Armadale line shutdown shows transport potential

THERE was a lot of talk about commuter chaos ahead of last November’s shutdown of the Armadale train line.

What has eventuated – in the inner suburbs at least – is quite the opposite.

Despite living only five kilometres from Business News’s St Georges Terrace office, it took me about 35 minutes to get to work via public transport prior to the shutdown, including the walk.

Having lived in the regions for 10 years where the commute was never more than five minutes, it was a hard pill to swallow.

Now, with the train line shut down, it takes about 20 minutes to get to the city from Victoria Park, thanks to the additional buses and priority lanes.

In terms of time, it’s on par with driving to work, but without the hassle of finding (and paying) for parking or having to stew in peak hour traffic.

Extra buses and the priority passage have made public transport a significantly more attractive option.

Of course, free rides for six months helps, too (I’d put money on this initiative being extended for six more months, given the upcoming election).

Even when we are paying, though, Perth’s public transport has always been very cheap to use.

This is exactly how public transport should work in the inner city.

There should be few reasons for people living in the suburbs surrounding the Perth CBD to drive to work, although the historical reticence is perhaps understandable.

Frustrating bus networks and longer commute times on public transport have been among the issues stifling greater take-up of the network over the years.

In Victoria Park and surrounds, at least, that concern has been remedied.

The buses have been full without being overcrowded, and the ride in and out of the city has been smooth every day.

More buses means more options, so most commuters will have a stop within 50 metres of their front door.

Or, if they feel so inclined, they can jump off along the Victoria Park cafe strip to grab a takeaway meal before strolling home.

It is a credit to Transperth, the Department of Transport and Transport Minister Rita Saffioti, but it has also set the bar high.

This extraordinary public transport outcome flowing from the Armadale line shutdown needs to be replicated in other inner-city suburbs.

Priority bus routes such as those on Albany Highway and Beaufort Street should be the norm to encourage commuters from as far as Nedlands, Wembley, Mount Hawthorn, Belmont and Como to leave the car at home.

The state government also needs to seriously look at mid-tier transport to link Perth’s chronically under-serviced east-west corridors, universities and entertainment precincts.

And it would be remiss not to mention the river, which has one, tediously slow ferry servicing the city-South Perth route.

It’s quicker to walk across the Narrows Bridge to the city than catch the ferry.

Sydney-style fast ferries from places with poor rail access such as Bicton, Dalkeith, Mount Pleasant, Shelley and Ascot have long been in the ‘we’ll do it one day’ basket.

Developers and real estate agents in some of these areas are already telling prospective buyers the ferry service will expand.

It was raised as a proposal when Barrack Square and Elizabeth Quay were built, and again last month when new designs for a revamped Perth Convention Centre were revealed. It needs to happen.

All of this serves to free up the roads for those living further from the city, where buses are not as viable and trains may not be convenient.

If turning car lanes into bus lanes makes the commute slower for those insistent on driving from the inner suburbs to work, good.

It should.

Once the Armadale train service resumes in mid-2025 – and judging by the cracking pace they are setting so far, it will – I would hope the efficient and effective bus service currently standing in for the trains is retained to some degree.