Page 497 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 8 March 2011
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particular statistic has to be put into context of thousands of services that would have run and would have run appropriately and satisfactorily. But I do not deny for one minute the enormous frustration, the damage to the company’s reputation, that no shows would cause and it really is and should be one of the avoidable issues in relation to what we need to do to seek a significant modal change to get Canberrans onto buses.
In relation to statistics, Ms Bresnan, I am not sure what is available but I am more than happy to pursue it and I am more than happy to provide you with whatever is available.
MS HUNTER: A supplementary, Mr Speaker.
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Ms Hunter.
MS HUNTER: Minister, what steps does ACTION take to inform patrons when cancellations occur and what recourse do patrons have if their service is cancelled?
MR STANHOPE: In the first instance, if the issue is non-availability of a driver for whatever reason, if a driver calls in sick or if a driver goes off sick or if a driver is for whatever reason not available and the route does not operate—I have to say that a significant number, in terms of statistics and accounting of routes not serviced or not serviced exactly or precisely on time, is a result of the non-availability of a driver—a significant number of the driver-serviced routes are driven by a transport officer.
I am sure you are aware that ACTION employs somewhere in the order of 20-something or other transport officers, all of whom are drivers or ex-drivers. There is an immediate attempt to follow up, and indeed I believe that in recent weeks when there has been a period of some driver shortage transport officers have been filling the gap on many of the routes that have not been serviced. So we do have that option.
It is, of course, not ideal, but it does satisfy, in those emergency situations, some routes. In others, of course, the consequence, Ms Bresnan, is unfortunately that would-be passengers are left stranded with the consequential impact and implications which I have just spoken about—a very poor result for the network, with continuing damage to its reputation, compounded by other issues that the network has faced over its existence.
MR COE: Supplementary, Mr Speaker?
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Mr Coe.
MR COE: Minister, will you please give an update to the Assembly of the nature of the discussions the government has been holding with Deane’s with regard to further integration of the ACT bus network.
MR STANHOPE: I am not sure that there have been discussions related to the further integration of Deane’s into the ACTION bus network. Deane’s actually bid for and were contracted to provide the Nightrider service. There have been ongoing
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