Category Archives: Election 2010

Election 2010, Newsletters

Shaping a new Public Transport Authority

The most significant policy commitment of the incoming Baillieu Government is the creation of a Public Transport Development Authority for Victoria. Getting this one right will make all the difference between Victoria having some of the best public transport in the world, and a continuation of the current mediocre, politically poisonous setup.

The good news is that Transport Minister Terry Mulder now has a wealth of interstate and overseas experience to draw on when constituting and recruiting the government’s PTDA. Zurich, Vancouver, London, Perth and to some extent Brisbane all provide good examples of what to do. While they embody a number of different specific organisational structures and relationships, they share common features that make them successful. For the benefit of PTUA members, we list these briefly here.
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Election 2010, Media releases

Public transport carries Coalition to victory

Policies to set up an independent Public Transport Development Authority, new trains and rail lines to Rowville and East Doncaster appear to have delivered the Coalition victory in the Victorian state election, the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) said today.

“Victorians clearly recognised that public transport had been turning into a shambles,” said PTUA President Daniel Bowen. “Three out of four voters wanted an authority to make public transport work [1], and the ALP’s refusal to listen on this issue helped feed the big swing away from them in the last week, just after the Coalition released its own better policy.”

Mr Bowen said the PTUA had received a great deal of support for its campaign to shake-up public transport governance [2]. “Voters recognise that public transport won’t work until it’s run by experts instead of politicians. The next government now has a popular mandate to set up a public transport authority in Melbourne based on successful examples in Vancouver, London and Zurich.
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Election 2010, Media releases, Melbourne east

Eastern transport derails Brumby

Public transport in Melbourne’s east has been a major factor contributing towards the swing to the Liberal Party, according to the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA). The PTUA has welcomed policies such as the Rowville and Doncaster railway lines, along with the independent Public Transport Development Authority, which helped deliver victory to the Coalition.

“Commuters are fed up with the decades of neglect towards public transport that we’ve been experiencing,” said the PTUA’s outer east convenor Jeremy Lunn. “The Brumby Government had no plans to address the serious public transport problems that plague this city.
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Election 2010

PTUA gives verdict on election policies

With public transport the big issue for many voters, the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has given its verdict on the transport policies of the parties going into the State Election, with the Greens coming out on top, followed by the Coalition.

PTUA President Daniel Bowen said that packed trains, slow trams, and infrequent buses had voters looking to all political parties for a solution to Melbourne and Victoria’s transport woes.

And he said the Green and Coalition promises for reform through an independent public transport authority were crucial in their party policies receiving the best marks.

Updated 24-Nov-2010

Greens Labor Liberal/National

A

C

B
Aust Sex Party Democrats DLP Family First Socialist Alliance

D

D

TBA

F

B+

Full scorecard details

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Election 2010, Media releases

PTUA welcomes Coalition pledge of Authority to run public transport

The PTUA has applauded the Liberal/National Coalition’s transport policy, noting that their commitment to establish a new Public Transport Development Authority is likely to make the huge difference to Melbourne’s ailing transport system.

“For too long Melbourne’s public transport has drowned in a sea of red tape, with scores of agencies, but nobody taking responsibility for such things as co-ordinated timetables”, said PTUA president Daniel Bowen.

“Ad hoc upgrades won’t solve our transport woes. It requires a dedicated authority that will take a holistic view of the system and pin point where the issues are.

“Provided it is well-managed and run, the Authority will help to fix train, tram and bus co-ordination problems, providing a seamless network across Melbourne and Victoria, while planning for the future to ensure investment is directed towards continuing to encourage and cater for increased patronage.
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Election 2010, News

Melbourne’s public transport is in crisis

Melbourne's public transport is in crisis - brochure coverMelbourne’s public transport is in crisis — and your vote can make a difference.

  • Cancellations
  • Poor connections
  • Crowding
  • Trams stuck in traffic

Read the full brochure (PDF 338 Kb)

The current privatisation arrangements need to end. There could be a role for private operators — as subcontractors providing the services specified by a public authority — but the ‘franchise’ model introduced in 1999 by the Coalition and renewed in 2004 and 2009 by Labor hasn’t worked. Scores of organisations are arranged in an impenetrable maze of bureaucratic confusion, and with no central control there is poor coordination between services, poor planning, and buck-passing.

Find out more about why public transport management and planning needs a shakeup, and send your local candidates an email at the Public Transport That Works web site.

This brochure is directed at residents of Melbourne’s inner suburbs, but remember, wherever you are: If you want better public transport, in this election, look carefully at the policies of all the candidates. Make your vote count.

Election 2010, Media releases, Melbourne and suburbs, Regional

Labor transport policy: Good upgrades, but big gaps remain

The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) has welcomed the launch of Labor’s transport policy, and said that it contained a number of worthwhile initiatives that would make life easier for passengers, but warned that it was not a comprehensive vision for fixing Victoria’s public transport woes.

PTUA President Daniel Bowen said it was pleasing to see a number of the PTUA’s priorities[1] in the ALP’s policy, and that the deployment of staff to all Metro electrified stations was significant step forward.
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Election 2010, Media releases, Melbourne east, Melbourne north

North-east freeway will dump cars on Boroondara

A north-east freeway link would create mayhem on Boroondara roads according to the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA). “A freeway ending right on Boroondara’s doorstep will dump many more cars on our roads,” said PTUA spokesman Jeremy Lunn.

“Roads such as Burke Road, Bulleen Road, Doncaster Road, High Street and Balwyn Road would become traffic sewers. Home owners will pay the true price as property values plummet from all the extra traffic.
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Election 2010, Media releases, Melbourne east, Melbourne north

North-east freeway could kill Doncaster rail

A north-east freeway link would create mayhem on Manningham roads and would put the much needed Doncaster railway at risk according to the Public Transport Users Association (PTUA).

“The Brumby government is so intent on denying Doncaster residents with rail, that they’re already looking at ways to dig a grave for Doncaster rail,” said PTUA spokesman Jeremy Lunn. “All the north-east freeway will do is dump many more cars on our roads.
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