Metropolitan Transport Forum a chance to grill politicians about road and rail issues

INVESTING billions in buses is the key to tackling transport congestion in Melbourne, experts say. But would more frequent services encourage you out of the car and on to a bus?

INVESTING billions in bus services throughout Melbourne is the key to tackling road congestion and keeping the city moving, transport experts say.

Monash University public transport expert Professor Graham Currie said buses covered 70 per cent of greater Melbourne but were underused because they were too infrequent.

“To encourage people to use buses you need three things: frequency of services, frequency of services and frequency of services,” Prof Currie said.

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“At the moment the average frequency of bus services is 30 minutes.”

He said priority lanes and traffic signals for buses were also needed.

“We’re the only city left building roads and all that does is encourage more traffic,” Prof Currie said.

Experts say the key to tackling road congestion is increasing the frequency of bus services. Picture: Wayne Taylor.

“As our population grows we need to be more efficient in how we move people. Putting them all in cars doesn’t make a lot of sense.”

Metropolitan Transport Forum (MTF) chair Martin Zakharov agreed buses were a vital way of freeing up roads.

“If more major bus routes had more frequent services and more direct routes, buses would play an important role in reducing congestion,” Cr Zakharov said.

“If buses came every ten minutes on major routes across Melbourne patronage would increase substantially.”

With Melbourne growing at a rapid pace, transport is shaping up to be a top issue for many voters.

A series of forums, hosted by MTF and Leader Community News are giving readers the opportunity to grill their local candidates about their transport policies.

A special forum held at Melbourne Town Hall on August 13 will allow commuters who travel into, out of, or around the city to put their questions to Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan along with public transport spokesmen David Davis from the Liberal Party and Sam Hibbins from the Greens.

The August 13 forum is a chance to tell politicians what needs to be done to keep Melbourne moving. Picture: Rebecca Michael

“We need big plans to deal with a bigger city — our forums are an opportunity for the public to ask the big questions,” Cr Zakharov said.

Key issues to be discussed at the town hall forum include party commitments to Melbourne Metro 2, metropolitan rail and tram extensions, cycling infrastructure and planning transport to match population growth.

All forums are free and open to the public but RSVP is required.

The Melbourne-wide forum will be in the Swanston Room at Melbourne Town Hall, from 5.30-7.15pm on Monday, August 13.

For more information, a full list of upcoming forums or to RSVP, visit transportforum.org.au