Fixing Sydney’s public transport requires a new Minister not ‘Uber’ buses

Media Release I 16 August 2017

Fixing Sydney’s public transport requires a new Minister not ‘Uber’ buses

NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance has today again demonstrated why is not up to the job with his announcement of on demand ‘Uber’ buses, a scheme that has failed in every city it’s been trailed in.

RTBU NSW Bus Secretary Chris Preston said “Minister Constance’s pie in the sky ‘Uber bus scheme’ has been trailed in Boston, Washington, Kansas and Helsinki and in all cases they have gone broke because the cost and subsidies per rider were simply too high.”

“Why on Earth is Minster Constance tipping taxpayers dollars into a scheme which has gone bust in every other place it’s been trailed?”

“We know the answer. He doesn’t know what he’s doing.”

Mr Preston said that the ‘Uber bus scheme’ had failed in other places because of ‘dead running’ where the bus runs empty from one job to another, and every kilometre travelled without passengers onboard adds to the cost.

“The result of increased ‘dead running’ will inevitably be exorbitant fares for passengers or excessive subsidies from Government.”

“This proposal is another dud and commuters and taxpayers will be left to pick up the tab for Constance’s incompetence.”

“If Minister Constance wants tips on how he can improve Sydney’s bus services he can start by cancelling his plans to sell them off, a move that has no public support and will result in higher fares, fewer stops and closed routes” Mr Preston said.

Today’s dud announcement adds to a growing list of public transport fails and cost blowouts.

“Just weeks ago it was revealed the new $2.1 billion central city tram line can never connect to the inner west tram line because Minister Constance was too lazy to insist they be standardised.”

“A $2.7 billion dollar light rail project connecting Parramatta to the city was canned after expensive planning work had already taken place and the central city project has blown out by a staggering $500m.”

“At this rate Andrew Constance will go down and the most incompetent Transport Minister in NSW history.”

“It’s time Premier Berejiklian gave him the boot and put in someone who knows what they’re doing” Mr Preston said.