State Government Misled by Transport Report on Threatened Parramatta Rivercat

30 May 2008

Three Freedom of Information Act (FOI) requests to Sydney Ferries by Parramatta City Council confirm there is no existing data to justify the cancellation of the Parramatta RiverCat.

Bret Walker QC last October recommended to the State Government that the RiverCat service to Parramatta be scrapped, but admitted in his report that there is ‘limited data’ on costs, patronage or service reliability.

“All three FOI requests now expose just how limited that data is” says Lord Mayor of Parramatta City Council, Cr Paul Barber. “It defies belief that the State Government may be now taking such advice even when there is no reliable data and no comparison with other Sydney Ferries services.”  

“This week Council is handing a submission to the NSW Transport Minister John Watkins which highlights, in the strongest way, this extraordinary omission,” he said.  

What the Sydney Ferries FOIs show:

1. Sydney Ferries claim that 94 per cent of all passengers pass through Circular Quay. But how do they know when they don’t collect total passenger numbers across the ferry network?
2. FOI data reveals that 1,642 RiverCat services to Parramatta were cancelled or delayed between July 2004 and March 2008 – an average of 410 disruptions per annum – more than one a day.
3. FOI exposes that Sydney Ferries has no definitive data on costs for the Parramatta RiverCat service and, in fact, are unable to differentiate the costs of any one journey, whether to Parramatta, Rydalmere or Meadowbank.

“Council has gained more accurate information from our own commissioned research on the RiverCat,” says the Lord Mayor. “It proves the wisdom of our call – and those of so many who live along Parramatta River – for a full commuter service for Sydney’s second city,” he said

“Sydney Ferries also ignores the common international benchmark to record lateness at the destination. It has the unique practice of only recording trips as ‘late’ if the ferry departs Circular Quay five minutes or more late.” the Lord Mayor said.

“I also question why Bret Walker’s Public Inquiry did not undertake any cost-benefit analysis of the Parramatta RiverCat service or even provide a comparison with other Sydney Harbour services.  The State Government is delaying its decision but any review of the Walker Report must consider a proper analysis of the cost-benefit of the Parramatta service,” he said.

Council’s independent research recently revealed that Parramatta Wharf was the most popular RiverCat stop after Circular Quay and that the ferry service is worth nearly $8 million per year in tourism alone.

The research interviewed one thousand people who live along the river and in the inner harbour. 72 per cent of them said they would use the ferry service to Parramatta City and 16 per cent would seriously consider changing their current work location to Parramatta – if the Parramatta ferry ran at proper commuter times

“Despite constant barriers to public access, poor maintenance, poor customer service and reduced running times, the RiverCat service to Parramatta continues to grow in popularity for the people of Sydney as a legitimate public transport service,” said Cr Paul Barber.

“The State Government’s Department of Planning correctly projects large population increases and employment growth in the Parramatta region and it’s clear that a ferry service is essential to an integrated transport solution for Sydney’s second city,” Cr Barber said.