Northern Beaches Council seeks to reopen discussions with state government over bus upgrades

RAPID commuter bus lines between Dee Why and Chatswood and from Mona Vale to Macquarie Park could be back on the table.

B Line Buses for Northern Beaches could be extended to Newport. Picture: Supplied.

RAPID commuter bus lines between Dee Why and Chatswood and from Mona Vale to Macquarie Park could be back on the table.

Also being mooted is a plan to extend the long-touted B-Line system — which would see double-decker buses arrive every 10 minutes during the day — an extra 3km to Newport.

At Thursday night’s Northern Beaches Council meeting, a plan was made to reopen negotiations with the State Government over better transport options for the northern beaches.

The council has sent a letter to Transport Minister Andrew Constance requesting a “meeting as a matter of priority” to discuss speeding up the State Government’s Northern Beaches Transport Action Plan.

Council also expressed a wish for the additional stop at Newport, and the express commuter services, with the minister.

An artists impression of the B Line new double buses bus stops which is set to transform public transport on Sydney's Northern Beaches. Picture: Supplied.

A council report stated: “With only three congested roads to and from the region, the slow and unreliable community to the city and other employment centres like Chatswood and Macquarie Park, as well as travelling around the region, represents a growing frustration for residents”.

At the meeting admin Dick Persson said a transport solution for the peninsula would remain “at the top of my list”.

He said the transport plan, announced by the State Government in November 2015, had to mean “residents can travel to a destination much faster than they would on a current bus and even faster than in a private car”.

He add that the halting of the B-Line at Mona Vale would cut off some on the northern end of the peninsula.

“With three lanes along Barrenjoey Rd to Newport, which has a large and under-utilised carpark, terminating the B-line at Mona Vale is a lost opportunity.

“By combining our resources, the Northern Beaches Council is in a strong position to work with the NSW Government to deliver the best possible transport solution.”

The 27km rapid transit bus system, including new stops and commuter carparks is expected to be up and running by late 2017.

Warringah Council had pushed for a rapid transit bus between Dee Why and Chatswood, which was not included in the final plans.

New Northern Beaches administrator Dick Persson and interim GM Mark Ferguson.

Former Warringah mayor Michael Regan said despite their best efforts, Mr Constance “made it clear there will be no BRT going east to west … but any extra pressure the administrator can add ... is a good thing”.

A spokeswoman for Transport for NSW said it was continuing to investigate options for the northern beaches.

“As part of this, it will investigate an extension of the B-Line, including an assessment of current and projected patronage numbers,” she said.

“Local and express services will be provided north of Mona Vale to provide connectivity with the B-Line and the Sydney CBD.”

She said additional services on the east west corridor are being developed to coincide with the opening of the Northern Beaches Hospital which is set for 2018.

She said Transport was “also examining opportunities to improve bus services between the Northern Beaches and Macquarie Park”.