It’s been claimed that commuting is more stressful than being a stunt pilot!
Coasties would know, considering much of the population takes the black snake to Sydney each workday, or rides the rails for hours on end – time that could be much better spent catching Zs or watching flicks.
Click here to see how long you spend and what else you could be doing instead
and head here to see what else is taking the train with you on any given day
But support for transport services seems to have hit a wall, and those calling for improvements and expansion feel like they are banging their head against the proverbial …
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Now it seems it may well be all aboard for even more boredom with recent reports it’s the end of the line for direct services from Wyong and Gosford to the North Shore. And aerial intervention may be needed to help ease congestion down below.
Information recently obtained by the ABC suggest that express peak-hour services may be re-routed down the Northern line via Strathfield, instead of Chatswood to the city.
What’s more, most services may start at Gosford, not further up the Central Coast and Newcastle line.
The national broadcaster reports that the state’s Transport department is planning an end to direct services from Wyong and Gosford to the North Shore line by 2019.
This is on top of other info that shows the Central Coast is on the brink of a population boom, with major property development in the pipeline…without the transport infrastructure to support it.
Currently, the combined population of Lake Macquarie, Newcastle and the Central Coast is nudging the 1 million mark, but there have been no upgrades to the road or rail routes linking the Hunter to the big smoke, despite the political promises.
Back in 1998, then-Premier Bob Carr announced plans for a high speed Newcastle-Central Coast-Sydney railway line, “fully funded” by the state government, it was re-iterated by Labor’s then Minister for Transport, Carl Scully, in 2002, and due for completion by 2007.
Nothing has been built.
At a national level, the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd Labor governments promised plans for high speed rail across the Coast.
Nothing has been built.
There was even talk of upgrading and expanding air traffic services on the Central Coast, taking some of the strain off road and rails and reducing travel time being the hubs.
Nothing has been built.
And now a local ferry company could close its commuter service unless a sand-clogged Central Coast channel is cleared. Fantasea Cruises have reportedly run aground 3 times in the past month near Box Head, sparking safety fears for passengers and crew alike.
An appeal has been sent to the current Premier Gladys Berejiklian to get an urgent dredging of the channel so services can continue in Ettalong channel, a mere 7m wide shallow stretch that’s proving even more difficult to navigate given its current levels of sand, particularly during low tide.
So far, nothing has been done.
Meanwhile, the population keeps growing, Coasties keep commuting, and accidents and breakdowns on the M1, or track repairs on the rail line, add to time spent sitting in traffic.
At least you can listen to Star104.5 for traffic updates, and win some experiences to upgrade your downtime.
