Countless residents want something done about the inadequate bus service between Campbelltown and the University of Wollongong, says our local MP.
Greg Warren has now written to Andrew Constance, the NSW transport and infrastructure minister, to ask for action.
Mr Warren tells the minister in the letter that a significant number of young people from Campbelltown and the broader Macarthur region study at that university.
And, he adds, the 887 bus service from Campbelltown Railway Station to the campus is the only means by which local students can commute to the campus using public transport.
“There are some significant shortfalls in the current timetable for the 887 bus route,’’ Mr Warren says in the letter.
“While a service departs Campbelltown Station every hour from around 7:10am until 11:06am each weekday morning, there is a gap between 11:06am and 2:06pm where no services depart from Campbelltown Railway Station.
“On the return trip, the current timetable has services leaving from the campus to Campbelltown Railway Station at 12:45pm and then approximately every hour from 3:45pm to 6:45pm.
“This leaves a gap between 12:45pm and 3:45pm in which there are no services departing from the university back to Campbelltown,’’ Mr Warren says in the letter to minister Constance.
He also makes the point that university class timetables vary significantly from each individual student to the next, and very rarely adhere to a standard 9am-5pm mould.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“It is quite common for students to only have classes in the morning or afternoon on any given day, and as such the current timetable for the 887 bus route does not make public transport a viable option for many students.’’[/social_quote]
Mr Warren cites the example of a Campbelltown student who has classes from 9am until 1pm – he or she would be able to catch the 7:10am service from Campbelltown to the campus, which arrives at the campus at 8:13am.
However, upon finishing their classes at 1pm, the student would then be forced to wait for almost three hours for the 3:45pm service back to Campbelltown.
“For the many students who have casual or part-time jobs in retail, hospitality or similar industries where they work during the evenings to support themselves during their studies, waiting for up to three hours for a bus is simply not an option,’’ Mr Warren says in his letter.
“I have been contacted by countless students and their families, each with similar stores about how the current public transport options for are inadequate.’’
Mr Warren says he is also aware of students who opt to drive to Wollongong along Appin Road, which is notorious for its poor safety record.
“Minister, I implore you to give serious consideration to a review of the 887 bus timetable, to ensure that UOW students in Campbelltown are able to use public transport to travel to university.’’
