Gerald Lynch
After having his free bus proposal blocked in state Parliament, Western Metropolitan MP David Ettershank is vowing to continue a fight for better buses in the west.
The Braybrook based, Legalise Cannabis MP, called for a 12-month trial of free buses to ease cost of living pressures coupled with the bus route review.
“Unfortunately, the government and opposition shot down this sensible proposal, with the Liberals arguing that there’s no such thing as ‘free’ yet all Victorian MPs get free public transport for life – this is hypocrisy,” Mr Ettershank said.
“If Queensland can introduce 50 cents public transport fares for all trips, why can’t Victoria have free buses?
“In the western suburbs, studies have found a $100 million investment could deliver a frequent bus service to more than one million people for a year – what a great investment. I will continue to fight for a fair go for everyone in the west.”
Mr Ettershank said a review of the path buses travel hadn’t taken place for more than a decade, and in that time new suburbs such as Mount Atkinson had been established which have limited public transport.
“In Mount Atkinson, your choice is a 40-minute walk to the bus stop along unsealed pavements and through paddocks or 75-minute walk to the Rockbank Station, that is atrocious,” he said.
“We have far too many people in Melbourne’s west who do not have access to decent buses and that needs to change. Put simply it should be no more than 15 minutes to walk to your bus stop, and no more than 15 minutes to wait for a bus.
“Access to public transport is a critical factor to many people, particularly in outer suburbs where cost of living pressures are huge. Typically, we see houses with three to four cars simply because people can’t access public transport.
“No one wants to sit on a bus for an hour that takes you to a place you could drive to in 10 minutes, these need to be rerouted.
“Our inefficient and unreliable public transport entrenches social disadvantage and isolation, increases cost of living pressures and generates more traffic congestion on our roads and pollution.”
A state government spokesperson said the government was committed to improving the delivery of bus services.
“We offer a range of generous concessions, including two-hour and daily capped fares, student concessions and our Early Bird initiative for free train travel if you touch off before 7.15am,” the spokesperson said.
“We are giving communities across Melbourne better access to buses – delivering more than $550 million in new and improved bus services across the state since 2014.”
