Record numbers on ACT public transport but students left behind

As the light rail comes online, how Canberrans travel through their city has been radically reconfigured - and most dedicated school routes cut - under a plan to better use the city's fleet and draw more people onto public transport.

Students navigating the new timetable have reported running late to school or being forced to leave early to catch connecting buses as more commuters are ferried through major hubs. Others say they have been left waiting at stops as full buses sail past.

This week, for the first time, more than 90,000 people boarded public transport in a single day, according to government data.

A spokeswoman for Transport Minister Meegan Fitzharris said the popularity of the network suggested it was working well for commuters, including students.

"Already more Canberrans are using public transport than ever before," she said. "This is a great result for Canberrans and our city."

After the murder of schoolboy Daniel Morcombe in Queensland, policies were introduced to stop children being left behind at stops, regardless of bus capacity. The spokeswoman said similar policies existed in the ACT that required drivers to stop and arrange alternative transport for children, though not necessarily wait until it arrived.

The ACT's peak body for public school parents said it had unsuccessfully pushed for a "no child left behind" guarantee to be enforced across the new public network.

"They haven't got the frequencies right, we're hearing students are being left at stops because buses are too full," spokeswoman Janelle Kennard said.

"That didn't happen with dedicated school buses - drivers would stop and even send a car or they'd pull a bus off another route. Parents need that peace of mind, they need to have confidence in the frequency of the [public] network."

At the union, Klaus Pinkas agreed it was problematic to leave students at stops, but said the current policy was impractical on the ground.

"They do need to sort out the frequencies on some of the routes and work out which ones are full," he said. "But if people are patient, it will get sorted."

A government spokeswoman said there had been "isolated incidents of services being full due to [their] popularity".

"Transport Canberra is actively working with schools to identify any issues and address them quickly, such as by placing larger buses on popular services and by running additional light rail vehicles during the afternoon school bell time," she said.

An army of support staff has also been out guiding students. With about 700 extra trips now running every weekday, officials said there was now less chance students would be stranded at "school only" stops where services only run during set times.

A spokeswoman for Education Minister Yvette Berry said the new network was a big change, one that would take time for commuters to adjust to.

In the case of St Vincent's primary, where some students now have to finish school 15 minutes early to walk to a new stop, the spokeswoman said that service was designed for nearby Aranda Primary's earlier bell.

"There is a 3:46 service that gives St Vincent's students sufficient time after the bell to gather their belongings and walk to the stop," she said.

Transport Canberra data showed the previous school bus stop was only used by three students a day on average, she said.

School principal Lina Vigliotta said about 10 students used to catch the bus, but only five were expected to continue regularly under the new system.

The Canberra Liberals' transport spokeswoman, Candice Burch, said getting children to and from school safely should be a core part of government services.

"The new network has only been operating for three days and already we have heard of children being left stranded on the side of the road because buses are full, or splitting the cost of Ubers because full buses have driven past them," Ms Burch said.

Catholic and private school principals have also hit out at the dedicated school bus cuts.

Ms Kennard said that, while not all the changes were bad for students, parents still held concerns for at least five high schools where students now needed to navigate busy roads to reach public stops.

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