The PTUA has today launched a study of public transport governance, comparing public transport management around the world, and looking at the past and future of Victoria’s public transport.
The “good governance” of public transport systems means having the appropriate organisations with the necessary powers, skills and responsibilities to deliver services that compete effectively with the private car option. Effective governance has been found to be the most critical requirement for ensuring “best practice” in urban transport, more even than adequate funding, infrastructure or land-use planning. The lack of effective governance largely explains why public transport in Melbourne, and Victoria more generally, fails to be competitive with car travel despite its extensive train and tram infrastructure, generous recurrent funding, multimodal ticketing and a moderately public-transport-friendly urban form.
Note: PTUA President Daniel Bowen’s opinion piece in this morning’s Herald Sun on this topic included the following text, referring to VicRoads: “Most importantly, it doesn’t hold back from lobbying the Government for much-needed road projects.”
This was a typographical error, and should have read: “Most importantly, it doesn’t hold back from lobbying the Government for big road projects on the basis of what it regards as the needs of the Victorian public.”