Hi there! It's been a bit over two months since the last Free Tiger Bus ran. Over this time we have seen and experienced the struggles of accessing many parts of Launceston without a car. I have experienced first-hand how hard it is to get across inner Launceston. Just yesterday I was at Inveresk needing to get to the K-Mart plaza. While I would normally walk over the Black Bridge and beside the railway line yesterday was the hottest day of the year so far with a heatwave, and I would have much rather caught the bus. However I would have needed to wait a 45 minute transfer in the Launceston City, and I wouldn't have been able to get back to the city in time for my bus home. If anything, this further shows how our transport is disadvantaging inner city travel.

I've been told once or twice that advocating for better inner city transport is elitist and doesn't benefit the majority of Launcestonians. I'll address this in two parts.

Firstly, I'll be honest: I don't live in the inner city. I'm not fighting to get a bus from my doorstep to every destination in the city. I am fighting for better transport to reduce reliance on cars in the inner city. Anyone who has visited the Launceston City will know how awfully car dependent the city is. There is street parking on both sides of most streets, several three or four lane, one way streets with high speed limits running through our city centre. On the western side of the city, around the major Launceston College, there are large expanses of deserted buildings, carparks, and liquor stores. To bring faster, more reliable, and frequent transport to the city centre and surrounds means to open up these for what we actually need in the city - townhouses, apartments, social housing, mixed developments. There's huge potential for the City Council or Tasmanian Government to buy the upper floors of city centre buildings, currently mostly unused or not publically accessible, and turn them into apartments for people to live within a short distance from the amenities available there.

Secondly, even if we ignore all of that and say better transport in the inner city won't effect the urban fabric of the area, let's not forget this: City centre transport doesn't just benefit city centre residents. Better transport to many areas near the city will help many residents commuting from the suburbs and out of the city, who need to get to somewhere in the city that they can't reach directly from their bus. And even if you're still driving, whether it's a matter of convenience or it's your only option, better public transport means less people on the roads. It's a win-win for everyone! 

So on that note, thanks to all of you for 600 signatures. Please write to your local state or federal MP, and to your local councillors, to tell them about the importance of better transport for our urban cores.

Thanks

Jess