The South Australian Government has announced Mount Barker and the Barossa will be the centre of two six-month demand responsive transport trials.
Commuters will be able to download an app and request a vehicle ‘on-demand’ which will pick them up from their home or within a proposed distance of 60-130 metres from their location.
Both trials are proposed to commence early next year. The results will be evaluated after the six-month trial period.
Keolis Downer were awarded the grand to run the trials.
Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government Stephan Knoll said the state government is continuing to look at exciting and innovative ways to drive public transport growth.
“We want to provide a better and more convenient service to encourage South Australians to leave the car at home and hop on a bus, train or tram,” he says.
“We consistently receive feedback that South Australians want more frequent services which unfortunately cannot always be delivered due to limited resources.”
The on-demand service hopes to enable passengers to call a service when it is needed. Passengers will be able to track the busses location.
“In its simplest terms, these ‘on-demand’ bus services will operate in a similar way to most ride sharing apps than millions of people use right across the country,” Mr. Knoll says.
The trials hope to drive patronage and deliver better services so that public transport is a more attractive option for commuters.
To support these innovative trials, $1.7 million has been contributed from the South Australian Government’s Future Mobility Lab Fund.
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