Brisbane’s buses are expected to generate more than $28 million in income for Brisbane City Council in 2018-19, with more than $11 million coming from advertising.
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The 2018-19 budget revealed a proposed “other revenue” figure of $28,746,000 for the financial year, without any detail on how this money was to be accrued.
Opposition transport spokesman Jared Cassidy questioned the council’s public and active transport chairman Adrian Schrinner about the figure during a budget information session and requested a breakdown of the revenue.
Cr Schrinner was unable to answer the question immediately, but took it on notice and later revealed the source of the $28 million.
Source of “other revenue”:
- Bus shelter advertising - $7.3 million
- Charter and special event bus services - $5.7 million
- Advertising on the buses - $4.5 million
- Blue City Glider – revenue returned from the state government - $4.7 million
- CityCycle revenue - $3.1 million
- Bus lease - $321,000
- Workshop fabrication (making things for other parts of the council or the community at the bus workshop) - $270,000
- Insurance claims (for when someone is at fault for an accident with a council bus) - $265,000
- Marron City Glider (contribution from the state government for the route extension) $74,000
- Other revenue - $2.1 million
About 41 per cent of the revenue came from advertising while about 21 per cent was from chartering or leasing the buses for special events.
In the 2017-18 financial year, the council employed 1652 full-time bus drives, 109 part-time bus drivers and 525 casuals.
In the 2018-19 financial year that full-time number will increase by 11 drivers, there will be 12 more part-time bus drivers and 25 more casual drivers.
Cr Schrinner said the council increased its casual bus driver workforce earlier this year, to support the growing number of events for which the council supplied special event services.
“Brisbane City Council provides contracted transport for a number of major events, including rugby league, rugby union, AFL and cricket,” Cr Schrinner said.
“Casual bus drivers are trained to council’s standards and hired on an as-needs basis.”
“The number of permanent bus drivers has remained steady, as there are no major changes to the number or type of TransLink bus services provided by council.”
Cr Cassidy said there was a place for casual drives but there was a concern around the growing casualisation of both the driving staff and others in council.
“We have heard from drivers about the difficulty in transitioning from casual employment to permanent part time, or full time for that matter,” he said.
Cr Cassidy also expressed concern that about $6 million listed on the Transport for Brisbane budgeted statement of income and expenditure report would be returned as a surplus to council's consolidated revenue.
“The recent Brisbane Liveability Survey showed that investing in public transport is front and centre in people’s minds,” he said.
“This surplus that Transport for Brisbane is running should be returned to more and better services.
“This $6 million would more than pay for a free ferry for Bulimba or the additional City Glider services LNP chair Vicki Howard has been calling for.”
