The next six months will be the worst of the “disruption”, traffic delays caused by the construction of light rail to Woden, transport minister Chris Steel warned today – but, he said, the government has planned and prepared.

“As we build the transport infrastructure today that is important for Canberra’s future, there will be temporary disruption to the traffic network from the construction, whether you are commuting by car or by bus,” Mr Steel said.

All traffic moving through the network will face delays, Mr Steel said. The disruption began at the end of last year, when the southern end of London Circuit and the cloverleaf exits on Commonwealth Avenue were closed. As people return to work and to school, traffic volumes will increase.

As work intensifies on light rail and CIT Woden, Mr Steel encouraged the public to “rethink their route”: not to drive, if possible, but to use public transport (such as a Rapid bus or light rail), cycle, walk, e-scooter, or travel by car outside peak times. That, Mr Steel said, will “alleviate congestion, or save time and frustration on your commute”.

Next Monday, 30 January, a temporary new interchange at Woden will open, while bus routes will switch to an interim timetable to cope with the delay, Mr Steel said. A reliable transport network, he explained, will help people avoid some of the disruption.

• Two weeks into Canberra’s light rail traffic disruption (15 December 2022)
• London Circuit closing – expect years of traffic disruption (22 November 2022)

Light rail, once complete, will help Canberra to avoid traffic gridlocks that other cities suffer, Mr Steel said. According to the government’s Light Rail Business Case (2019) – which did not satisfy the Auditor-General – Canberra’s high level of car dependency is unsustainable. Three-quarters (75 per cent) of working Canberrans travel by car; a predicted population of 620,000 by 2046 will result in a congested road network, but smart public transport will make Canberra liveable and competitive. 23,000 people are expected to use light rail by 2046.

But the Canberra Liberals consider light rail a white elephant, which will cost $14 billion – more than three times the entire ACT budget when the project began a decade ago – and vital services like health, housing, and education have been sacrificed to it. Already, according to shadow transport minister Mark Parton, Canberrans are starting to feel the impact.

“So many Canberrans will be impacted by these changes, and most of them don’t have the option to radically ‘rethink their route’,” Mr Parton said. “For most of those impacted, ‘rethink your route,’ actually translates to, ‘you’re going to be late’.

“Individuals and businesses are going to be severely affected by these disruptions for an absurdly long time.”

• Light rail has gone off the rails, Canberra Liberals say (5 December 2022)

New bus interchange

The temporary interchange at Woden will separate the interchange from construction works for the new CIT campus in Woden, so buses can safely operate, Mr Steel said.

The temporary bus interchange will be in use until the new Woden light rail ready interchange is complete.

It features sheltered platforms; prioritised pedestrian access at the northern and southern entry-points; CCTV monitoring equipment and PA speakers; parking for Transport Canberra Operations vehicles; and is accessible for disabled people.

Bus timetable

In the new bus timetable, Mr Steel said, some school bus services, particularly in Gungahlin, have been adjusted to better meet school bell times.

Extra time has been scheduled into bus journeys to accommodate extra journey times expected for buses running through the city; this will change the scheduling of some services.

Some buses, however, will be less frequent, Mr Steel stated: some local services have been reduced to an hourly off-peak frequency.

Mr Steel said that a high-quality bus service will still be provided:

•           Rapid routes will run at least every 15 minutes between 7am to 7pm (except for rapid 10); the last services begin between 10.30pm and 11pm.

•           More than 70 per cent of local services will run at least every 30 minutes between 7am and 7pm; the last services begin between 10pm and 11pm.

“We have prioritised maintaining service frequency during peak periods when most of our customers travel,” Mr Steel said.

The new bus timetable is based on modelling that predicted an eight-minute delay for buses travelling from the south of Canberra into the city, Mr Steel explained.

“We really won’t know until the construction activity actually starts to ramp up whether that will be borne out in reality,” he said.

The government will look closely at traffic modelling and data from Bluetooth sensors and CCTV to study the impact.

The bus timetable was released last month, before the end of the school year, so the public could plan ahead, Mr Steel said – but the ACT Greens, the Canberra Liberals, and the Public Transport Association of Canberra objected to cuts to the number of trips on many routes, night services finishing earlier, and that weekend trips had not been increased.

“The Canberra Liberals have been flooded with complaints about traffic disruptions, major delays, and gaping holes in the bus timetable as a consequence of the government’s failures in this space,” Mr Parton said today.

“Weekend services are of particular concern for a swag of low-income workers who can no longer rely on the bus to get them to and from work in a sensible timeframe.”

• Canberra buses given the kiss-off (14 December 2022)

Local bus route changes:

•           Route 31 has been extended into Lawson and U-turn at the roundabout until the Stockman Ave extension is completed.

•           Gungahlin routes have been adjusted to service schools and provide better access to the Amaroo shops.

•           Pick up and set down has been relocated from Brierly Street, Cooleman Court, to the main stops on Parkinson Street, Weston.

•           Belconnen routes have been adjusted to reduce the use of Fraser West terminus to minimise impact on nearby residents.

•           Reduced bus layovers at Denman Prospect.

•           Adjustments for use of the Turner bus layover.

The ACT Government will review the new timetable in the middle of the year, once traffic impacts are realised and tested across the network.

The government will soon introduce a new flexible ticketing system to reduce barriers to using public transport.

For more information about the new bus timetable, and how to rethink your routine and plan your journey, visit www.transport.act.gov.au/.