Transport Minister John Graham held a press conference at a bus stop in Curl Curl this morning , 3 September, to announce the return of 17 repaired bendy buses for the Northern Beaches.
The Minister said he had been hearing “loud and clear” via local MPs Wakehurst MP Michael Regan and Pittwater MP Jacqui Scruby that commuters were frustrated with periods of long delays and cancelled buses, made worse by the removal of 43 faulty articulated buses last year.
Liberal Manly MP James Griffin confirmed he had not been invited to the press conference, despite it being held within his electorate.
More than 80 articulated buses were removed from the fleet last year – half from the Northern Beaches – due to mechanical faults (cracking in the chassis). This has exacerbated problems with local bus services, particularly during peak periods, which were already suffering from bus driver shortages.
Bendy buses carry around 50% more passengers than a regular bus.
As repair work on the withdrawn articulated buses continues, the transport minister said the government had 50 new diesel articulated buses in the pipeline and a further ten double-deckers for the B-Line fleet expected in mid-2026.
Electrification of the fleet is also ongoing.
“Bendy buses are a signature part of public transport on the Northern Beaches, and we are pleased to see the repaired fleet starting to return to the busiest routes where they are needed most.”
Minister Graham said improving bus transport on the Northern Beaches had become a “top priority.”
Manly Observer questioned the minister about the driver shortage and wages, and asked whether a metro was on the cards given the projected population increases.
On the metro, the short answer was: no, not any time soon.
“Our real focus now is on improving the buses because that will make a real difference to people’s lives right at the moment.”
“Our real focus now is on improving the buses because that will make a real difference to people’s lives right at the moment. We know people have been waiting at the buses, as Jacqui Scruby has described, there’s been a real bus crisis so that’s where our real focus is,” Minister Graham said.
On driver wages, Manly Observer asked the minister to elaborate on his comments on the need for improved driver wages, given that all services were now franchised to private operators, such as Keolis Downer Northern Beaches, so the government no longer had much of a role to play. The minister said he simply recognised that a better deal was needed for drivers and that he had been hearing dissatisfaction from the driver community about conditions.
A new enterprise agreement is still in negotiations.
The minister said some of the driver wage issues would soon “come to a head”, and the government continued to try “a little bit of everything” to deal with the driver shortage (down from 500 to about 120 drivers short).
While the official return was announced today, many of the repaired buses have been returning to service over the last few weeks. Their return has made a noticeable difference for commuters, Ms Scruby remarked.
“Pittwater commuters are already seeing the benefits of bendys returning. I’ve had positive emails, DMs and conversations with commuters at bus stops, and with zero cancellations on the 190X the benefits to the whole region are already being noticed,” Ms Scruby said.
“Bendy buses are an icon on the Northern Beaches and we’re excited to have them back and looking forward to even more returning.”
“Commuters don’t really care about announcements they care about their commuting experience…The Bendy buses are back and the conditions are only going to improve.”
“People on the Northern Beaches rely heavily on our buses. When the bendys were taken off the road, we felt that impact straight away with longer queues and more missed services. Getting them back into service was a priority,” Michael Regan added.
“Beaches commuters know that the high capacity bendys are a practical solution for our busiest routes. Their return is good news for commuters, and the new fleet on the way shows that the government is listening to our advocacy and the community’s call for better services.”
Mr Regan also touched on his campaign to get 1,000 homes built at French’s Forest made available and affordable to essential workers, including bus drivers. Currently, there are no controls that can guarantee the new housing will be taken up by those employed in sectors most needed in the region. The Wakehurst MP is looking to change that.
