Media Release: Sydney buses running on empty, taxpayer money wasted

 The NSW Government’s ‘on-demand’ buses are proving to be the failure bus drivers warned they would be, with figures revealed in June showing the exact cost to taxpayers: $180 per passenger, per trip.

Reports today in the Sydney Morning Herald further vindicate warnings by the union that Sydney’s ‘on-demand’ buses would be a complete waste of taxpayer money.

Rail, Tram and Bus Union NSW Bus Secretary Chris Preston said the on-demand bus system was destined to fail, and called on the Government to immediately stop the extreme cost to taxpayers.

“This is almost unbelievable that the Government are pushing ahead with a scheme which sees taxpayers fork out $180 per passenger, per trip,” Mr Preston said.

“Minister Constance’s pie in the sky ‘uber style’ bus scheme has also been trialled in Boston, Washington, Kansas and Helsinki and in all cases they have gone broke because the cost and subsidies per rider were simply too high.”

“This Government is tipping taxpayers dollars into a scheme that is clearly failing and is destined to go bust, just like it has in every other place it’s been trialled This Government clearly have their priorities wrong.”

Mr Preston said that the ‘Uber bus scheme’ had failed in other places because of ‘dead running’ where the bus runs empty from one job to another, and every kilometre travelled without passengers onboard adds to the cost.

As the Sydney Morning Herald reports, these claims have been vindicated in suburbs like Wetherill Park where an average of just 30 trips a week were completed in the first 3 weeks of June.

“The result of increased ‘dead running’ has inevitably led to exorbitant fares for passengers or excessive subsidies from Government. $180 per passenger per trip is just unbelievable.”

“This trial is another dud and commuters and taxpayers have been left to pick up the tab for this Government’s incompetence.”

“If Minister Constance wants tips on how he can improve Sydney’s bus services he can start by committing to end bus privatisation across other areas of the state, after privatisation has caused transport disasters in both Newcastle and Sydney’s Inner West.”
Media Contact: Amelia Brock, 0430 187 161