Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 344 i Australasian Bus & Coach

I’ve heard stories about the good ol’ days when children were allowed to roam the streets barefoot as long as they made sure they were home in time for dinner. Sure, as a child in regional New Zealand, we were encouraged to get out of the house during daylight hours – long days at the local swimming pool come to mind – but by that time the internet had become more prevalent, and the world a much scarier place. As a bit of a late bloomer in the driving department of said small town, which has a few commuter train services each day an hour and a half away into the city, I was lucky my parents were willing to pick me up from my part-time job during high school.…

A route and design plan for New Zealand’s first urban busway has been submitted to Auckland Council, Auckland Transport (AT) announced this week. The designated route for the busway is between Panmure to Pakuranga in Auckland’s eastern suburbs and is a key project in AT’s plan to provide more frequent and reliable bus services. AT programme director Peter King says large numbers of new passengers, who would otherwise be adding to traffic congestion, are expected to be attracted by buses travelling on congestion free lanes every five to 10 minutes between Panmure and Pakuranga. The busway is expected to account for about 35 per cent of all journeys across Panmure Bridge in 2026, about 22,000 bus passengers a day. Safety improvements for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians are also an important…

CPB Contractors is the firm that will design and construct stage two of the Gold Coast light-rail line, the Queensland Government announced recently. The 7.3km extension of the existing G:Link service will connect the existing light-rail line at Gold Coast University Hospital station to heavy rail at the Helensvale station in time for the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast in April 2018. The project will cost $420 million, with the Queensland Government investing $270 million, $95 million coming from the Federal Government and $55 million from the Gold Coast City Council. The preferred contractor was selected following a rigorous evaluation process considering the best value for money bid, and an assurance construction will be complete by early 2018, to ensure the trams and integrated public transport system will be…

Major works on the $160 million O-Bahn Tunnel, which will support more than 450 South Australians in the construction, professional and technical services industries, has now commenced. South Australian transport Minister Stephen Mullighan says together with continuing projects, more than $6 billion of major infrastructure projects are underway or about to start. The first part of construction will focus on the priority bus lanes on Hackney Road, with construction of the tunnel to commence in April. The works on the centrally aligned priority bus lanes will include day and night works along Hackney Road between the Hackney Bridge and Botanic Road for approximately six weeks.…

A 35-year veteran of the Queensland bus industry has received one of the top honours at the annual Queensland Bus Industry Council (QBIC) awards. Kerry Leach from Brisbane Transport is one of the industry’s longest serving members, having worked in the network scheduling sector since 1983. Before moving to Brisbane Transport, Leach spent 25 years at Action Buses. The awards recognise and acknowledge excellence and long service in the bus and coach industry in Queensland, and were presented at the Gala Dinner of the Annual Conference 2016. “This person has been involved in the public transport industry for over 30 years,” QBIC executive director David Tape said. “He is universally recognised as one of the leading scheduling experts in Australia. His roles have included strategic planning and network design, scheduling/HASTUS…

Construction is about to start on a dedicated bus bridge and busway on Charles Street, north of Perth’s CBD. York Civil has been awarded the contract to design and build the project at a cost of $32.1 million with work to begin in April, the Western Australian (WA) Government announced recently. “This project will result in the removal of more than 1,000 buses a day from James and Fitzgerald streets in Northbridge, alleviating traffic congestion and improving local amenity and access,” WA transport minister Dean Nalder says. “This is a great congestion buster for our city, with benefits for bus users and motorists. “Northern suburbs passengers commuting to the CBD could have their journey times reduced by up to six minutes during peak times. “About 16,000 passengers a day will…

Michael Apps BIC National Secretariat PO Box 6171, Kingston ACT 2604 P: 02 6247 5990 F: 02 6273 1035 E: admin@bic.asn.au What creates traffic congestion? It all seems obvious. The road network cannot manage the traffic volume – it fills up with cars and it comes to a standstill, enraging drivers and creating productivity losses. Let’s not forget that cars are not the sole cause. We all love our cars and the freedom they provide, along with the convenience. A reason congestion has become a problem in Australia is that travel options available to car owners do not offer an alternative that is as convenient to driving your own car. However, public transport and school services can be much improved to make it a closer competitor. Have you ever noticed…

Achiever of the Year Kerry Leach, Brisbane Transport Environment & Innovation Transit Australia Group Supplier TAFE South West Apprentice of the Year Scott Tipper, Surfside Buslines Professional Driver Michael Ellis, Brisbane Transport Long Service Awards Polleys Coaches: 60 years Haidley’s Panoramic Coaches & Motors: 50 years Murray’s Australia: 50 years Neville & David Baldock: 50 years Logan City Bus Service: 40 years Thompson Bus Services: 35 years Southern Cross Transit: 35 years Campbell’s Coaches: 35 years Cross Country Tours: 35 years…

“As people age, isolation or social exclusion becomes a greater risk” Free bus fares for seniors are helping improve their mental and physical health of the older generation in South Australia (SA), according to research from the University of Adelaide. Adelaide senior citizens are making an average of 150,000 rides on public transport every week, aided by the provision of free public transport to seniors during off-peak times. BusSA executive director Lauran Huefner says the study shows bus operators and an engaged state government can play a vital role in the health and wellbeing of older people in the community. “What we do know from research is that as people age, isolation or social exclusion becomes a greater risk to their health and wellbeing,” Huefner says. “If older Australians don’t…

If you think all bus seats are cut from the same cloth, there is a high chance you are, in fact, correct. Camira is Australia’s largest supplier of public transport fabric, and by far the most prominent. The Melbourne-based arm of the United Kingdom manufacturer is responsible for the fabric on many Australian buses – including notable state operators State Transit Authority (New South Wales), Perth Transit Authority (Western Australia) and Brisbane City Council (Queensland) – and supplies passenger seat fabric to most Australian rail networks and alse the ferry industry. “Locally in Melbourne, we’re in most major bus networks and bus operations,” says Camira sales and marketing manager Rodney Peterson, noting Dysons Transdev, Ventura, Firefy and CDC among others. Peterson says the supplier deals with the majority of bus…

Nikki Brouwers The Interact Group founder and managing director P: 02 9460 2444 F: 02 9957 1000 E: nikki@ interactgroup.com.au Following recent catastrophic events in Brussels, the role of critical incident management has once again been making headlines, and the importance of having a structure in place has never been more widely acknowledged. Domestically, and indeed within the local New South Wales bus and coach community, we have had our own recent critical incident challenges to deal with. In the face of unexpected accidents, there has been widespread trauma for those both directly and indirectly involved in the industry. And this is the crucial point about critical incident management. The effects can be far reaching because our networks of co-workers, family and friends are also implicated…

Female-only train carriages should be introduced on metropolitan services in Australian cities, the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) proposed recently. Threatening, unwanted sexual or anti-social behaviour towards females is a problem on public transport and a deterrent for those who would use public transport services if they felt safer, particularly after dark. Rail, Tram and Bus Union national secretary Bob Nanva says industry must do more to protect commuters from thugs and perverts on public transport. More security staff are also being called for to help public transport users feel safer, especially at night. Since September 2012 there have been 2859 criminal offences against women on public transport, including almost 19 sexual offences against women on New South Wales buses, trams and trains every month, according to Nanva. Germany…

People on board buses approaching Sydney’s CBD from the south east are warned to expect delays as more of the city shuts to traffic while light-rail construction progresses from this week onwards. The latest work is centred around Moore Park as a new light-rail tunnel is dug out underneath Anzac Parade. Sydney CBD coordinator General Marg Prendergast says a temporary diversion is now in place on a busy section of Anzac Parade near Albert Tibby Cotter Bridge. All traffic on Anzac Parade will be directed onto the temporary road diversion and will return to normal around the middle of next year. This level of bus service disruption was to be avoided in initial plans, which involved keeping more roads open during construction – but the goal is now to reduce…

A loophole enabling New South Wales (NSW) public transport users to quickly accumulate free rides was closed with an upgrade to the Opal Card system this week. The Opal Card system rewards public transport users with free rides for the rest of the week once they have paid for eight trips. The loophole involved people walking, cycling or driving between stations to tap on and off, thereby earning free travel for rest of the week after only paying about $18. A spike in the number of short trips taken between neighbouring stations showed most people were pulling the stunt on Mondays and Tuesdays, Transport for New South Wales (TfNSW) revealed. The loophole also entitled those who had sneakily accumulated free travel to travel on the NSW bus and ferry network.…

Graeme McDonald A member of the Money Resources Group P: 03 8699 5000 F: 03 9690 9484 M: 0401 189 160 E: graeme@ moneyresources.com.au Over the last 18 months I have had the pleasure of watching the growth of my two young granddaughters. I never thought it would be possible to derive so much enjoyment from absolute amazement as they discover new things, simple things like the texture of a leaf in their hands, or seeing them chase a butterfy in the yard. The best thing is when you read them a fairytale and see their eyes light up as you put on a different voice or make the sound of an animal. So with that in mind, I thought I would tell you one of my own favourite…