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| Ekka at Night |
So what is so wasteful?
1) Bus routes running in parallel with trains lines. Despite the Ekka being served by trains (to Bowen Hills and Fortitude Valley), and connecting loop trains (to Exhibition Station), Brisbane Transport are running bus routes that compete with the train services. For example, the EK1 to Northgate, EK6 to Eagle Junction, EK7 to Shorncliffe, and EK8 to Beenleigh. As most travel to/from to Ekka is during the off-peak times, these bus services are completely unnecessary. Last year these buses (usually empty) ran every 15 mins. This year they will run every 30mins (and will still be empty). How about scrapping them altogether next year?
2) Bus routes running in parallel with existing bus routes. For example the EK2 to Eight Mile Plains, EK4 to Carindale, and EK5 to Chermside. The RBWH busway station is next to one of the entrances to the Ekka, thus travel to/from the Ekka can be made on the existing frequent bus routes. Off-peak RBWH is served by 12 buses per hour running between Chermside and beyond to the CBD (for bus connections) via the Northern Busway. There is no need for these services, which again were observed to be mainly carrying air last year. Although buses can be overcrowded on the Inner Northern Busway, the Ekka traffic should not add to this congestion.
Whilst on the subject of the Ekka, here is something TransLink have failed to tell their customers yet again:
IF YOU TRAVEL IN THE PEAK FARE PERIOD ON EXHIBITION WEDNESDAY, THEN DESPITE IT BEING A PUBLIC HOLIDAY, YOU WILL STILL BE CHARGED PEAK FARES!
Got it!
Update 08/08/2013
BrizCommuter observed 4 of the wasteful EKx bus services today. Surprise, surprise, they all had zero passengers.
And if the council discontinued them next year, the loudest cries in protest would come from those who 1) didn't use them and 2) had no intention of using them in the first place as was the case with the initial Translink Bus review earlier this year. Sometimes I think the parochial people of this city need a good hard kick up the arse.
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