Is public transport really that bad?

Is all the whinging about public transport valid?

Submitted 22/05/2007 By kimschultz Views 20087 Comments 10 Updated 13/06/2007

Photographer : Janissary@flickr

I grew up somewhere that doesn’t really have a public transport system, so trains and buses are still quite the novelty. I now live in Sydney and happen to be one of the thousands of people that use the public transport system everyday. I can’t really afford a car, and even if I could, I’m too shit-scared to drive amongst the thousands that are angrily fighting their way along the roads. I know that not everyone is the agitated-type — I’m just not willing to take the chance!

At least once a week without fail, I get stopped by a fellow commuter who has a bone to pick with the system. Common complaints include having to wait five minutes longer than the scheduled time, or there being no seats left. I too, often have to wait that extra five minutes (that’s less than two songs on my MP3 player) and go without a seat but it doesn’t really phase me. This has me wondering—is public transport really that bad?

Choo-Choo! All aboard?

I really don’t understand why there’s such a gripe with the system. Over 1.5 million people use it daily, and while it’s far from perfect, it isn’t as grim as many people think. Besides, those who don’t catch public transport whinge about how long it took to get to work because of the peak hour grid lock.

The NSW Government is in the middle of restructuring the rail networks and timetable so that trains run smoother and the chance of delay and cancellations are minimised. Unfortunately, this is going to take time, but I reckon waiting a little now will ensure that we wait less in the near future. According to Cityrail, “on time” is defined as the timetabled time with a five minute buffer in off-peak, or a six minute buffer in peak times. Accordingly, the trains are running on-time 92% of the time (the target is 99% leaving a 1% margin for unavoidable delays).

There are approximately 2,300 train services each day, and 900,000 train travellers. When you’re looking at that type of volume, combined with the fact that most services and passengers travel within a five hour period (7:30-9:30am and 4:00-7:00pm), can you really expect smooth sailing all the time?

The wheels on the bus go round and round…

The same thing goes for buses. There are over 15,000 services each day, carrying over 600,000 people. Within the next three years, there will be over 500 new buses on our roads to cut down on overcrowding. Drivers will be participating in more programs that will ensure they are safer drivers. I can wait twenty minutes at a bus stop for that.

Not to mention that the new “cashless” bus services will encourage passengers to be more organised and pre-purchase tickets. Ultimately, it will speed up the time it takes for people to get on buses, and reduce the possibilities of delays, as well as save the passenger money (how does it save money?). Bus-only lanes are also on the increase, minimising peak hour traffic’s impact on the transport system.

Did you know that…? ?

Road transport is the second fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emission in NSW, contributing 12.5% of the State’s total emissions.
Motor vehicles in Sydney are a major source of air pollution, contributing 71% nitrogen oxide emissions, 38% volatile organic compound emissions, and 12% fine particle emissions.
Half of all trips made by private vehicles in Sydney are journeys of five km or less. While you may think these journeys use less fuel, a car engine actually uses more fuel when it’s cold than when it’s warm. So, short trips cost you more.
A single eight-car train will comfortably remove up to 1700 cars from the road. An average bus will remove approximately 45 cars from the road.
The number of cars owned and car trips taken in Australia are increasing faster than the growth of the population.

For these reasons alone, I am quite comfortable waiting an extra 30 minutes. In fact, in that time I would probably walk to the next station and get some well needed exercise. It’s all about putting a positive spin on things. And if you’re not going to act to improve the system, you don’t deserve to whinge!

How do I know this?

Action for Public Transport, www.aptnsw.org.au

Australian Bureau of Statistics, http://www.abs.gov.au/

CityRail, On time running, www.cityrail.info/aboutus/our_performance/perform_1.jsp

Daily Telegraph, www.news.com.au

EcoTransit Sydney 2007, Policy 2007, www.ecotransit.org.au/ETS_policy_2007_final_final.pdf

GreenVehicle Guide http://www.greenvehicleguide.gov.au/

NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change, www.environment.nsw.gov.au

NSW Roads and Traffic Authority, http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/

State Transit Authority, www.sta.nsw.gov.au

Sydney Buses. www.sydneybuses.info

Sydney Morning Herald 2007, ‘Cashless buses plan to expand in Sydney’, SMH Online, 30 April, http://www.smh.com.au/news/NATIONAL/Cashless-buses-plan-to-expand-in-Sydney/2007/04/30/1177788047253.html

This work is licenced under an Attribution licence.
© 2008. First published on actnow.com.au

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Post Comment 1 | 2 |

Kim 30-May-2007

No sweat! All is good! It's great to have a fantastic debate that is not only valid, but makes you think more! And thanks for contributing! It also helps me to think about what else I can do to take action! Now, back to transport...

I've decided that I'm going to do my own personal obsevation action for June, and see how many trains I catch actually arrive on their scheduled time. Maybe others can do the same?

funnelweb 30-May-2007

Kim, I understand the intentions of your opinion piece and there's nothing wrong with healthy debate. We should be thinking of workable alternatives and I couldnt agree more, if you are in a position to ride a bike or walk to work it is a much healther and environmentally friendly option. Allow me to clarify, just reading what I wrote "We are a third world country" I am embarrassed, it was an error in writing and ActNow does not allow you to edit your own comments. I meant to say FIRST WORLD and if you look at what I say subsequent it fits in context. I merely meant that yes we are a first world rich country so why must our services be so substandard? And we have come to accept that they are so bad, but while most people whinge and do nothing, you have come out on a limb to state what is good about public transport and get people thinking about what can make it better. Apologies to all for any confusion caused by my mistake.

Clinton 29-May-2007

I love anyone who's willing to go out on a limb, so despite writing the first anti-public transport comment, I respect you for trying Kim!

You make good points about public transport, there's no doubt it's a great thing! The problem is with the Sydney system and with other major cities' systems, in particular, not public transport generally.

But a point that you and Rach both raised was that the Sydney system is better than other systems, such as regional areas. Well I should think so! Imagine if it was worse? Sydney is the biggest city in the country, it needs at least some level of public transport just to be called a city! The better way to look at Sydney's public transport is to compare it to cities in the same league: Paris, London, Madrid, Melbourne, etc. Compared to those we aren't that great.

But I agree, whinging isn't the way to fix anything. In the last State election, neither major party was proposing to fix the system, both we're happy with the way things are. The answer? We need to encourage people to vote for parties that do care: The Greens, The Democrats and who ever else!

Kim 29-May-2007

To answer a few questions:

Firstly, no I don't read MX. I would rather read a book, but as Rach has said, the paper serves a purpose to perform to its audience and also to make the journey more enjoyable.

Secondly, the purpose of this page was to play devil's advocate and argue against popular opinion: to give voice to what is actually right about the public transport system. While focusing on what's wrong with the system, it's forgotten that there are actual reasons for the system to exist.

As well as this, I have no intention of dismissing the concerns of the majority. Everyone has the right to an opinion.
Obviously, there's a lot wrong with the system, I never denied that. But instead of criticising what's wrong, what can we do to make it better? Or a more positive experience?

I live a 2min walk away from a small train station. Because there are limited trains that stop there, I choose to walk to the next station 20min away. It's a larger station and trains are far more frequent. That's what works well for me. Not everyone will be able to do it, but that's my way of being proactive.

Rach hit on the distance of travel issue. Do we need transport at all when it comes to short distances? If you're in a hurry, sure! But are we always hurrying? Even, if it's one day a week, can we leave the car at home? Is car-pooling an option?

I'm a great believer in the analogy: "Whinging is like a rocking chair. It's great for passing the time, but ultimately it won't get you anywhere." Think about it!

Finally, Australia is certainly not a third world country. Funnelweb, I think you made a mistake there! The third world is classified as countries that are not industrialised or technologially advanced, and is oftern referred to as a "developing nation". Australia happens to be apart of the First World system (states that are democratised, technologically advanced, and their citizens' enjoy a high standard of living).

funnelweb 28-May-2007

Haha just read the letters from train travellers! It is so funny! I guess the best way to learn how bad the rail system is straight from the horses mouth...its the section called 'vent your spleen'. Apart from that its a terribly written paper and I no longer read it. I'm a Sydney Morning Herald or Financial Review newspaper reader myself. Is there a newspaper for waiting rooms?

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