Charlotte Varcoe
The City of Mount Gambier will continue to advocate for better public transport services despite LinkSA receiving the current contract.
Council mayor Lynette Martin said she was happy the services would continue, but the council would continue to advocate as it has been since 2020 where it took part in a comprehensive review.
LinkSA took over from Mount Gambier Bus Lines at the beginning of the month and has stated it would work towards improved services.
Ms Martin told The Border Watch that although the new service was being offered without change, it was disappointing it was still “on the present service model”.
“We do thank the former bus service providers for their commitment and service to the community,” Ms Martin said.
“It is important to note the service issues had nothing to do with the providers of the service.
“It is a state government funding issue that needs to be addressed.”
Ms Martin said she hoped the future of public transport in Mount Gambier/Berrin was “brighter” with LinkSA providing “a lot of services around the state”.
“Mount Gambier City Council will look forward to working with LinkSA as they settle into their role but of course it does rely on state government funding,” she said.
“We will keep advocating and I would assume that once LinkSA starts the service it would see there are inadequacies and Mount Gambier City Council looks forward to working with them to achieve a service that is more appropriate to the community today.”
Ms Martin said the community was aware the current public transport system “does not allow people to access employment, education facilities” and does not go to the Wulanda Recreation and Convention Centre.
“The system has been the same for 30 years and if we look at how Mount Gambier has grown it is pretty obvious it is not an adequate service,” she said.
“There is a need to have an improved service and people looking to relocate here from other cities would expect a bus service that is adequate to service the community’s needs.
“Currently the service only runs five days a week so we will be looking forward to working with LinkSA.”
Keolis Downer – the operator of LinkSA – stated it was “committed to working with local stakeholders” as well as the Department of Infrastructure and Transport to “deliver public transport services” which meet the community’s needs.
Keolis Downer Bus general manager Brett Andruszkiewicz said these regional contract “wins” serve as a testament to the company’s “strong partnership” with the Department of Infrastructure and Transport as well as the company’s “focus on service delivery and passenger satisfaction”.
“Recruitment and training of new employees has gone well in Mount Gambier, and we are thrilled to welcome new colleagues who know the local area really well,” Mr Andruszkiewicz said.
“Our team will continue to meet with key stakeholders to address community concerns, as we work in partnership with DIT to deliver better services for the Mount Gambier community.
“Under this contract we are purchasing six brand new buses to deliver an improved service to local communities.”
Mr Andruszkiewicz said LinkSA would also put forward solutions as part of its bid response to the department to “improve the Mount Gambier service”.
“We look forward to working with local stakeholders and DIT to determine what can be implemented to deliver improved public transport services in Mount Gambier,” he said.
Mount Gambier Bus Lines general manager Neil Davies said it was disappointing to lose the contract after many years, but acknowledged it was the result of a tender process.
“I would agree the services are under servicing the town and as part of a tender process we had the option to put forward other alternatives that we could run,” Mr Davies said.
“But obviously extra services are an extra cost and the government has not covered it.”
He said extra services had to be led with funding and the services would not “pay for themselves” yet confirmed there had been no job losses since the transition.
“A couple of drivers transferred across to LinkSA but we have absorbed the rest into other services,” Mr Davies said.
“We are still in town doing our thing and we are heavily invested in the school buses which remain unchanged and we will focus on changing quality service to our existing clientele.
“It is regrettable to see services transferred on a cost-basis to a multinational company but that is the result of a government tender process.”
The Mount Gambier Bus Lines previously ran the services for about three decades with Mr Davies stating it had been great to service the community.
The new LinkSA Mount Gambier office is now located at 15 Bodey Circuit in Suttontown and will be open from 10am until 2pm for the public.
