Northern beaches commuters to save 6 minutes a day on B-Line
Northern beaches commuters are set to save six minutes a day and gain 210 extra seats during the morning peak rush when the B-Line bus service rolls out on Sunday — but is it enough?
Manly
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COMMUTERS are set to save six minutes a day and gain 210 extra seats during the morning peak rush when the State Government’s $500 million B-Line bus service rolls out on Sunday.
State Cabinet documents, obtained by the Opposition under Freedom of Information, show the new double-decker bus service will only marginally improve trips to the city — and long-time northern beaches commuters remain sceptical about any predicted reduction in travel times.
Elizabeth Smith said her commute from Collaroy to Wynyard had become “unbearable” on overcrowded buses.
“I am born and raised in Sydney. I love Sydney but Sydney has choked. It’s not choking, it has choked,” the 32-year-old said. “It’s too busy — I’ve had enough.”
Ms Smith said the new B-Line service was “a huge expense” and “I strongly doubt there’s any real benefits in it”.
The 31km route will see 38 double-decker, limited-stop buses travelling between Newport and the CBD every five minutes in the morning and evening peaks and every 10 minutes at other times.
Transport Minister Andrew Constance said the B-Line would deliver a “better, more reliable service with a state-of-the-art bus fleet”.
Opposition transport spokeswoman Jodi McKay said “it’s just another transport white elephant”.
“The government has been very bullish in getting this done and there’s been a lack of community consultation where bus stops have been moved along the route,” she said.
Ms McKay said the B-Line was “ripe for the picking” in the government’s privatisation plans.
“The question is, will the government rule out privatising the B-Line before or after the next election?” she said.
Mr Constance said there was evidence that buses were more efficient under private operators.
“In electorates such as Fairfield ... there is a very clear benchmark difference with buses leaving depots on time, on-time running and performance, and customer satisfaction,” he said in Parliament last week.
Experts said the long and stressful commutes were having detrimental impacts on our personal lives.
“Long commutes eat into family life, where people are not seeing kids off to school or tucking them into bed at night,” said Professor Ann Williamson, a world-renowned authority on transport safety from the University of NSW.
“People get used to it but over time it affects the state of mind.
“People just function on autopilot.”
Prof Williamson and a colleague at the Transport and Road Safety Research Centre had completed a study on commuter fatigue which showed drivers were most at risk of crashing on their way to work.
“We tested 60 people over several months in a simulator and found people performed worst on mornings during a 30-minute commute behind the wheel due to the negative effects of long commuting,” she said.
CASE STUDY: Daily trip is ‘Horrendous’
ELIZABETH Smith has been catching the bus from Collaroy to the city for work for eight years and says she doesn’t believe the B-Line service will be a commuter saviour.
“The commuting time to the city has easily doubled since I moved from Balgowlah to buy a home,” Ms Smith, 32, said.
“I leave home at 7.45am, drop my son at kindy and catch the bus to Wynyard at 8am — if there’s one that isn’t full — and get there about 9.15am and then I walk down to Haymarket to my work.
“The bus trip to the city is so slow. I’ve had enough. I have no faith in the new B-Line service. I’m looking for work in Melbourne now.”
Another commuter, Narrabeen mum Virginia Brookes, will soon move to Umina, on the Central Coast, to “get my life back”.
“The commute is getting horrendous,” she said. “They want to keep developing the beaches and I am afraid the new hospital (at Frenchs Forest) is only the start of the problems. With all the land being sold off in Warriewood and Ingleside and all the new housing being built, the problem is only going to get worse.
“We are one of the only parts of Sydney that has no tunnel, no train line and the infrastructure is shocking.”
Ms Brookes said her 24km drive from Narrabeen to St Leonards for work was a minimum of an hour each way.
“It used to be 40 minutes each way,” she said. “The beaches has been ruined for the next few years. We have made the decision to go.
“I want my life back and more time with my family and less stress with a low mortgage.”