State Member for Wallsend, Ms Sonia Hornery MP, has called on the operator of the Newcastle Transport network to do more to make sure people who rely on public transport are made aware of cuts to services after it was discovered that failures were far more widespread than first thought.
Following reports yesterday that some 222 and 225 services had not operated in the last few weeks, a flurry of calls and emails from the public showed the service failures were far more widespread.
A number of routes that service local schools have been impacted, as well as services that travel to the far reaches of the Wallsend electorate, leaving residents and students stranded.
Quotes attributable to Member for Wallsend, Sonia Hornery
“The western suburbs are once being disrespected, despite residents being some of the biggest users of public transport in the Hunter.”
“It is already hard enough for some people to be able to get public transport into Newcastle from parts of the Wallsend electorate. They have to navigate a range of different service operators, but the number of services failures in the area is beyond a joke.”
“The response from the operator shows how little respect they have for commuters in the electorate, having only admitted the service failures after it was pointed out publicly. That’s not good enough.”
“Where was the notice on the operator’s website or social media to tell commuters that the service they relied on to get to work or to class was not running?”
“Leaving young school students on the side of the road because a bus run has been cancelled is frankly irresponsible. Failing to communicate the issues to the public so parents can make other plans is outrageous.”
“If this is the level of service being provided after the first 6 weeks, how bad is it going to get?”