There is increasing pressure to continue the bus service from Goulburn to Canberra beyond its trial period.
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The trial service has been running since September, 2018, and was originally due to last six months.
However, it was extended to September and then October 28, following representations from Member for Goulburn Wendy Tuckerman to the NSW Transport Minister.
Now it has been extended to January 31 next year, following a petition with over 300 names being presented to Mrs Tuckerman by Goulburn man Lawrie Sullivan.
Mr Sullivan's son Collen has acute pancreatitis necrosis, a condition where digestive enzymes attack the pancreas.
They travel to Canberra three days a week on the bus so that Collen can receive treatment at Canberra Hospital.
Travelling by private car was proving too costly, so for Mr Sullivan the bus is a Godsend.
"We don't know where he is going to end up medically, he could be home for Christmas or back in Goulburn Base, but we just don't know," he said.
"Every time it levels out something else goes wrong, and you can only treat one thing at a time. It would be great to continue this bus service permanently, not just for us, but for anyone who might need treatment in the future, or for those with medical appointments or seniors who want to go to Canberra for the day."
He said welfare recipients could travel on the bus for $2.50 return, as opposed to the full fare of $26.
"It comes down to how it is advertised," he said.
"This bus service has been running since September last year and we only discovered it in July and other people have also only discovered it along the way."
"It started out as a five-day a week service, then was cut back to three days."
He said the number of travellers on the bus varies.
"There was only five on it on Monday, but last week there were 17 people on it each day," he said.
"If you have a NSW Senior's Card, you can get an ACT Senior's My Way card and travel around Canberra for nothing on buses and the light rail."
Member for Goulburn Wendy Tuckerman said she supported the extension.
A spokesperson from Mrs Tuckerman's office said the petition was presented to the Minister for Regional Transport on Tuesday morning.
"Wendy presented the petition to NSW Regional Transport and Roads Minister Paul Toole's office to ensure a formal response will be forthcoming," the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said Mrs Tuckerman took this action as opposed to tabling it like a normal petition, because that would just result in it being mentioned rather than receiving a formal response.
"We will get them a response. A more formal response will be forthcoming."
Previously Mrs Tuckerman advised that during the trial period, NSW TrainLink is seeking and reviewing feedback from customers to identify any opportunities to amend the service to better meet the community's needs.
"The trial is currently being reviewed with factors such as patronage, utilisation, cost recovery, alternative transportation options as well as customer and community feedback all being considered. I am looking forward to seeing results of this summary," she said.
She said she had made her feelings known to the minister over continuing the service.
"I have made it quite clear that just abandoning this service is unacceptable that we have to work to identify and explore what the right options are," she said.
"He has given me an undertaking to go back to the Department to explore the options and discussions around timetables and links to new/existing services."
The bus leaves Goulburn Railway Station at 9am and goes to Civic, John James and Canberra Hospitals, Kingston Railway Station and then Queanbeyan. It returns to Goulburn by 4pm.
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David Cole
Journalist at the Goulburn Post
Journalist at the Goulburn Post
