Regional Public Transport

399 The Hon. B.R. HOOD ().16 October 2024). Can the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport advise—

1. What advice did the minister receive from the department on the inequity of public transport services between regional and metropolitan communities, as suggested in response to the member for Mount Gambier on 28 September 2023?

2. Has the minister or his department investigated establishing a Keoride on-demand public transport service in Mount Gambier?

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development, Minister for Forest Industries): The Department for Infrastructure and Transport advises:

The department acknowledges that it is challenging to deliver cost-effective services in regional areas, given the considerable travel distances that services are required to travel combined with the low population densities and low patronage demand.

Nonetheless, as you would be aware, the department is currently considering a review into regional public transport which includes Mount Gambier and will be completed by the end of the year. Since 2022, the Malinauskas government has increased funding for regional public transport by approximately $7 million per year. In contrast, the previous Marshall Liberal government, which purported to support regional communities failed to conduct a review into regional public transport and only extended existing contracts without going to tender.