Barnett’s final failure on public transport

The Barnett Government has written the final chapter of its impressive catalogue of total failure on public transport delivery, admitting at last that its draft public transport plan has been abandoned and will never be finalised.

"Premier Barnett no longer even pretends to care about provisioning mass transit for our rapidly growing city. Perth drivers stuck in hideous, ever lengthening traffic jams will be given plenty of time to reflect on this staggering incompetence as the next state election draws ever closer," Australian Greens deputy leader and Senator for WA Scott Ludlam said today.

"The Barnett Government introduced its draft public transport plan in 2011 and more than a thousand public submissions were received. The draft was criticised for a lack of urgency, but otherwise met with a generally positive reception.

"Perhaps buoyed by the positive feedback, the Government committed to build the first stage of the Perth Light Rail network in the lead up to the 2013 state election.

"At the first opportunity, this plan was abandoned, but the movement to have this infrastructure built is again gathering pace.

"The enduring public transport legacy of the Barnett Government will be draft plans, draft lines on draft maps and then a series of graceless back downs. The sooner this Government is put out of its misery the better for everyone," Senator Ludlam concluded.