Page 2642 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 15 August 2017
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engagement and marketing. These types of engagements are critical to hear firsthand from significant investors and participants about their experiences in reviewing governance frameworks for public transport to achieve successful reform and procuring, implementing, integrating and managing new transportation services.
The delegation travelled next to Portland, where over a couple of days we looked at regional planning, including street design, active transport and their ticketing and real-time customer information technologies. We observed Portland’s “bike town” bike share scheme. This scheme was even more advanced than the Washington scheme and uses an app which allows users to track in real time where every bike in the scheme is anywhere in Portland. Decades ago, while other US cities were building for the car, Portland maintained a stronger emphasis on public transport. As a consequence, Portland is an attractive, livable city by US standards and the community’s use of public transport is high.
The delegation study tour concluded in Vancouver with policy sessions hosted by Translink on their network overview; the establishment of a mobility pricing commission to cover parking, roads and transport charges; clever approaches to marketing public transport; and Vancouver’s 10-year public transport strategy. We were also able to take a couple of trips on SkyTrain, the world’s largest automated metropolitan rail system.
A key theme throughout the study tour was the opportunity to see the innovative and different ways cities in North America manage public transportation infrastructure and technologies. It provided invaluable information for the ACT government and TCCS on the barriers faced by cities and how they manage or solve them. I wish to express my thanks to all who contributed to the summit and the study tour. The lessons learnt and information obtained will strengthen and inform future decisions by the ACT government and mobility public transportation.
Our city is well on its way to an integrated transport network. I am very confident that Canberra is on the right path. We are embracing the future, recognising the challenges all cities around the world are facing: how to build livable, sustainable, equitable communities; how to adapt to climate change, reduce carbon emissions, provide opportunities for citizens and invest in public infrastructure for everyone; how to build cities that are not grinding to a halt because of congestion, cities where people can be productive and healthy and happy.
Many things contribute to cities with these features—features we already have and will continue to build. But they cannot be built without good public transport infrastructure. I look forward to continuing to deliver the commitments this government has made over a number of years: to build light rail for Canberra, to invest in our bus network with more frequent buses, to deliver a new modern ticketing system, to explore new opportunities with our partners and to invest in active travel so that Canberrans can be more mobile. I present the following paper:
Ministerial Delegation to North America May 2017—Ministerial statement, 15 August 2017.
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