‘Death by a thousand cuts’ for 311 bus
The only bus route serving Elizabeth Bay is doomed, says Councillor Chris Harris, and any talk about saving it is just spin.
“It seems clear to me that the 311 bus service is on the chopping block following the elimination of the Elizabeth Bay loop from the route,” he said.
“This latest reduction in service follows cuts to the frequency from 20-minute to 30-minute intervals in 2002 followed by a further service deterioration in 2006 when weekend and evening services were hacked by 35 per week and travellers had a 45-minute wait between buses.
“This gradual reduction in the frequency, coverage and reliability in the 311 bus will not encourage patronage of the service. On the contrary it will become increasingly less attractive. Many of the residents in this area are elderly and rely on this bus service.”
The Elizabeth Bay loop streets – Ithaca, Billyard and Onslow – are too steep and narrow for the new long-wheelbase wheelchair-accessible buses according to the STA.
But this is the very reason a bus route is needed in Sydney’s most densely populated suburb, say locals. Housing in the historical suburb consists almost entirely of unit blocks, many of which have little or no car parking, so many residents do not own cars.
When Cr Harris took his pet skeleton along to the Billyard Avenue stop he met a young mother with a pushchair, waiting for the bus. She said the buses were the only way she could negotiate the steep hills to go shopping.
A press clipping about the route cuts had been covered in plastic and taped to the bench.
Cr Harris claims the long-term aim is to completely eliminate the route, which is unprofitable according to the STA.
“It really is death by a thousand cuts for this important bus service. And this is at a time when the Government should be encouraging people to use public transport.”
Transport Minister David Campbell said the route changes were “a way of growing passenger numbers on public transport.”
311 buses follow an awkward route, terminating at Central at one end and near Circular Quay at the other.
