Media Release: ACT Greens party, 2 May 2024
Every weekday bus, at least every 20 minutes: This is what the ACT Greens are promising by 2026 if Canberrans elect more Greens to the Legislative Assembly this October.
“The Greens want Canberra to be a truly liveable city, where it’s easy, comfortable and affordable to get around,” said Jo Clay, ACT Greens Transport Spokesperson and Candidate for Ginninderra.
“At the moment, too many people are locked into the expense of having a car because there isn’t an easy alternative.
“Buses aren’t frequent enough and the fact remains that they just aren’t a genuine option for many Canberrans.
“Transport is also the ACT’s biggest polluter, so it’s critical we make our public transport system one that works for as many Canberrans as possible – to ease both the climate crisis and the cost of living.
“With extra buses, extra drivers, extra depots and dedicated bus lanes for our busiest corridors, we can create a public transport system that genuinely serves our whole city.
“We need to create a ‘turn up and go’ bus service so frequent that people don’t have to plan their day around it.
“The most livable cities all have abundant, frequent and reliable public transport. The light rail is helping to bring Canberra closer to this, giving thousands more Canberrans a viable alternative to driving. But a strong public transport system needs a quality bus system as well, mirroring and complementing the efficiency of the light rail.”
The Greens’ plan for public transport will deliver Light Rail faster, maintain Rapid Bus services and:
- Increase the frequency of all weekday suburban buses to at least every 20 minutes during the day
- More than double weekend bus frequency to every 30 minutes
- Build more bus lanes starting with Belconnen, Civic and Molonglo, to improve reliability and efficiency
- Buy 100 more electric buses to grow the fleet and cut emissions
- Make bus stops better with more shelters, seats, lights, paths and bike racks
- Make public transport free for kids, seniors and concession card holders
“In delivering an efficient and reliable public transport service we will not only deliver hundreds more electric buses, but also create hundreds of jobs for bus drivers.
The Greens Big Bus Plan will deliver a world class public transport that can get you where you need to go easily, comfortably, and affordably,” said Jo Clay, ACT Greens Spokesperson for Transport.
“I’ve been using public transport for many years and I know first hand the impacts of an unreliable or infrequent bus service. Countless times I have been late for school and uni because the bus was late or simply didn’t show up at all,” said Harini Rangarajan, Greens candidate for Murrumbidgee.
“You shouldn’t have to plan your whole day around when your bus turns up.
“The Greens plan will deliver an integrated public transport system that is reliable and convenient. People can show up for a bus and be confident that it will get them where they need to go, on time.
“Having free public transport for school students will have a massive impact in making our bus and light rail network more accessible for students, and provide much needed financial relief during this cost of living crisis,” said Ms Rangarajan.
The full policy document is available from the ACT Greens website [PDF]
This page was last updated on 5 May 2024
