Liberal Dr Kylie von Muenster defends public transport privatisation

A Liberal candidate running to unseat a Labor incumbent in Sydney’s southeast has rejected claims the state’s bus privatisation was behind traffic chaos on eastern suburbs roads.

(L-R): Liberal candidate for Vaulcuse Kellie Sloane and Liberal candidate for Coogee Dr Kylie von Muenster.

A Liberal candidate running for an eastern suburbs seat has scrambled to defend the privatisation of bus services in Sydney’s east, denying it was a privatisation and comparing it to a franchise system “like McDonalds”.

Dr Kylie von Muenster, the Liberal candidate for Coogee, defended the NSW Government’s stance on buses in southeast Sydney at an election panel debate at Moriah College on Wednesday, hosted by the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies.

“It’s like McDonalds,” Ms Von Muenster said, adding the NSW transport office still controlled routing and the timetabling.

The comments followed accusations by incumbent Coogee Labor MP Marjorie O’Neill that public transport privatisation was to blame for east Sydney’s traffic chaos.

“If you are feeling congestion on the road, you think it’s taking you longer to get places, it absolutely is – because the Liberal government moved 31 bus routes from our community,” Ms O’Neill said.

NSW Labor member for Coogee Marjorie O'Neill. Picture: Joel Carrett.

The Coogee MP shared the stage with rival Ms von Muenster, along with candidates vying for the seat of Vaucluse, Liberal candidate Kellie Sloane, Labor candidate Margaret Merten, and community independent Karen Freyer.

Ms O’Neill said a recent upper house inquiry into the implications of bus privatisation found 83 per cent of people who used to catch a bus now drive.

NSW Jewish Board of Deputies CEO Darren Bark (third from left) hosting the Jewish community Vaucluse and Coogee election forum on Wednesday night with Jewish Board of Deputies President David Ossip (fourth from left). Picture: Giselle Haber.

“We know that there are more cars on our roads, because there isn’t adequate public transport to take us where we need to go,” Ms O’Neill said.

Ms von Muenster said the light rail service developed to augment Sydney’s bus services was a “good piece of infrastructure” which moved more than 450 passengers in a single trip.

Ms O’Neill hit back that the [eastern suburbs] light rail “cost $3.5m and it doesn’t work in the heavy rain”.

Ms Merten said while the NSW Government recently announced active transport policy was a good idea, it would “only works when you have decent public transport”.

NSW Jewish Board of Deputies 2023 Election Forum Vaucluse & Coogee. Picture: supplied.

The panel, moderated by NSW Jewish Board of Deputies CEO Darren Bark, marked the two week point before votes were cast in what is expected to be a tight state election.

Labor holds the Coogee seat by a slim 2.3 per cent, while a swing away from the Liberals in Vaucluse would be the first in the seat’s 96-year history.

Liberal candidate for Vaucluse Kellie Sloane pointed to the Perrottet government’s $10m commitment to upgrade the major state roads of Bondi Rd, New South Head Rd and Old South Head Rd as evidence of the state government’s investment in transport infrastructure.

“You’ve got a choice of a government that has been keeping NSW moving forward for the last 12 years, mega project after mega project, with $110m in forward estimates and future projects that are probably going to be stopped under Labor,” Ms Sloane said.