BIC Column January
As New Year’s Eve revellers made their ways to and from parties, dinners and other social engagements, many of them would have had the good fortune to be carried to their destinations by the bus. For that fact alone there is cause to thank our industry for the tireless effort made meeting peoples transport needs over the holiday season, and indeed throughout the entire year.
For those of us who had the commitment or misfortune to be working either in our major cities or other hubs of social activity where the population required transport, I hope the evening was rewarding and trouble free for you. For anyone not involved in the transport or organisation of bus services on that evening we hope you were fortunate enough to greet the new year with family and friends, nonetheless a happy 2007 to all.
It is shaping up to be a very busy year for us at BIC, especially in light of the looming federal election later this year. It is vital to our lobbying efforts for us to have the support of the members of our industry, and this month I’d like to talk about a few ways that you can help us ensure the future needs of the Australian bus and coach industry are ever present in the minds of the governments that represent us.
BIC Policy Statement
As some readers will already be aware, BIC launched our revised policy statement at the recent BIC Conference in Canberra in late October. The policy document is a very valuable tool; it is in essence a statement regarding how we think the future of Australian passenger transport should function. It outlines what the key challenges facing our community are, and includes issues such as congestion, emissions that contribute to climate change, road safety, air and noise pollution and social exclusion to name but a few. We argue that greater investment in public transport is part of the solution to these problems and requires a co-ordinated national approach to address them led by the Federal Government.
There is no point producing an industry policy statement if no one reads it. The next step the BIC is undertaking is an extensive distribution of the document. We will be sending copies of the document to many different and important stakeholders in the public and private sectors. This includes all State and Federal Politicians, all local councils throughout Australia, health and environmental lobby groups, public transport users groups, road safety organisations, public transport bureaucrats, unions, think tanks, planners and civil engineers - basically anyone involved in public transport directly or involved with the issues we believe public transport provides a solution to. For example we are asking politicians and political parties to adopt our ideas as policy; we are asking health organisations such as the Australian Medical Association to adopt policies encouraging public transport use because of the health benefits of active transport. We are asking social interest groups such as the Salvation Army to adopt our policies on increased public transport because it provides an avenue for the disadvantaged and the elderly to achieve decent mobility, through which they can better access jobs and health services. We ask the environmental groups to support our ideas because of the reductions in congestion and emissions that are achievable by increasing public transport use and addressing our over reliance on the private car. We are establishing a network of common voices that will present to State and Federal Governments the same set of policy initiatives. The key to our success is many voices, one message.
You can play a role in the success of our campaign in a variety of ways. The first step is to obtain a copy of the policy statement by downloading it from the OzeBus website www.OzeBus.com.au the link appears on the right of screen on the OzeBus home page and send a copy to your local State and Federal members of Parliament and Local Council (Mayor) with a short letter from you saying you are a voter in his/her electorate or town and that the policy statement enclosed are things you think he or she should be taking up with their party. Send us a copy of your letter if you want and we will follow up from our end as well.
You can support the BIC lobbying efforts by becoming part of the BIC 'grass roots' campaign running into the federal election at the end of the year. Simply register as an OzeBus user and we will be in contact with you. (http://www.ozebus.com.au/OzeBusForumUserRegistration) If you are already an OzeBus user then you are already part of our 'grass roots' team.
You can also support your industry by attending events such as the BIC National Conference which is to be held in Perth next year from the 28th-31st October at the Burswood Casino and Resort. And last but certainly not least you should be a member of BIC or your State Associations, (http://www.ozebus.com.au/OzeBusIndustryAssociations). We can’t rely on things just magically happening for us in Canberra and in the houses of Parliament from state to state, we have to make sure our interests and concerns are vocalised, understood and met.
Last years conference had speakers such as the Prime Minister John Howard, the Minster for Transport Mark Vaile and the Shadow Minister for Transport Kerry O’Brien, and the event went a long way in establishing the bus industry’s credentials as an important and driving force in the future prosperity of Australia. Those that were in attendance will agree that we all felt a certain sense of pride while listening to the Prime Minister praise the vital role our industry plays in moving the people of this nation around, to school, to work and to play. Events such as the Conference demonstrate that we are making an impact, and now is the time to ensure that we keep up the intensity of our campaigning for more and better public transport for Australia.
Lobbying day 21st March
One of the key lobbying strategies with a looming federal election is the BIC ‘lobbying day’ to be held in Canberra in March this year. This exercise is all your industry representatives from BIC, each state and suppliers taking our message, which is largely taken from our policy statement, to your Federal Members of Parliament and making sure they know what the concerns of the bus industry are, providing them with solutions to national problems and making them realise that the community, ‘the voters’ are looking for leadership from the Federal Government on these issues. Our own electorate based surveys conducted by political pollsters Crosby-Textor revealed that 72% of respondents (members of the general public) considered that the Federal and State Governments have an equal or shared obligation to look after our public transport system. That fact demonstrates that it is not just us but the electorate who feel there is scope for greater involvement in public transport from the Commonwealth. I would encourage everyone to have their say on the OzeBus forum (http://www.ozebus.com.au/OzeBusForum) and let us know what the issues are in your electorate, and we will make sure we take your voices with us when we meet with our politicians during the lobbying day.
OzeBus update
The National OzeBus Footy Tipping Competition
The national OzeBus footy tipping competition has nearly arrived (http://www.ozebus.com.au/OzeBusSports) and will cover AFL, Rugby League and Rugby Union. The tipping competition will be open to anyone who is registered as an OzeBus user and will kick off at the beginning of the Rugby Union season in early February. Tipsters will be able to lodge their footy tips for Super 14 from the 22nd January.
The tipping competition is open to all comers and will see individual winners awarded in each state, an individual national winner and the best state winner which will be awarded to the State which has the best overall average score for the three competitions – the “National Champion". It’s state vs state, mate vs mate. So get into the spirit of the game and see who the real footy experts are in the industry and which state is best overall. We intend to provide sponsored prizes for each code, and we’ll post prize details on the website very soon. You need to be a registered OzeBus user to participate.
The Ozebus People’s Poll
The Ozebus People’s Poll is YOUR opportunity to support the Bus Industry Confederations Lobbying efforts by providing your view on key issues impacting on the Industry. It is your views that our politicians are most interested in so participate and assist BIC in its efforts to promote and protect our industry's interests.
This will be a dedicated page on the OzeBus website and is an initiative of ABC magazine and BIC. The survey will be linked to a lead story on the ABC BusMail Newsletter. This is an important part of our lobbying strategy so your feedback on the People’s Poll is important, so keep your eyes out for the link from your ABC BusMail newsletter to the OzeBus People’s Poll.
Job Centre Update
There are currently 20 jobs available for January in the Job Centre! Mechanics, school route and charter drivers are needed all over the country. The range of jobs available varies from drivers in NSW or VIC or mechanics required in Stawell and Swan Hill and even executive jobs for Volvo and Denso.
There are also 15 high quality applicants have recently applied for driving, mechanical and training positions. So it is important to keep the vacant positions coming! Remember the OzeBus Job Centre is a free service that was put together by BIC to help with skills shortages. There are 16 Job seekers wanting employment in the bus industry. Simply logon to OzeBus Job Centre and select Jobs Wanted to view them. (http://www.ozebus.com.au/OzeBusJobsWanted)
OzeBus Competition: Win $500 worth of accomodation
The ‘choose your destination’ competition is underway on OzeBus and the prize is $500 of accommodation from Bacchus Management Systems. Simply enter the competition by completing the survey and you are in the running. All details required to complete the short 1 minute survey are confidential. (http://www.ozebus.com.au/OzeBusSurvey)
New Commonwealth funding for training opportunities
Opportunities abound for operators or individuals to access government funds for basic or improved skills training from the 1st January 2007. The Commonwealth will fund a variety of schemes under the ‘Australian Skills Vouchers Programme’ with the aim of helping the various industries train new people and upgrade the skills of current workers. For more details regarding this funding program and other great information on how to get the most out of YOUR government, see the notice board on OzeBus. (http://www.ozebus.com.au/OzeBusNoticeBoard)
So once again, have a happy new year from the team at BIC and we look forward to working with you all throughout 2007, a year that promises much for the Australian bus industry if we all get involved.