Brisbane City Council has sacked the man who made Brisbane’s buses run on time for the past 14 years, opening the door to privatising Brisbane’s profitable bus runs.
The council opposition says the lord mayor is “secretly clearing the decks” for privatisation.
However Brisbane City Council last night said Brisane Transport had received an extension to run its bus services until September 2015, which would be well after the next state election.
The council runs Brisbane Transport, the state’s biggest provider of bus routes and the employer of 2700 employees.
In 2011 it ran 1200 buses on 245 routes, providing 63,859 bus services a week and 1465 school runs, which dropped to about 235 routes in early 2012.
A review of the council’s bus routes in 2013 cut that number of routes to 225 and resulted in major changes to about 80 routes.
The Queensland government has begun the process of contestability, where the private sector can judge whether there is value for firms to compete against Brisbane Transport for the city's most-profitable routes.
Alan Warren, who has headed Brisbane Transport for 14 years, offered to renew his contract in November 2014, but that has been rejected by BCC’s civic cabinet.
“With contestability on our doorstop, I have offered to extend my contact,” Mr Warren wrote in a memo to Brisbane Transport’s 2700 staff.
“However civic cabinet has decided this “new dawn” needs a new divisional manager with a new skill set to mine.
“I respect this decision and I am working with our CEO Colin Jensen to determine an appropriate finishing date in the next three or four weeks.”
Public and Active Transport chairman Peter Matic said the state's government's Translink recently provided the council with an extension on its contract to operate bus services.
Cr Matic said council bus contracts would remain until September 2015.
“Council will be contesting the tender process once the state government announces the details of contestability and we will be competing to win,” he said.
“The lord mayor has previously said he does not support the privatisation of Brisbane Transport. We will continue to make Brisbane’s public transport as efficient as we can because we need to provide the best value for money for ratepayers and taxpayers.”
Last financial year council buses made 3.1 million bus trips at a cost of $78 million.
Council does not make public comment on the non-renewal of an individual’s employment contract, Cr Matic said.
However, council deputy opposition leader Helen Abrahams said lord mayor Graham Quirk has been caught out “secretly clearing the decks” in Brisbane Transport.
“Brisbane’s bus drivers and maintenance staff have been told this week that contestability is on its way in and the divisional manager of Brisbane Transport is on his way out to make room for someone with different skills ahead of privatisation of the network,” Cr Abrahams said.
The Queensland government cut $16.4 million in public transport funding over three years to the council in 2013.
The council reduced the number of new buses built from 100 per year to 60 per year and closed down the Bowen Hill bus depot.
Cr Abrahams said she was concerned Mr Warren’s memo outlined $20 million in savings, not the 16.4 million cut by the state government and that an extra $4 million in savings had been found.
“The memo circulated to key stakeholders has confirmed the worst; that $20 million has been cut from public transport in Brisbane, that privatisation is being discussed and that the lord mayor is actively taking steps to remove any barriers to privatisation,” she said.
“This is no longer a rumour or speculation, the divisional manager of Brisbane Transport has confirmed that privatisation is coming and the lord mayor needs to come clean and admit what he knows about it.”
Twelve months ago Cr Quirk said the state government had yet to speak to the council about public transport contestability.
Cr Abrahams said the public deserved to know what the state government – and Cr Quirk - had in mind for privatising bus services.
“In the last year, the lord mayor has ordered a review and cut bus routes, reduced the number of new buses brought, slashed CityCat services and now he’s getting rid of the people who have built Brisbane Transport from the ground up,” she said.
“Everything the lord mayor has done in the last year looks like he has been secretly preparing Brisbane Transport to be broken up and privatised and I’m concerned about what this means for commuters.”
Cr Abrahams said Mr Warren was very well-respected in the council, as he had worked beside four lord mayors over the past 14 years.
“He was instrumental in opening new depots, buying new air-conditioned buses and building Brisbane Transport to what it is today.”
