Gas fuel

A significant change is occurring in the composition by fuel type of the Transperth bus fleet. This follows the Government’s 2001 decision to require all new buses to be powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) engines. At 30 June 2005, Transperth operated 159 CNG buses and two liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) buses in its total fleet of 1030. Contracts are in place for a further 387 new gas-powered buses to be delivered by 2011.

To service the gas buses, the PTA entered into a contract with Origin Energy in 2003/04 for the supply, installation and maintenance of gas bus refuelling equipment with a 10-year supply of natural gas. Construction of new gas fuelling facilities at Morley and Bayswater depots was completed during the year.The facility at Morley allows 25 buses per hour to be fastfilled, while the refuelling capacity at Bayswater is 15 buses per hour.

A natural gas connection was installed at Fremantle depot and a temporary refuelling facility is operating until construction of the permanent depot is completed in early 2006. This facility is designed to refuel 100 buses at a rate of 25 buses per hour. Natural gas connection was also installed at the new East Perth Central Area Transit (CAT) depot and the facility will come into operation when the new natural gas powered CAT buses are delivered in late 2005. Installation of natural gas refuelling stations at a number of other depots was proceeding at year’s end and these are scheduled to start coming online from early 2006.

SmartRider Project

Transperth will progressively introduce a smartcard ticketing system called SmartRider during 2005/06.

The SmartRider system will include staffed fare gates at 11 high-patronage train stations on the urban network and processors at all other train stations as well as on buses and ferries.

A contract for $4.1 million was awarded in September 2004 to a Western Australian company, MonitorWA, for the provision of SmartRider cards and associated bureau services.

The installation of new ticket issuing machines in Transperth buses and ferries commenced in late December 2004. These machines, which have the capacity to calculate fares using the Global Positioning System, are an integral part of the SmartRider system and their early installation is intended to achieve a controlled and manageable transition from the old to the new ticketing system.

The draft final design documentation for the SmartRider project, consisting of some 36 separate specifications, was completed and a factory acceptance test carried out during the year. Following the test, further development and refinement of the system software and documentation is being undertaken.

In anticipation of the full operation of SmartRider in January 2006, some 105,000 secondary school students were issued with student SmartRider cards to replace the existing student travel permits. When the new system is introduced, students will be able to use the SmartRider to pay public transport fares.

In the Future

In the coming year,Transperth will:

• open Thornlie train station at Spencer Road (due to open on 7 August 2005) and commence revised operating patterns for the Armadale, Thornlie and Joondalup Lines, along with new/revised bus services;
• continue participation in the extensive trial of three Mercedes Benz hydrogen fuel cell buses on various routes in the Transperth network;
• continue a rolling program of bus service reviews across the Perth metropolitan region, reallocating resources from areas where services are poorly utilised to areas of greater demand;
• pursue and promote a network of highfrequency bus and train routes along major transport corridors;
• continue detailed planning for the future southern suburbs bus and train services, to commence when New MetroRail delivers the Southern Suburbs Railway;
• progress the design and construction of infrastructure and buses to enable introduction of the Rockingham City Centre Transit System to coincide with commencement of train services on the Southern Suburbs Railway in 2007;
• complete a review of Esperance town bus services;
• continue involvement in planning for reconstruction and redevelopment of the Wellington Street Bus Station and Mirrabooka Bus Station; and
• introduce a new gas-powered CAT fleet for Perth City.