WA Labor has promised to revive the terminated 354 bus route if elected.
The route termination has caused almost five months of inconvenience to hundreds of residents in the Nollamara area after it was removed last October.
This resulted in a 200-signature petition to save the route that runs from Perth via Charles Street, Flinders Street, around the Nollamara Shops and then to Mirrabooka Bus Station.
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READ NOWHowever, Public Transport Authority spokesman David Hynes said the route was not well patronised in Nollamara and the number of passengers using the service did not justify its high inter-peak frequency.
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Bus route 970 SuperBus (Perth to Mirrabooka via Flinders Street), and Route 384 was formed to replace the route.
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Labor candidate for Morley Amber-Jade Sanderson said if elected, Labor would commit $150,000 to reinstate the bus over the next three years.
“The removal of this service has caused havoc for many local residents who solely rely on public transport to get around the area,” she said.
“One local, Lorna Richards, has had to catch six different buses for a return journey to the shops, as opposed to the one bus, after the 354 bus was removed.”
Morley MLA Ian Britza said he supported the route being reinstated but questioned where the funding would come from.
“First of all, I absolutely 100 per cent support the residents of Nollamara and their desire for this bus route to be returned,” he said.
“But the fact is, it is an elderly-patronised route and it is something that is very important because the elderly do not get around very easily.”
Nollamara IGA director Jorge Rocha said the removal of the 50-year-old service “shocked” the community.
“There are a number of people, especially older people who relied on this bus to gain access to the shops – on a daily basis in fact,” he said.
“There were a number of people that were using this commute on a daily basis for work, and not just for access of the shops, but people in the area relied on it a lot.”