Geelong’s park and ride service will be axed as the City of Greater Geelong looks to cut costs.
A review found operating costs and reduced passenger numbers meant the service was no longer financially viable.
Council said, the program was running at four percent occupancy. It has capacity to move 1500 passengers each day but is averaging around 73 daily or 1517 passengers a month so far this year. Last year, an average of just 1421 people used the service each month.
Council said the COVID-19 pandemic and a trend towards working from home has affected patronage, with passengers dropping to an average of 802 and 854 per month in 2020 and 2021 respectively. Passenger numbers are still under 50 per cent of pre-pandemic numbers.
The park and ride has been wholly outsourced for the last five years. The fixed cost to run the service, regardless of the number of passengers, means that a $3 ticket costs the community $33.68.
There are two similar bus routes – 32 and 60 – that commuters can utilise in place of this service. Hybrid working has reduced the demand for parking in central Geelong, Council said.
The service, which has been operating since 2005, will end on Friday 19 May.
Director City Planning & Economy Gareth Smith said poor usage coupled with a fixed price contract makes the cost per passenger unsustainable.
“We recognise that community members who use the Central Geelong Park and Ride shuttle will be disappointed by the news that the service is ending,” he said.
“Like other organisations, the City is facing a challenging economic climate with rising costs, the impacts of inflation and financial uncertainty arising from the pandemic.
“The park and ride is a discretionary service and unfortunately, the spend doesn’t represent value to the broader community, the City or the environment.
“This is not a sustainable commercial and financial position to be in and as a result, we are having to make tough choices as we focus on protecting core services.”
Commuters looking for guidance on how to find alternative parking arrangements in central Geelong can visit geelong.link/Central-Geelong-Parking-Options.
The Central Geelong Park and Ride service runs every 10 minutes in the morning and evening peaks on weekdays between Upper Hearne Parade, Eastern Park and three locations in central Geelong.
