2014-07-22 Infrastructure & Services Committee Agenda

INFRASTRUCTURE & SERVICES COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                  22 JULY 2014



4                         COUNCIL CABS REVIEW 2014
DOCUMENT IN FOR MATI ON




Author                            Senior Project Officer, Joanna Ferris
                                  Planning & Infrastructure Department

Index                             ECM\ Subject\ Traffic and Transport
                                  ECM\ Project & Contract\ Council Cabs

Attachments                       Nil


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this report is to provide Council with an overview of the Council Cabs services
and to seek direction on the future of the service.

Council Cabs provides a pre-booked scheduled service for eligible persons to travel from their
home to specified shopping or medical precincts. The service is assigned on a suburb by suburb
basis one day per week at a cost of $2 one way (no concessions apply).

Council Cabs was initiated by Sunshine Coast Council and commenced in May 2010 and is a
community transport service for people aged 60 and over and for people with a disability or
mobility impairment and includes carers and minors of eligible people who accompany them.

Currently there is limited take up of the service and the annual cost to Council is $10,460, and is
funded from the Public Transport Levy.

Several other State and Federal initiatives offer similar services for the same groups of eligible
persons and Council Cabs is designed to supplement these transport services, not replace them.

Council Cabs has not been actively promoted since mid-2013, and passenger numbers have
remained static as a result.

Potential options include:
1. Continue Council Cabs without any promotion.
2. Continue Council Cabs and actively promote the services. With promotion the annual
   cost to Council will increase.
3. Continue Council Cabs with a fare increase without promotion. Increasing the fare to $3
   each way would result in a reduced annual cost from $10,460 to approximately $8,820.
4. Continue Council Cabs with a $3 fare increase and actively promote the services. The
   increase in fare would partly offset the increased costs due to promotion.
5. Discontinue Council Cabs and advise existing users of the alternative transport
   options available.

RECOMMENDATION
That Council note the report by the Senior Project Officer to the Infrastructure & Services
Committee Meeting dated 22 July 2014 and agree to discontinue the Council Cabs services and
advise existing users of the alternative transport options available.




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