Ms O'CONNOR - Thank you. Minister, the 2020 21 annual report does not report on accessible services - that is, general access services, delivered with low-floor accessible buses. This was reported in previous annual reports. Can you outline why this is no longer reported? Is it solely because most of the buses are now accessible? It is now, I understand, at 98 per cent, which is a terrific outcome. I have been hassling about access on buses for years, and something has changed in the annual report.
Ms COOPER - I'll have to go back and compare previous years, having not been in the role, but I thought we do actually report in there how many buses we have. I am happy to take that on notice if there is extended reporting required.
I am not sure what to say, except all our buses are low-floor, and we are operating them in all three of our networks. We did have a couple of services that we pulled out for maintenance purposes, et cetera, where I think we might have dropped one or two, but that is about it. So, all our buses are accessible to passengers.
Ms O'CONNOR - Except, I think, there are about four or five that may not be, that are the lingering 2 per cent.
Ms COOPER - We always have a couple of spares for when you have to do maintenance or move things around, but that is only an ad hoc. All services are planned.
I will take the feedback on board about the annual report, if it was not clear enough, and look at that. We are quite open with it. We are quite proud of it actually.
Ms O'CONNOR - Minister, I note that Greencard use is now up to 89 per cent of boardings. It's taken some time for the rate of use to reach this level. Will the new ticket system be replacing Greencards? If so, are there any strategies in place to minimise any reduction in boardings using the card system?
Mr FERGUSON - It is intended that the new system will fully replace the Greencard platform. The chair has been clear that we don't have a project completion date. While we'll proceed through that project with necessary haste it will also be with necessary caution. Bus providers and public transport providers right around the world are quite famous for their integrated ICT projects to be much more complex than they expect at the beginning. We will proceed cautiously and as quickly as we can. Yes, it's intended to replace the Greencard. Working with people to migrate from one service to the next would be something we would step through very carefully because we want to bring them all with us. The intention of the replacement model is to make it easier for people to use non currency based or non coin-based payment models, potentially even tapping on with your watch, phone or credit card. I think I've answered your question.
Ms O'CONNOR - You have. Is the intention that the integrated system cover community transport, private bus operators and public transport?
Mr FERGUSON - The intention is to replace the Greencard system, which is used by Metro and a very small number of public transport general access providers. For Metro and all non Metro general access public transport providers, the parameters of it haven't been described as broader than that.