the service will be more important. The trains are also often flooded with schoolchildren, which makes it difficult for the elderly.’’
One passenger, Mick, said he was angry when he read The Advertiser yesterday and discovered 110 trips would be cut from 30 routes.
“I think it stinks, but I think there are some routes they could cut,’’ he said.
Sasha St George, 45, and Lillian Opitz, 24, were hurrying to a 1pm appointment at Semaphore.
“There is a different crowd on the trains and I feel a lot safer on the bus and it takes the same amount of time,’’ Ms St George said.
We will fight them on the buses – Labor
The State Opposition will champion the cause of stranded commuters and fight a Government decision to cut 110 bus runs from 30 routes.
The Advertiser yesterday revealed the first $3.5 million in cuts from $46 million to be slashed from public transport, announced in the September Budget. Some services cut from January were axed because fewer than five people a day on average use them, and others because the bus routes were duplicated by rail lines.
Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas condemned the plan after visiting his nearby bus stop at 5.30am yesterday.
“The Government’s calculation here is that this is a group of people who don’t have a voice, well we are going to give them one,’’ he said.
“The Marshall Liberal Government is treating public transport users with contempt.’’
Mr Malinauskas rejected the Government’s decision to cut services where the daily average dipped below five passengers.
“Some of these services may only have a few people on them, but shift workers rely on these buses to get them to and from work,’’ he said.
“Many are on lower incomes and can’t afford to drive themselves to work and pay for parking. Public transport is for people, not profit.’’
UnitingCare Wesley spokesman Mark Henley said he was open to the argument that bus services could be reduced if they ran along a rail line.
“But public transport is an essential service for people who have no other way of getting around,’’ he said.
“There is an economic argument as well because especially for people in the outer suburbs good public transport is essential to pursue job opportunities.”
Many of the bus runs to be cut are the first and last trips of the day, and Mr Malinauskas also claimed Labor-held seats had been targeted.
“I was up and about at 5.30am at a bus stop in Brompton and there were real people on the bus, working in shift jobs, going into town to make coffee for people, cleaning the hospitals,’’ he said.
“We will fight them on the bus cuts, because the whole idea of public transport is it is there to provide a service.’’
The State Government argued in the Budget that the cuts were needed as part of an overall repair strategy for SA finances, which required $715 million in cuts by 2021-22.
Changes to timetables will not be finalised until mid January and will not begin until January 27.
Mr Malinauskas said the Liberal Government had already shown its disapproval of public transport by:
CUTTING funding for Footy Express services.
AXING free services for the Christmas Pageant.
CANCELLING trains during the Adelaide Test Match.
REDUCING services over Christmas.
Reaction among The Advertiser readers to the changes was largely mixed.
“We can see Marshall’s true colours slash spending on transportation for the disadvantaged but make money freely available to build a hotel where it is not needed,” Tim wrote on advertiser.com.au
Another reader, Heath, said: “Adelaide’s bus network needs to be simplified.”
Woodles said: “Is it any wonder SA has the lowest percentage of public transport using commuters in the Country. Backward thinking.”
Ann: “I imagine there will be people who cannot get to work due to these changes.”
Shane: “Finally a government who is fiscally responsible and doesn’t just spend.”
Transport Minister Stephan Knoll denied claims that the bus runs being axed in January were all on routes that ran through Labor electorates.
Additional savings are expected to be made when bus companies tender for new contracts to operate Adelaide’s services. Mr Knoll would not rule out more service cuts like those in January, but said there were none planned at this stage.
Nothing new about Adelaide public transport cuts
2001-06
Bus travel times increased by as much as 20 per cent over five years as the service is run down.
2006
Less used bus routes lose some runs to give more to 15-minute Go Zones near the city.
2007
The Wandering Star buses running between 12.30am and 5am to get people safely home on Fridays and Saturdays, are axed.
2012
After major route changes almost half of the bus services to the northeast are either running late or not at all and bus companies are fined; Transfield $121,345, Southlink $50,455 and Torrens Transit $46,043.
2014
Public transport services cut for 12 days over the festive season to save $150,000. One hundred bus routes, trams and trains run on reduced services.
2015
Four footy express bus routes dropped for the 2015 AFL season to save money.
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