Delivering better public transport for Tasmanians

26 August 2021

Michael Ferguson MP

Minister for Infrastructure and Transport

The Tasmanian Liberal Government is transforming public transport for Tasmanians through a range of initiatives to boost patronage and bust traffic congestion.

We are investing $20 million to deliver additional school buses on routes experiencing high levels of demand, and introduce additional commuter buses on busy commuter routes. This will ease crowding on those routes and provide greater incentives to catching the bus.

In addition, a further $6 million will be provided to upgrade all-access and all-weather bus stops at priority locations. This will provide comfortable, modern shelters to protect commuters from the weather and enhance passenger experience.

In particular, we will introduce new buses dedicated to increasing capacity from Kingston to the city, integrating with our new park and ride facilities at Huntingfield and Firthside.

The 2021-22 Tasmanian Budget contains a further $5 million to develop new park and ride facilities for commuters in growing residential areas near Rokeby, the Sorell and southern beaches communities, and in Hobart’s northern suburbs.

In addition, we are progressing delivery of a modern common ticketing solution across public transport with real-time information for commuters, through the provision of $25.9 million to Metro Tasmania.  An additional $2 million will also be provided for its network upgrades.

This is intended to provide commuters with a seamless journey and ensure a fully integrated, intelligent transport solution for users and providers of public transport in Tasmania. The modern common ticketing solution will apply to general access public transport operators, including ferry services.

This will provide a range of potential benefits, including fare payment by credit card, phone or wearable smart devices. It will make it easier to transfer between services and operators, and it will facilitate innovative and tailored fares and incentivise travel.

We expect this to also help inform network planning and fleet performance, leading to better and higher frequency services between bus interchanges.

To make the most of our infrastructure investment and to relieve traffic congestion, it is critical we improve public transport by making it faster, more efficient and a more attractive choice for Tasmanians.

We have completed the $45 million modernisation of the Metro bus fleet and improved bus networks right across the State that have resulted in faster, more direct and frequent services. This is further enhanced by planned bus priority lanes, and the Derwent River ferry service now in operation.

We’re also looking to the future, with the Budget allocating $6 million in equity investment for Metro Tasmania to trial an electric bus in the South, with further funding to be provided to support a hydrogen bus trial in the North of the State once hydrogen supply starts.

This Budget provides further proof that the Tasmanian Liberal Government is continuing to invest in transformational infrastructure projects that provide long lasting and generational benefits.