To: Ben Carroll, Gabrielle Williams, Vicki Ward, Lachie McKeenman, Steve Martin, Helen Haines, David Farley, Justin Clancy, John Graham, Chris Minns, Amanda Cohn, Jaclyn Symes, Kellie Sloane, Jess Wilson
Fix Albury/Wodonga's Public Transport
Albury/Wodonga's Bus network does not do enough to adequately service the community. Please upgrade and fix the network by increasing the extending the operating hours of the Network where Buses finish by 8pm at the earliest on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday and 10pm at the earliest Thursday and Fridays. Expand the coverage of the Public Transport network by adding new routes and modifying existing ones to serve the needs of the community, as well as upgrade Bus Stop infrastructure.
Why is this important?
Albury/Wodonga's Bus network does not do enough to adequately service the community because many newer parts of Albury/Wodonga (such as Killara, Leneva, Parts of Baranduda and Thurgoona) as well as many surrounding satelite towns (Such as Tangambalanga and Tallangatta) do not have adequate access to Public Transport.
The Bus network also does not do enough to adequately service the community because most services, Particularly those in Wodonga start too late and Finish too early for most residents, where most services start at 7am and finish at 6pm. Many services (Such as the Routes F, G and O) mostly only operate once an hour while others (Like the E, S and T) have inconsistent frequencies. Most Routes (Like the G, M and O) are difficult to read on a map and take long detours before reaching their destinations. Many Bus stops around Albury/Wodonga are also not wheelchair accessible
Many people who use Albury/Wodonga's Bus Network from my observations of using the service for several years in Albury/Wodonga are usually those who often can't or do not use a car (Such as Youth, Older residents and people with disabilities.) Public Transport to the Surrounding satelite Towns is extremely limited with very few methods that exist that don't require a car. Outdated payment methods (such as Wodonga's Buses being Cash only) are also a major barrier as most people no longer carry cash with them.
I believe that based on the facts available, The Bus networks in Albury/Wodonga (and especially Wodonga) do not do enough to adequately serve the community. Here are a few scenarios
Imagine if you are a 14-year-old teenager in Killara who wants to go out and spend time with their mates on weekends or after school, but their Parent doesn't want to or cannot drive them all the time. It's too dangerous to use a bike because of the highway, It's too expensive to use a Taxi, how will you be able to see your friends without a method of transport that is cheap and predictable?
Or if you are a 16-year-old Teenager living in West Wodonga who works at the Woolworths in White Box Rise. their boss would like them to be available to work on Sundays, but no public Transport services operate in Wodonga on Sundays, which impacts their ability to work, their parents cannot always drive them to work because they are too tired from working the week and they cannot afford a taxi. how can they get to work?
Or if you are a 40-year-old guy in Tangambalanga who works in Albury and his only way of getting to Albury is to drive. His doctor tells him he cannot drive for a while because of a medical condition that may impact his ability to drive safely. He cannot ride a bike because the highway is too dangerous for him to ride on. How will he be able to get to work?
Or if you're a 25-year-old Mum with a toddler who lives in Baranduda and works in Albury who suddenly has to have to get their car repaired because of mechanical issues, they fortunately have access to a Bus service, but that service is limited, which severely restricts her ability to work. All her friends and relatives do not have time to help her out and she doesn't have a way to get her toddler to preschool in West Wodonga.
Or if you are an 85-year-old retired grandpa who lives in West Albury whose doctor tells him he is no longer fit to drive because of a medical condition impacting his ability to drive safely, he fortunately has access to a Bus service that operates every hour, however he cannot use the service because he cannot step onto the Bus because the Bus stop infrastructure isn't accessible.
Or if you're a 40-year-old woman in a wheelchair living in Wodonga whose nearest Bus stop is only accessible when it is dry, her wheelchair cannot travel on grass when the grass is wet. she works in Albury and works five days a week, wet weather impacts her ability to work because her wheelchair cannot travel on wet grass at her Bus stop
All these scenarios are based on very real situations that I have personally been in or know of people who have been in a situation like this.
I know that some efforts have been made to fix Albury/Wodonga's network in recent years, such as Cheaper Fares, Cashless payments and upgrading Albury's Network and there are plans to expand cashless payments to the rest of Victoria in 2027, however, there is still lots of work that needs to be done and there are still places in Albury/Wodonga without access to Public Transport.
I call on whoever wins the local electorates of Benambra and Albury in the upcoming State elections to be active in advocating for Better Public Transport services in our communities. Goverments have the authority to ensure that parts of taxpayers money can only be spent on certain projects. I'd like to see whoever wins government exercise these powers by putting binding terms in contracts.
The Bus network also does not do enough to adequately service the community because most services, Particularly those in Wodonga start too late and Finish too early for most residents, where most services start at 7am and finish at 6pm. Many services (Such as the Routes F, G and O) mostly only operate once an hour while others (Like the E, S and T) have inconsistent frequencies. Most Routes (Like the G, M and O) are difficult to read on a map and take long detours before reaching their destinations. Many Bus stops around Albury/Wodonga are also not wheelchair accessible
Many people who use Albury/Wodonga's Bus Network from my observations of using the service for several years in Albury/Wodonga are usually those who often can't or do not use a car (Such as Youth, Older residents and people with disabilities.) Public Transport to the Surrounding satelite Towns is extremely limited with very few methods that exist that don't require a car. Outdated payment methods (such as Wodonga's Buses being Cash only) are also a major barrier as most people no longer carry cash with them.
I believe that based on the facts available, The Bus networks in Albury/Wodonga (and especially Wodonga) do not do enough to adequately serve the community. Here are a few scenarios
Imagine if you are a 14-year-old teenager in Killara who wants to go out and spend time with their mates on weekends or after school, but their Parent doesn't want to or cannot drive them all the time. It's too dangerous to use a bike because of the highway, It's too expensive to use a Taxi, how will you be able to see your friends without a method of transport that is cheap and predictable?
Or if you are a 16-year-old Teenager living in West Wodonga who works at the Woolworths in White Box Rise. their boss would like them to be available to work on Sundays, but no public Transport services operate in Wodonga on Sundays, which impacts their ability to work, their parents cannot always drive them to work because they are too tired from working the week and they cannot afford a taxi. how can they get to work?
Or if you are a 40-year-old guy in Tangambalanga who works in Albury and his only way of getting to Albury is to drive. His doctor tells him he cannot drive for a while because of a medical condition that may impact his ability to drive safely. He cannot ride a bike because the highway is too dangerous for him to ride on. How will he be able to get to work?
Or if you're a 25-year-old Mum with a toddler who lives in Baranduda and works in Albury who suddenly has to have to get their car repaired because of mechanical issues, they fortunately have access to a Bus service, but that service is limited, which severely restricts her ability to work. All her friends and relatives do not have time to help her out and she doesn't have a way to get her toddler to preschool in West Wodonga.
Or if you are an 85-year-old retired grandpa who lives in West Albury whose doctor tells him he is no longer fit to drive because of a medical condition impacting his ability to drive safely, he fortunately has access to a Bus service that operates every hour, however he cannot use the service because he cannot step onto the Bus because the Bus stop infrastructure isn't accessible.
Or if you're a 40-year-old woman in a wheelchair living in Wodonga whose nearest Bus stop is only accessible when it is dry, her wheelchair cannot travel on grass when the grass is wet. she works in Albury and works five days a week, wet weather impacts her ability to work because her wheelchair cannot travel on wet grass at her Bus stop
All these scenarios are based on very real situations that I have personally been in or know of people who have been in a situation like this.
I know that some efforts have been made to fix Albury/Wodonga's network in recent years, such as Cheaper Fares, Cashless payments and upgrading Albury's Network and there are plans to expand cashless payments to the rest of Victoria in 2027, however, there is still lots of work that needs to be done and there are still places in Albury/Wodonga without access to Public Transport.
I call on whoever wins the local electorates of Benambra and Albury in the upcoming State elections to be active in advocating for Better Public Transport services in our communities. Goverments have the authority to ensure that parts of taxpayers money can only be spent on certain projects. I'd like to see whoever wins government exercise these powers by putting binding terms in contracts.
How it will be delivered
I'm proposing on running a meet the candidates forum on the leadup to the Victorian state election, as well as the NSW state elections in the coming months. Please contact me if anyone is interested in the idea.
