While the final touches were being made to the exhibition spaces at this September’s National Bus and Coach Show, the BIC Council was also meeting just up the road. This was the fifth council meeting of the year, where councillors discussed a range of critical issues facing the industry and how to address these challenges.
For almost two years, the BIC has run an Industry in Crisis advocacy campaign, detailing the plight of bus and coach manufacturers and suppliers, and what could be done by the Australian and State and Territory Governments to assist. While the campaign is now getting traction with the governments who established a bus working group under the auspices of the Infrastructure and Transport Senior Officials (the secretaries/DGs of all the transport departments), we need them to pump the accelerator if we’re to stabilise the local industry, and maintain and grow the mix of local and international bus procurement to meet zero emission targets.
The Council also discussed the difficulties faced by bus operators nationwide, many of whom could also be said to be facing a crisis. Contracts that fail to recognise the national and international heavy vehicle drivers’ shortage and penalise or abate operators for other issues outside of their control, such as congestion impacting the ability to run on time, are leading to financially non-viable operations. Abatements are not resulting in improvements to public transport or bettering conditions for our employees (to improve recruitment and retention). Psycho-social hazards in the workplace and schedules and chain of responsibility breaches were also touched upon. The Council agreed to commence evidence-based advocacy campaigns on these critical issues. We’ll keep you informed on progress.
Advocacy is the core function of the BIC. Our vision is an innovative and thriving bus and coach industry that moves people safely and sustainably.
Together, with our members, we’re working to ensure that this vision is realised.
Roz Chivers
Executive Director, BICSeptember
