NEW FREE CITY CONNECTOR BUS SERVICE 99C and Adelaide City Connector to merge Community Consultation Summary Verbatim Comments Transport Strategy Accessible City November 2013 SMART MOVE General responses Comments • If this change is going ahead - which I am assuming it is (regardless of what the rate payers of the ACC want/need) then it is IMPERATIVE that the CURRENT drivers of the Free Connector Service CONTINUE TO BE EMPLOYED within this new service. As a local resident I much prefer the consistency of the same drivers who know the passengers, know the needs of the regular passengers and keep the current buses clean and free of abusive passengers. The most appalling elements of the Torrens Transit buses are the fact that the buses are dirty, smell and are driven by drivers who do not have the time or desire to be friendly helpful, understanding or willing to eject disruptive/verbally abusive passengers. I am very disapointed that the ACC has once again chosen to ignore the voice of the local residents and do what they want rather than what the community needs (and is essentially paying for through out Council Rates. Not happy. • I don't think there's a need to go all the way down Grote Street then all the way back up Franklin. I think the bus needs to be an efficient transport option if it is to be used. • My main concern is buses travelling along King William Street. Thanks to Michael Harbison, you already have a TRAM. We do not need both (as I pointed out to M. Harbison at the time & he agreed). There must be some way of diverting buses from King William St. My other concern, a huge one, is on-street parking. I would like to see MORE on-street car parks & fewer buses in the city. Grenfell St is a disaster. Surely some of those buses could stop at Wet Tce, or on Dequetteville Tce, from where people could take a tram or some LIGHT RAIL TRANSPORT into the centre. Buses are far too big & cumbersome to justify the small number of people they carry. • Love the idea of hopping on a free bus and going up to north adelaide after work, or for lunch, great idea, love it! • I am absolutely disgusted with the proposal(s). It absolutely ignores the needs of older residents in particular. Having just returned from visiting the wife in the RAH I see that the proposed routes and stops go nowhere near such services. The new routes also exclude a lot of the current residential areas of the city and North Adelaide. How are the elderly and those with mobility issues going to access the city and local services which are essential to them??? The only reason I can see for changing any aspect of the Connector Bus Service is that the current Council is sick of the job and does not want to be re-elected. • Are battery operated buses like Tindo possible - or some form of hybrid? I'm keen that the city minimises CO2 production and keeps city air relatively clean, I'd be happy to make a contribution for the use of the service. What about a box near the bus entry and people are encouraged to pay $1.00 coin - no compulsion or ticket? This isn't a big issue for me but Adelaide ratepayers (like me) I guess pay for many city users who are non ratepayers. • It would be good if the free bus went down either Currie street or Waymouth Street (West terrace end). There are a few residential areas down that way that are not being serviced by a bus. It would be good to catch the free bus from the east of town to the markets etc. Where the 99C is 2 City Connector – Consultation Summary Report Adelaide City Council currently stopping because of the hindley street water works is the perfect stop! • Ther current systems works I do not understand the reasons for changing. It is a wonderful community service and have met many loclas. • I personal think that the currently free connector bus is service is good and just need to improve to have more buses during peak hour and the current route is prefer for me. The bus driver is nice, kind and friendly and I don't think we can have this kind of service. Besides that it is very helpful whenever we need it for example guiding the route. Which very important and good for the people who need help such as fresh arrive or tourist and I don't think so we can find this type of service in other states. The new free bus service it might take longer time to get to the city and also some of the route or important stop is not there for eg. helping hand, Adelaide zoo, RAH and etc. I think this is very important. The current free connector bus service should maintain and just we need some improvement of the service during peak hour instead of changing the big free bus such as 99C. • I think the free bus should be left as is. • Long overdue! Ideally a tram extension would be most beneficial as it's low density and quiet, however the bus loop service is another alternative which may be short term. • You could never be sure with the connector bus because sometimes it could be early, so you never knew whether to keep waiting for the bus - an hour is a long time to wait if you have missed it. I will use it a lot more when the service is more frequent and reliable. I also found the connector bus stops hard to find, so I will appreciate the proposed clearer markings on the bus stops with the new service. • As there will be two free bus routes and buses operating - they will need to be clearly marked on the destination panel on the front of the bus so that people know which bus they are catching ie if you want the route which goes thru Nth Adelaide it will need to be clear. I love Tindo but it may confuse some people who are expecting a metro looking bus - clear signs here as well. The previous bus stopped using Melbourne St because of long traffice delays and moved to Finnis St. I guess you considered this. • 1. Whitmore Square and the Adelaide South West Community Centre are basically missed with the new stops, as the current comminity bus stops in Whitmore square are removed. If Tindo fits in these stops, then they must be big enough for a regular sized bus. On a stricly personal note this will reduce my use of the new service. 2. The new route and stops miss the Pulteney Street/Frome St area entirely. 3. Why not run the CBD route down Grenfell Street, instead of North Terrace, and have a stop next to the new library? 4. Will there be shelters at all stops? Something sorely missing from the existing community bus stops. • Fantastic idea, but would suggest adding 1 more stop along Hutt St and 1 stop near to the River Torrens (Elder Park, near Victoria Drive corner) along King William St, ie for people going to Adelaide Oval. Problem with the connector bus now is so infrequent, fairly horrible mini buses, and so awkward of shouting out to the driver for next stop. Hardly use it because of this but would regularly use it if turned into a frequent Adelaide metro service. Do it please • I am very surprised the bus does not go along South Tce and wind around some of the other sts in the south of the city. What is there in Sturt St to warrant a bus along the whole length?There are a number of hotels along South Tce and no transport. I am equally surprised about the need for free bus transport in North Adelaide . If you are catering in Nth Adelaide to tourists from hotels, that is good and if there are no buses 3 City Connector – Consultation Summary Report Adelaide City Council available then equally, I think that is fair. I am also surprised that you think there is a need for big buses. We are currently in the USA and Canada and in Quebec they have an excellent small bus operating a route in the old city like this bus route for $2 per ride. It is wheelchair friendly but the bus itself is small. Last year in Copenhagen we found the same. They have an excellent small commuter bus which goes to all the major tourist spots. Its smallness makes it easy to negotiate the traffic and when we were using it we were the only customers on board. Similarly we travelled on a very efficient small bus in Liverpool. I have used the loop bus in the city and don't think many people know about it so it needs to be well advertised and come with maps for tourists. As I said, I think it should wind around a bit among streets in the city and for that reason you don't want big buses but small light buses which have less impact on surrounding communities. If they travel frequently they will cope with the demand, though often there is hardly anyone using them now. You also need to provide information for tourist and locals on which buses intersect with the free buses so that people can make easy transfers if needed. • The new service is NOT USER FRIENDLY for the elderly as theyhave to walk further to get to a stop and does not cater for any internal streets within North Adelaide.