Axed bus trials ‘cost up to $335 per head’

By Michelle Herbison
SUBSIDIES of up to $335 a passenger have convinced State Government to scrap a Bannockburn loop bus trial introduced under Labor, Transport Minister Terry Mulder has revealed.
Mr Mulder said the service was so underused that only one in 10 trips carried a single passenger.
The Bannockburn loop was one of four Transport Connections Program bus trials to be scrapped in the Geelong region this week.
The Government also axed services running from: Moriac to Waurn Ponds and Torquay; Queenscliff to Jan Juc; and Winchelsea and Moriac to Waurn Ponds and Torquay.
The program’s Colac-to-Lorne service is under review.
Mr Mulder said the Moriac-to-Waurn-Ponds-and-Torquay bus carried fewer than two passengers a trip.
But a Geelong-to-Bannockburn route would become permanent, he said.
“This local bus has been well-supported by local communities, carrying an average of slightly more than seven passengers a trip,” Mr Mulder said.
Mr Mulder confirmed the Government would cancel 30 routes around the state, make 27 permanent and reassess 10.
“Labor grossly mismanaged projects such as Transport Connections and wasted millions of taxpayers’ dollars,” he said.
Mr Mulder pointed to a 2011 Auditor General’s finding that cast doubt on whether the Transport Connections buses were worthwhile.
Shadow transport minister Fiona Richardson said the cuts would impact students, the elderly, disabled and unemployed.
“These improved transport services provided rural and regional Victorians with opportunities to attend medical appointments, work, attend social functions and contribute to local economies,” she said.
“Labor introduced the Transport Connections Program to improve transport options for people living in rural and regional Victoria.”
Public Transport Users Association Geelong convener Paul Westcott said the program was an “obvious target” for cost cutting.
“Because it was just a stop-gap measure it couldn’t provide services people were going to use in any real way. The services were run on a shoestring.”
Mr Westcott said the initial proposal was “like a glorified taxi service” for people unable to drive.
But council-employed coordinators involved in the program had identified a need for more timetabled buses, he said.
“We’d like to see a more-comprehensive and well-planned regional and rural bus and public transport network.”