State Election 2018: Liberals unveil policy to bust traffic snarls
A RE-ELECTED Liberal Government would build an underground transit mall in Hobart and wrest control of the city’s busiest streets from council in a bid to bust the city’s worsening traffic congestion.
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A RE-ELECTED Liberal government would build an underground transit mall in Hobart and wrest control of the city’s busiest streets from the council in a bid to bust the capital’s traffic congestion.
The party today will reveal plans for the new bus mall under Elizabeth St as a key part of a City Deal it is chasing with the Federal Government.
The state-of-the-art terminal would feature airport-style real-time arrival and departure information and smart ticketing and high-speed Wi-Fi across the network.
Premier Will Hodgman said public transport would be central to the plan to reduce Hobart’s traffic congestion — condemned as among the worst in the nation.
“Our bold vision for Hobart’s traffic network will transform the city centre, reduce congestion and provide the infrastructure needed for a modern, efficient public transport system,” Mr Hodgman said.
“A re-elected majority Liberal government will plan, design and develop a new bus transit centre in Hobart for both Metro and other bus companies, to be included as part of the Hobart City Deal.
“We anticipate it will be located centrally, potentially running underground in the vicinity of Franklin Square and Lower Elizabeth St with ramp access to deliver buses directly on to the main routes to the northern, southern and eastern suburbs.
“This is a transformational project for Central Hobart that will modernise Hobart’s public transport infrastructure and reduce congestion both throughout the city and the surrounding areas.”
The Liberal plan reflects the Hobart Transport Vision, which was quietly released by the Department of State Growth last week.
That document includes the transit hub and infrastructure for a ferry service to Bellerive and Rose Bay to take pressure off the Tasman Bridge.
It also contains plans to “activate the rail corridor” and prioritise public transit on Macquarie and Davey streets.
The report notes that Hobart is over-reliant on car transport, with 83 per cent of workers travelling by private car, often short trips, over a concentrated time period and mainly to the CBD.
“Constructing more roads alone will not solve the problem. It will simply create more traffic, more inner city congestion and reinforce our reliance on the car. Increasing the proportion of the population using public transport will reduce traffic congestion across the entire road network.”
It backs more-frequent public transit with smart ticketing, more park-and-ride facilities and better cycling and pedestrian amenity — noting that building more roads will not solve Hobart’s traffic problem.
The measures are intended to support increased housing density in inner city areas and head off the risk of urban blight.
Traffic congestion was one of the key issues identified by respondents to the Mercury’s Tassie 2022 survey.
Infrastructure Minister Rene Hidding said a Liberal government would legislate to take control of Macquarie and Davey streets from the Hobart City Council. “We will use existing legislation to take over the key CBD couplet of Davey and Macquarie streets from the Hobart City Council, which will allow us to install and enforce new clearways and extensions.”
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