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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 4 Hansard (6 May) . . Page.. 989 ..

I think those are the sorts of things that those opposite should be running with, Mr Speaker, instead of just knocking all the time; instead of never coming up with a decent idea. How about some lobbying of everybody federally about outsourcing, to make sure that local businesses get the business? What about the high speed rail? What about an international airport? What about all of those approaches, Mr Speaker? I believe that the approach that the business community, Margaret Reid and I are taking - and that is to make sure that our Federal colleagues know exactly what the people of Canberra think - is a very appropriate approach, and it would be a damn sight better for those opposite to stop whingeing and start coming up with ideas.

MRS LITTLEWOOD: My question is to the Minister for Urban Services. Has the redevelopment work at the Civic interchange area, particularly the relocation of the central control, reduced the level of information available to the community about public transport?

MR KAINE: This is an interesting question because there have been allegations that, by moving the supervisors from the Civic interchange area to their new location in the Una Porter Building, this has somehow denied the travelling public access to them and to the information that they once provided. The fact is that that simply is not the case. Members will be well aware that the Government has undertaken a number of programs to revitalise the centre of Civic - at the interchange, City Walk and Garema Place - and that these, taken together, represent a major upgrade of the pedestrian links within the city. This work is not a surprise to anybody. It was considered by the Assembly's Standing Committee on Planning and Environment; and it was well known to everybody that this work was going to go ahead.

As part of that upgrading and to open the area up so that it is safe for people at night, some of the buildings on that short section of City Walk adjacent to the bus interchange are being moved. But other arrangements are in place to give the travelling public access to whatever information they require and whatever services they require. It is interesting that the people who are now providing the supervision are on the first floor of the Una Porter Building. They used to be on the first floor of the information office. The only service on the ground floor was ticket sales. So, they are no further removed from the public today than they were when they were in the old building that was located there. The information service is still regularly available. The other aspect, of course, is that there has been an allegation to the effect that people do not have the same access to purchasing tickets as they used to have. In fact, ticket sales facilities and information are both available from the newsagent right on the corner, five metres from where the old ticket sales office used to be.

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