Car vs Bus

A great letter from Metro Tasmania CEO Heather Haselgrove in today's Mercury.

She writes in response to a letter by a member of the public claiming it is cheaper to travel by car from Kingston to Hobart.

(letter abridged)

"As the writer says, comparisons need to count all the costs as accurately as possible. When you use a Greencard, the cost of a Metro full adult fare for the weekly return trip from Kingston reduces to $36.80, due to the 25 percent bonus credit you receive. Independent information available from the RACT shows that the weekly cost of driving a car from Kingston to Hobart and return is significantly higher. Based on the RACT information, to the (MOP's) estimated average of $21 a week for fuel, you must add $2 per week for tyres, $6 per week for annual service and $39 per week for registration, insurance and stamp duty. That comes to a total of $68 per week. On top of that, many would need to add about $40 per week for parking.

Presently services from Kingston during the peak commuting times of 7.10am until 8.30am run about every seven or eight minutes. In the evenings, services from Hobart to Kingston run about every 15 minutes. I think this clearly demonstrates that, both in terms of cost and convenience, the Metro service is miles ahead.

Of course we always strive to do things better and Metro will soon take posession of four new buses which will help improve the quality of services and address any overcrowding."

Heather Haselgrove

CEO, Metro Tasmania

So as the lady says, catching the bus could save you plenty of dollars!

Check out http://www.metrotas.com.au/ for more information on Metro bus services.

After all, the first thing any of us who want more and better public transport can do is - CATCH THE BUS!