❓ Mr. Norberger asks about addressing public transport challenges given ridership growth. Minister Buswell touts government investments in rail, buses, and parking, highlighting Transperth's high satisfaction ratings and criticising the previous government's inaction.
AnsweredQoN 339Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
PUBLIC
TRANSPORT — PATRONAGE
339. Mr J. NORBERGER to the Minister for Transport:
I note recent media on the extraordinary growth of public
transport boardings. Will the minister inform the house on what this government
will do to address public transport challenges in our state and in my
electorate with its rapidly growing population?
TRANSPORT — PATRONAGE
339. Mr J. NORBERGER to the Minister for Transport:
I note recent media on the extraordinary growth of public
transport boardings. Will the minister inform the house on what this government
will do to address public transport challenges in our state and in my
electorate with its rapidly growing population?
AnswerView source ↗
That is a very good question. As members would have seen
reported today, 150 million passenger boardings are anticipated this financial
year across Perth in public transport. In terms of modal share, about 40 per
cent of passengers travel on trains and about 60 per cent on buses; and
regrettably, member for South Perth, a few, but not enough, travel on your
ferry, but we are working on that, are we not?
Mr
J.E. McGrath : We need more ferries!
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : We need more passengers, member for South Perth, not more
ferries.
In this 12-month period, we
anticipate that passenger transport on buses will grow by about 3.9 per cent
and on trains by about 4.4 per cent. So the people of Perth are voting with
their feet in supporting the government's ongoing investment in public
transport. That is a good outcome.
A couple of weeks ago, an
organisation called Canstar Blue—I have had reason to mention that
organisation in this house previously—conducted its annual surveys of
passenger satisfaction across Australian capital cities in relation to city
train networks. The headline in the report reads, ''Winning streak:
Transperth full steam ahead with the highest passenger satisfaction for a
second time.'' The report goes on to point out that for the second time
since 2011, Transperth has won that award against all other metropolitan rail
systems around Australia. Our rail system is not perfect. But compared with the
rail system in other states, it is pretty damn good.
Mr
D.J. Kelly interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It is very interesting, member for Bayswater —
Mr D.J. Kelly :
Bassendean.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
In the northern suburbs, we are finalising 7.5 kilometres of rail through to
Butler.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Go and tell the people who catch the train! That is an investment of $240 million.
We are spending $360 million to sink the railway line in the city. That is
something that the former government talked about and talked about and talked
about and talked about. We could have lined the project with the press releases
that the former government put out. That is what we could have done. The list
goes on. I feel like a knife salesman or whatever it is. I will throw in the $8
million for the Aubin Grove train station, with 2 000, at least, car parking
bays —
Mr
M. McGowan : It's a sign!
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : It is a sign of things to come! Trust me! It is a sign of
things to come, and the thing that will be coming is a train station, with
happy people on trains.
Mr
P. Papalia : It's still a sign.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : I do not mean to shake the member for Warnbro's grasp
of reality, but it does take some time to build a train station; and this one
is under planning and will be in construction soon.
We have spent $50 million, and by
the end of this year we will have delivered 5 300 extra car parking bays across
the metropolitan train network. Later this year—in the last quarter of
this year—the first of the 66 new railcars will arrive in this state,
part of a $243 million commitment to increase our rolling stock.
On top of that, we have made record
investments in new buses and record investments in expanding the bus fleet, and
putting the fuel in the tank and the driver behind the wheel.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
That is a very important issue, member for Victoria Park, which I am happy to
discuss if the member chooses to ask me. Buses were ordered by the former
government's minister. We will get into that. I am very happy to
canvass that issue. If the member for Victoria Park wants to get up and ask a
question —
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Five years!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
If the member for Victoria Park can ever get the right to ask a question —
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Five years! You have been in the job for
five years!
The SPEAKER : I
think we have heard about five years for long enough, thank you, member for
Victoria Park.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
The list goes on. The government has made commitments to a rail link to the
airport. There is no line to Ellenbrook.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
We have made commitments around a light rail project. We have made commitments,
member for Joondalup, about a multideck car park in Edgewater. Those
commitments will be detailed soon in the budget process.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
The Metro Area Express light rail is doing very, very well.
This Sunday, there will be a really important announcement,
because this Sunday we will unveil the fourth route on the CAT bus
service.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Members opposite may say that. There are eight million boardings a year on the
CAT bus service. Five per cent of the total number of people who get on our
public transport in Perth get on the CAT bus. The new green CAT bus service
will go from Leederville to the busport, and that is a great thing.
The public of Western Australia are voting with their feet to
support public transport. But there is one word in public transport that we
never hear any more in public discussion in Western Australia, and that is
Metronet. What has happened to Metronet, Leader of the Opposition?
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the first time. Can you wind
this up, please, minister.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Very well, Mr Speaker.
Members opposite may claim that expense pressures around Muja
AB —
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the second time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Members opposite may claim that Muja AB is a financial scandal—something
that we reject. A financial scandal is this —
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the second time. Minister,
can you wind up, please.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
am just about to wind up, Mr Speaker.
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the third time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
have only one last statement to make. That is that members opposite claim that
Muja AB is a financial scandal.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It simply is not. A financial scandal is this: members opposite went to the
election campaign and promised to deliver a public transport system for $3.8 billion
that is going to cost $5.2 billion. So they have wasted $1.4 billion before
they even got their seat in government.
reported today, 150 million passenger boardings are anticipated this financial
year across Perth in public transport. In terms of modal share, about 40 per
cent of passengers travel on trains and about 60 per cent on buses; and
regrettably, member for South Perth, a few, but not enough, travel on your
ferry, but we are working on that, are we not?
Mr
J.E. McGrath : We need more ferries!
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : We need more passengers, member for South Perth, not more
ferries.
In this 12-month period, we
anticipate that passenger transport on buses will grow by about 3.9 per cent
and on trains by about 4.4 per cent. So the people of Perth are voting with
their feet in supporting the government's ongoing investment in public
transport. That is a good outcome.
A couple of weeks ago, an
organisation called Canstar Blue—I have had reason to mention that
organisation in this house previously—conducted its annual surveys of
passenger satisfaction across Australian capital cities in relation to city
train networks. The headline in the report reads, ''Winning streak:
Transperth full steam ahead with the highest passenger satisfaction for a
second time.'' The report goes on to point out that for the second time
since 2011, Transperth has won that award against all other metropolitan rail
systems around Australia. Our rail system is not perfect. But compared with the
rail system in other states, it is pretty damn good.
Mr
D.J. Kelly interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It is very interesting, member for Bayswater —
Mr D.J. Kelly :
Bassendean.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
In the northern suburbs, we are finalising 7.5 kilometres of rail through to
Butler.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Go and tell the people who catch the train! That is an investment of $240 million.
We are spending $360 million to sink the railway line in the city. That is
something that the former government talked about and talked about and talked
about and talked about. We could have lined the project with the press releases
that the former government put out. That is what we could have done. The list
goes on. I feel like a knife salesman or whatever it is. I will throw in the $8
million for the Aubin Grove train station, with 2 000, at least, car parking
bays —
Mr
M. McGowan : It's a sign!
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : It is a sign of things to come! Trust me! It is a sign of
things to come, and the thing that will be coming is a train station, with
happy people on trains.
Mr
P. Papalia : It's still a sign.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : I do not mean to shake the member for Warnbro's grasp
of reality, but it does take some time to build a train station; and this one
is under planning and will be in construction soon.
We have spent $50 million, and by
the end of this year we will have delivered 5 300 extra car parking bays across
the metropolitan train network. Later this year—in the last quarter of
this year—the first of the 66 new railcars will arrive in this state,
part of a $243 million commitment to increase our rolling stock.
On top of that, we have made record
investments in new buses and record investments in expanding the bus fleet, and
putting the fuel in the tank and the driver behind the wheel.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
That is a very important issue, member for Victoria Park, which I am happy to
discuss if the member chooses to ask me. Buses were ordered by the former
government's minister. We will get into that. I am very happy to
canvass that issue. If the member for Victoria Park wants to get up and ask a
question —
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Five years!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
If the member for Victoria Park can ever get the right to ask a question —
Mr B.S. Wyatt :
Five years! You have been in the job for
five years!
The SPEAKER : I
think we have heard about five years for long enough, thank you, member for
Victoria Park.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
The list goes on. The government has made commitments to a rail link to the
airport. There is no line to Ellenbrook.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
We have made commitments around a light rail project. We have made commitments,
member for Joondalup, about a multideck car park in Edgewater. Those
commitments will be detailed soon in the budget process.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
The Metro Area Express light rail is doing very, very well.
This Sunday, there will be a really important announcement,
because this Sunday we will unveil the fourth route on the CAT bus
service.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Members opposite may say that. There are eight million boardings a year on the
CAT bus service. Five per cent of the total number of people who get on our
public transport in Perth get on the CAT bus. The new green CAT bus service
will go from Leederville to the busport, and that is a great thing.
The public of Western Australia are voting with their feet to
support public transport. But there is one word in public transport that we
never hear any more in public discussion in Western Australia, and that is
Metronet. What has happened to Metronet, Leader of the Opposition?
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the first time. Can you wind
this up, please, minister.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Very well, Mr Speaker.
Members opposite may claim that expense pressures around Muja
AB —
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the second time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Members opposite may claim that Muja AB is a financial scandal—something
that we reject. A financial scandal is this —
Mr B.S. Wyatt interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Victoria Park, I call you to order for the second time. Minister,
can you wind up, please.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
am just about to wind up, Mr Speaker.
Mr P. Papalia interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Warnbro, I call you to order for the third time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
have only one last statement to make. That is that members opposite claim that
Muja AB is a financial scandal.
Several members interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It simply is not. A financial scandal is this: members opposite went to the
election campaign and promised to deliver a public transport system for $3.8 billion
that is going to cost $5.2 billion. So they have wasted $1.4 billion before
they even got their seat in government.
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