Eastern Suburbs Councils say bus privatisation needs to be reversed

By SASHA FOOT

Waverley Council has made a public plea to the NSW government to reverse bus privatisation as bus-service cancellations and route changes have decreased commuter satisfaction.

Waverley and Randwick City Council, which make up Region 9 of the Sydney Bus Network, made submissions to a Parliamentary inquiry into the privatisation of bus services earlier this year. 

Waverley Mayor, Paula Masselos, expressed in a statement that bus services now exist as “commercial operations… geared to making a profit”. 

Region 9 has the highest monthly bus use of the Sydney Bus Network, accounting for 21% of all bus trips in Sydney. However, significant changes introduced in December last year – including the removal of 25 bus routes and the modification of 23 other routes in the Randwick City Council area – have impacted the functionality of the public transport services. 

In Waverley the adjustment to Region 9 merged 6 routes into 2, which the Mayor says disrupts efficient journeys from the beach to the CBD. 

“There is now no longer a direct service to the city with all services having to change at Bondi Junction Interchange,” Cr Masselos said. 

“The well-used 378 service was cancelled and replaced by the 440, and then the confusing 379, with people ending up at Bondi when they really wanted to travel to Bronte.”

Randwick’s submission to the inquiry specified that culling bus routes limited bus frequency and made trips more difficult for those living on modified routes. The council requested that the buses return to state ownership, and the government remedies the route changes.  

Road Union Secretary says commuters and workers are “suffering”

Secretary of the Tram and Bus Division of the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU), David Babineau, said that the privatisation of buses is making working conditions less desirable for workers, which in turn creates driver shortages. 

“Being a bus driver was once a highly sought after, good, secure job. The NSW Government has taken that away and now commuters and workers are suffering for it,” he said. 

Babineau noted that the State Government’s choice to remove free bus fares “is actively disincentivising people” from joining the profession. 

Zara Powell, a Mascot resident affected by the route changes of Region 9, told City Hub that her journeys to the CBD are now less direct and lengthy. 

“The buses near my house only take me to Redfern or Mascot Station, which means I have to catch a train to get to the CBD,” she said. “If I want to go straight to the city, I have to walk fifteen minutes to Gardeners Road.”

Powell explained that her nearest bus services halved from 6 routes to 3, admitting she “had no idea [the buses] were privatised”.