Bus Timetables

Mr TARZIA (Hartley) (14:35): My question is to the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. Can the minister explain what notice bus commuters received of a recent timetable change? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr TARZIA: On Friday 28 April, changes were announced to several timetables for bus services, with the changes taking effect on Monday 1 May, only two days later.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Energy and Mining) (14:35): It is a good question from my young friend the member for Hartley on Adelaide Metro changes.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Morphett! The minister has the call.

Mr Tarzia: The elderly couldn't get to their medical appointments. It's alright if you've got a ministerial limo, isn't it?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I hope to have the names and addresses of all the people who missed out on their medical appointments provided to me from the member for Hartley. He has just told the house that he knows personally people who have missed—

Mr Tarzia: I didn't say that.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: You didn't say that? Okay. See how my young friend fails at the first hurdle?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: These are the lessons you need to learn.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Personal reflections are contrary to the standing orders.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I agree, sir. Adelaide Metro changes its timetable up to four times a year to align with school terms and what is occurring across the network, and some bus services were modified on 1 May. It is no surprise to any South Australian that we have problems recruiting bus drivers. The privatisation contracts that the previous government—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Hartley! The minister has the call.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Morphett is warned. The member for Hartley is warned. The minister has the call.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I have to say it is invigorating to see the enthusiasm of my young friend in attempting to be a vigorous shadow minister.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Florey!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Given the previous government attempted to close 1,000 bus stops, I think it is a bit rich.

An honourable member: A thousand bus stops?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: A thousand bus stops. They pretended it was only 500—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Newland!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: —but in fact it was actually 1,000 bus stops. I think it is a bit rich. What we have said is that while the privatised contracts are attempting to recruit drivers to replace the per cent of routes that are lost, we are committed to reinstating all those routes. There are no permanent cuts to any routes.

The problem we have here is that the private operators are having problems actually recruiting drivers. The state, fortunately, is close to full employment. We are dealing with record employment levels where the contest for labour is at an all-time high, which has also led to inflationary pressures but, of course, competition for labour is incentivised. My young friend wants us to increase the wages of bus drivers.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Florey, member for Newland!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I look forward to the policy proposal by the shadow treasurer to increase the costs—encouraging them to be happy.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Morialta!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: We are currently about 10 per cent down on the number of drivers that we need to operate our fleet, and that is because of a number of reasons. One is that it is a competition for labour. We are in an almost full-employment state, where we have record levels of employment in South Australia. I know the opposition thinks that through the pure power of their personality they can fill these vacancies, but in the real world—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: —we need to make sure that we can actually have an active program. We are doing everything we can to try to get many drivers back. We do have a program in place.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Hartley!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: We give people as much notice as we possibly can when routes are being cancelled because of a lack of drivers, but what we do say that is different from our predecessors is that, unlike the planning of permanent cuts that they were making of nearly 1,000 bus stops, all of these routes will be reinstated.