Hi, for a while now I've been tryin' to stay edumicated/involved in local political/public minutiae as a cathartic self-distraction aways from far bigger issues I feel powerless to address, for example, our nation's complicit collusion in the Gaza Genocide...over on TMGI Facebook and on other local social media sites and local old school media, eg The Border Watch, there's been a buncha' discourse re Mt Gambiers' appalling Public Transport System...the title to this blog is a self-quote from my own recent Facebook effort on this issue...(yeah, but it's difficult to cover what is unfortunately a very complex issue in that short-form format-Ed)...true, but we've done multiple posts, and all sarcasm/facetiousness aside, we've clearly not explained it very well so that's why we're here, to put it all in one place...(umm, what's this "we've" stuff? I don't get a look-in at TMGI Facebook but when the shizzle hits the proverbial, suddenly it's "we've"-Ed)...fair enough...(TMGIF is like your side-project, your solo album-Ed)...never looked at it like that, but sure...(so don't blame me-Ed)...well I've tried blaming everyone else, I mean, like, literally actually everyone else, including the actual people actually responsible, etc etc etc..regular availees will know the rest of that rant...
First Stop:...for those whom rely upon it, Public Transport is not minutiae, it is a critical service that in many circumstances they organise their lives around, eg, you don't make a late afternoon doctor's appointment if ya' gunna' be sittin' in the docs' office when the last bus leaves...and this post is not about the coal-face, hands-to-the-proverbial-and-actual-wheel provision of Public Transport in Mt Gambier, ie, how the buses are driven/etc, it's about the decades-long litany of grossly-failed responsibilities of successive Mt Gambier City Councils and State governments, especially as it relates to funding...(and how, particularly as it relates to the conduct of MGCC, how these failures are a manifestation of the contempt that fuels them-Ed)...indeed, and even if it's just callous indifference rather than actual contempt and/or outright corruption, etc, the facts as they exist are not up for debate, they are the facts, the bus runs when it does and doesn't when it don't...State governments have certain responsibilities and provide certain funds, or they don't, and the same with MGCC...
This also isn't about the local provider/contractor either...one respectfully assumes that buses are maintained to a high-standard, etc, and the contractor is only providing the service that they have been presented with, they don't organise it...
We say "unfortunately a very complex issue" because it really isn't that difficult to do properly/appropriately if that's the agenda, if that's the intent, yet in Mt Gambier it's a relentless stream of Mt Gambier City Council gaslighting, failures, self-interest, maladministration...(and malicious bastardry, don't forget the malicious bastardry-Ed)...no no, I was getting to the malicious bastardry, don't panic...(and I'd say 'torrent'-Ed)...sorry what?...(I'd say 'torrent' instead of 'stream'-Ed)...another fair call, the torrent of gross misconduct by MGCC on this issue subsumes the State governments' stream of failures, which itself coalesces basically as Lack of Funding Due to Disinterest...no Adelaide-based government has ever nor will ever give a fat dead rats' festered clacca about the South East...(unless there's something here-abouts they wanna' dig-up and/or sell-off for the greater glory of her imperial majesty and all the voters whom reside there-in-Ed)...agreed...
Public Transport Options: Trains...(nope-Ed)...trams...(nope-Ed)...which leaves buses...(sometimes-Ed)...sometimes?...(well here's the facts Jack, there is no service on Weekends or Public Holidays, which means NO SERVICE AT ALL for 115 days per annum-Ed)...that seems an awful lot, sure that's right?...(52 weekends =104 days, +11 Public Holidays-Ed)...yeah, thanks for that, it was a sarcastically rhetorical question, but you're right, the Math is irrefutable...(and that includes of course No Service for 7 of the 10-11 days across Xmas/New Year, usually with a 4-day block, and the same at Easter-Ed)...one year didn't ANZAC Day (25th April) fall right at Easter and there was no bus for 5 days straight?...(it's certainly possible-Ed)...and no weekend buses means also that across mid-year term breaks, 6-in-16 days there's No Service?...(yep, which means 8 weekends across Xmas Holidays-Ed)...so in the School Holiday/Xmas/New Years period there is no Public Transport for at least, what, 19 days out of approx 50 days?...(20 including 'Australia Day', but still very near if not exactly accurate, yep, certainly it's over 1-in-3 days that there's no Public Transport in Mt Gambier across the Xmas/New Year/School Holidays-Ed)...gourd, the more ya' look at the actual details of this, the worse it gets...(well that's what ya' get for lookin'-Ed)...
In Review: No Service at all on Weekends or Public Holidays, for a total of 115 days per annum, including 19-20 days with No Service across the 7 week Xmas/School Holidays.
When the service is operating, it's only from 0900hrs, starting in central Mt Gambier at the 'terminus'* then concludes at 1715hrs...of the 3(three) 'Loops' operating, the North East Loop that I used to catch doesn't have it's first run until 0930hrs and the last Loop left town at 1645hrs...(we've included below links to the timetables as currently available off the Interweb-Ed)...they look somewhat dated, but provide enough info to support/illustrate the points made here-in...please note that, because there's only a few buses/drivers available, all services are interrupted mid-afternoon by the School Service...
* Malicious Bastardry:...is moving the 'terminus'/stops from Ferrers St right adjacent to, and in the lee of, the Sir Robert Helpmann Theatre, moving them 100m further from the shops and into an appalling wide-open to the Winter weather/South-facing position 'round the corner on Sturt St...(well that's just an absurd suggestion, and you sir are indeed a malicious bastard for even giving breath to such vulgarity!-Ed)...yeah calm down, it's not my suggestion, that's what MGCC have spent $50k+ doing just a few months ago...(sorry?-Ed)...it is as reads...(but, but, that would mean people have to walk further in the pissing rain/high-Summer heat, to go wait in a shelter that doesn't-Ed)...yep...(no?!-Ed)...yeah...(no?!-Ed)...yeah, I'm tellin' ya', that's what they've just done...(but, it's like, it's kids/young mums with prams/elderly/infirm/disabled/those who can't afford a car and/or unable to drive for whatevs reason, and often burdened with groceries, etc, that's who uses Public Transport, especially in Mt Gambier-Ed)...oh yeah, MGCC knows that...(wait, hang on, Sturt St? are you talking about those metal lean-to things opposite the RSL?-Ed)...yesss, where did you think I meant...(I was politely waiting for you to explain-Ed)...and now I politely have, so let us move on...(yes let's-Ed)...
Whilst I don't think it's appropriate, I understand that 'adults' are still allowed to access the School Services that run pre-0900hrs and in the afternoon, but those travel almost completely different routes/Loops and access different stops, etc, only returning to the central terminus right-on 0900hrs to commence City Services...(and as is still the case with the North-East Loop, that first service doesn't start until 0930hrs and last bus leaves at 1645hrs, so even if you can negotiate/access the morning School Services to get into town pre-0900hrs, ya' can't do that to get home after that last bus-Ed)...indeed, and that's for a standard '9-to-5' job, there's many shift workers in Mt Gambier, eg, supermarket workers, several mills, etc...(and there's various complicated Loop connections/permutations re accessing things like TAFE, the hospital, etc-Ed)...exactly, and part of that complication is that Services only run in one direction, so often to get 'just over there', one has to go into the terminus and catch a different Loop out again, and then repeat that upon return...
The Elephant In The Ointment:...being the most immediately obvious problem with relying on the School Service to get anywhere regularly, eg, work, the problem is???...anyone?...(ummm, you don't work?-Ed)...okay thankyou...(nah nah, just kiddin', gourd bless, it's School Holidays again isn't it?-Ed)...well actually, well done, yes it is, there's no School Service for 7 weeks across Xmas School Holidays, nor for the 6 weeks of mid-year breaks...(so that means, for at least, what, 13 weeks, that's 3 months, for 3 months there's no Public Transport before 0900hrs-Ed)...yep, an extra service in the afternoons 'cos the buses are free, but nuthin' pre-0900hrs...
My each and every exchange/encounter with a bus driver was without any negative incident that I can recall...(even that really grumpy one?-Ed)...big gruff ol' softy who actually always treated their passengers with respect, drove safely, etc, and I can't say with exact recall, but he likely was driving on at least one of the numerous times I witnessed drivers taking the bus off-Loop to drop a disabled/burdened person at their door rather than 2-3 streets away...(or even up into the hospital car-park, which although right on the North-East Loop route is not officially part of it and therefore takes that few extra minutes that means the driver doesn't get any break at the terminus between Loops-Ed)...great point, and illustrative of the broader issues/concerns/failures re the actual Loops/routes/timetables...(you mean, why do drivers have to add that, why wouldn't it already be a dedicated stop given it's arguably the most important service/destination/stop on that NE Loop, if not in the whole town?-Ed)...very fair question, and one answered in the 'In Conclusion' bit below...
I'm Not Crying, You're Crying:...(alright, we're all crying-Ed)...to recall the time that a driver pulled-in at the 'terminus', and gestured to a woman with her 3(?)year old grandson...the kid was looking excited about something, standing in the aisle near the front, holding grandmas' hand, the driver grinning broadly...then he opened the doors...there was the noise of the mechanism, a loud swooosh, and you could feel the change of air pressure pulse through the bus...the kid let-out the most joyous squeal...it was easily the most happy thing I've ever heard in my life...the driver knew the pair, and that the small boy was blind, and how much the kid loved the sounds/sensations of something so simple as the opening of a bus door, so he would stop his bus, wait until they got in position, and then, swooosh...a big shout-out to our bus drivers and local providers who do good work within the constricting confines of a grossly underfunded Public Transport Service...
A Claimer And Disclaimer: I did rely entirely on Mt Gambier Public Transport, ie, the Bus Service, for several years, approx 2003-2010, and, weather permitting, I did often walk 3-4kms into/across town to get places/do stuff...(like shopping and that?-Ed)...well sometimes, yeah, I'd walk into town, shop, catch the bus home...(and of course there wasn't the relatively nearby Market Place Shopping Centre yet?-Ed)...exactly...(but to get there from here is still a 3km round-trip-Ed)...indeed, it'd be okay walking there on a pleasant day, but in wet or hot weather, or carrying shopping home, forget it...(and even then, when the Market Place was built, didn't they fail to include any dedicated Bus Service infrastructure, eg, the access was via a series of very tight turns in the carpark, and the stop was actually a Loading Zone-Ed)...yeah, and I believe it's since been moved out into the main car park, but I couldn't see where, will have to go back and have a thorough nosey... I have rarely used the bus since 2010, but that in itself further highlights how sub-standard and not fit-for-purpose the current service is...(well there's been some minor tweaks to the Loops/routes, but apart from that, it's almost identical to that of 20+ years ago-Ed)...my point precisely, and it was well below par then...
So I lay claim to an intimate and extensive if somewhat dated experience of Mt Gambiers' Public Bus Service...and even then, that's a big part of what pisses me off the most, that it's barely changed in 20+ years...(and it's all well and groovy to tell people 'just get your shopping delivered' or 'just catch a taxi', but for many public transport patrons, if they could afford to use other options, they would do so-Ed)...as above and as stated in TMGI Facebook, I'm going into the minutiae of this issue because Public Transport is critically important to many if not all patrons, and those patrons inevitably have to organise their lives around those routes/Loops and timetables...(yeah, been there, done that-Ed)...indeed we have, because it's an unavoidable and irrefutable reality for patrons...(and suggestions that patrons can just catch a taxi/uber to get around these Loopy complications, don't factor in most patrons' limited incomes-Ed)...well quite...
And this week The Border Watch has done some 'we were there' promo video (Facebook/Twitter?) with a very brief clip of the MGCC Mayor and local Member for Mt Gambier Travis Fatchen standing in front of that Sturt St Terminus 'shelter', grinning inanely at each other...(well, to be fair, it could have been gas-Ed)...what? both of them?...(the Salmon Mousse?-Ed)...nice save there, turning what was effectively a very convoluted attempt to construct a fart joke into a witty Monty Python reference...(I'm here for ya' man-Ed)...sure...so, an uncomfortable 'smile for the camera' media thing, whatevs, there's a very real possibility that MP Fatchen doesn't actually really know/understand how woefully negligent Mt Gambier City Council have been for decades, and continue to be, as it relates to their failures (plural) to meet their legal/legislated obligations to provide shelters/access/lights, etc...(well exactly, so it's upto someone to tell him-Ed)...who you lookin' at? don't look at me, last time I tried to help anyone I got 18 ICAC Convictions for me troubles...(mmm, fair point, but then whom?-Ed)...well I would think that either and/or both the most excellent Mt Gambier & Districts Residents & Ratepayers Association and the Blue Lake Briefing Room...
But the Mayor knows, the Mayor knows exactly what MGCC is supposed/legislated to provide and how appallingly they've failed/refused to meet their responsibilities, it's just offensive to do a photo-op on a sunny day in front of those appalling shelters...(but there's nothing quite as offensive as the MGCC Mayor publicly spruiking MGCC/Ratepayer funded Electric Scooters For Mt Gambier, with the sentient observation that peeps can just flog about on e-scooters in lieu of decent Public Transport, 'cos that's what any pram-wielder or geriatric like me or whoevs, that's what we wanna' do, freakin' e-scooters!-Ed)...I just happen to have that exact quote...(thought ya' might-Ed)...from MGCCs' own Public E-Scooter Operator EOI, on their website, dated 24th March 2025, with the link below that...ladies and gentlemens, our Mayor...
In Conclusion: The Horse Gets Carted:...Public Transport (Bus Service) in Mt Gambier, as long as I've known it, is not organised around what is most required/appropriate, it's not about the usability/function in the best interests of patrons, it's been a series of 'Contracts' based on who can do it cheapest re the pre-existing sub-standard service...(it's why nothing's changed in 20+ years-Ed)...my point exactly, it's not motivated by a desire to provide a decent/functional/respectful service, it's based solely on 'what costs us least to maintain the bare minimum?'...(and given recent decisions/actions at both MGCC and State government levels, it's an attitude of indifference that persists-Ed)...no-one has genuinely reviewed the service/Loops with genuine intent to actually provide the most functional and user-friendly service, nobody's even tried putting the horse in front of the cart...
MGCC continuously bleating about the failure of the State government to provide adequate funding is at once factually true, but is also a gaslighting insult to Ratepayers/Residents given MGCCs' failures to fulfill their basic, legislated responsibilities.
I don't think one can too often call-out MGCCs' Malicious Bastardry re moving the terminus...(for there is no other way to describe it, is there? that spiteful, selfish act of moronic callousness, that ain't no unfortunate accident, not some bureaucratic slip-of-pen, no short-sighted oversight, that's deliberate and with intent, and that is malicious and it is bastardry-Ed)...and even if it's not direct intent, even if it's at worst just callous indifference to the repercussions of these decisions/actions, that's still malicious and it's still bastardry...(the bit that did my head-in was when MGCC went and bought themselves 6 luxury vehicles in the same time-frame the terminus was being re-located-Ed)...it's just blatant, open contempt for Ratepayers, most especially to those Ratepayers reliant on the Bus Service...(and what I'd call 'Corrupt' because MGCC are spending Ratepayers' monies on cars for themselves, and that's Ratepayers' monies that should be being spent on MGCCs' legislated/legal responsibilities to provide Public Transport infrastructure, eg, shelters/access/light/etc for Ratepayers!-Ed)...I'd think that 'Corrupt' is a describor that many people would feel appropriate and more than comfortable using re MGCCs' conduct on this issue...
Oh and do not get me started about 'Free Buses To The Footy At Adelaide Oval'...(I didn't say anything about...-Ed)...Jesus H Tap-Dancin' Christ On a Unicycle, free buses to an oval bought with the grossly under-value sell-off of the States' South East Forest Reserve/Estate, a moronic act of Fiscal Self-Castration...that Estate earned South Australia $100million+ pa; was worth in total over $2.5billion but was sold-off for under $700million, all of which went to a $90million 'pay-off-your-debt' bribe to Cricket SA to get them to 'approve' the subsequent $600+million Adelaide Oval rebuild...no buses running in Mt Gambier on a Friday night, on any night, but free shreckin' buses for the teaming teeming in Adelaide...(and we'll just make the point, we ain't got no problems with free buses for Adelaide if the rest of the State has appropriate Public Transport-Ed)...but we do have a problem 'cos we don't...(whaaa?-Ed)...come on, you know what I mean...anyhoos, here's that link as promised...
And this rather convoluted shambles (below) is whatcha' get from clicking on the 'MGCC - Have Your Say' link, as per the same search menu as above...as best I can tell the info there-in is fairly current/accurate...
Tomorrow: More Attempts At Humour On Current Issues? Probably.
Above I've referred to drivers going 'Off-Loop' to deliver persons to their homes, and just wanted to point out that, of the dozens of times I saw this quietly wonderful public service performed, not once did I see/hear a single other passenger complain...we knew, we understood...there was more decency and basic respect and humanity in every individual on that bus than in the combined entirety of MGCC...(well, in those decision makers at MGCC, the bloated bureaucracy and Elected members, most employees have no say in this stuff-Ed)...yeah well okay, you're right, but I figure most availees can figure-out for themselves who we're talking about, we've been very clear across many, many posts how we feel about these issues of who's responsible and who's just doin' their job...(agreed, just sometimes it doesn't hurt to repeat these things-Ed)...fair enough...
I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog...cheers and laters...
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