State Greens - Greg Barber as spokesperson on public transport
Greens MLC Greg Barber said "A study by the Public Transport Users Association shows an average wait between train-bus connections of 11 minutes and more than 20 minutes in some cases."
"Fixing this is probably the single cheapest way to speed up people's travel time. These delays explain why so many people drive to the station, leading to huge parking problems," Mr Barber said.
"At the moment it's nobody's job to make this happen and there's no target date to fix it. We will establish a task force with access to software tools and international experts who specialise in this," Mr Barber said.
"Long waits at empty stations make people feel unsafe. Under our plan, you'll see the bus driver there waiting for you when you get off the train," Mr Barber said.
"At the coming state election, The Greens will seek a mandate to fix public transport, across Melbourne and across Victoria. We will create a powerful and accountable Public Transport Authority to plan, manage and integrate all public transport services across Victoria," Mr Barber said.
The Greens public transport plan includes establishing a task force to coordinate bus timetables with trains and trams to eliminate these issues.
Port Phillip Council - Greens Councillor John Middleton
Port Phillip Council has succeeded with its advocacy for the upgrade to the 606 bus route. The Department of Transport has announced that the long anticipated upgraded Route 606 bus service will come into operation on the 12 December 2011. The extension of this route has been part of Council's ongoing advocacy strategy to the State Government across all levels of the organisation since the release of Council’s Public Transport Advocacy Statement in 2009.
Bus Route 606, which currently runs from St Kilda to Fishermans Bend, Monday to Friday, will be extended to Elsternwick Rail Station with weekend services introduced for the first time. This extended route will provide connections to the Fishermans Bend industrial precinct, Port Melbourne, Gasworks Park, St Kilda Beach, Elwood College and Elsternwick Railway Station.
The upgraded Route 606 will run:
• On weekdays between Fishermans Bend and Elsternwick every 40 minutes, between 6am and 7pm; and
• On weekends between Bay Street and Elsternwick hourly between 8am and 7pm on Saturdays and hourly between 9am and 7pm on Sundays.
Currently minor works to ensure Disability Discrimination Act compliance of some of the bus stops along the route are being undertaken by Council’s contractors and should be completed by 15 March 2012.
Yarra Ranges Council - Greens Councillor Samantha Dunn
In addition to representing constituents in the Yarra Ranges across a range of transport and road issues, Samantha is currently the Chair of the Eastern Transport Coalition (ETC). One of the goals of the ETC is to improve bus services in the east of Melbourne and reduce dependence on cars.