Bank and City join forces to encourage public transport usage

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and City of Greater Bendigo have teamed up to encourage staff to leave their cars at home and instead ride or walk to work or catch public transport.

The Bank's Head of Community Solutions & Partnering Scott Elkington joined City of Greater Bendigo's Chief Executive Officer Craig Niemann in asking 20 staff from each organisation to trial a proposed new bus service from Strathfieldsaye to central Bendigo during lunch hours on Tuesday June 23.

Recent research undertaken as part of Connecting Greater Bendigo: Integrated Transport and Land Use Strategy (ITLUS) revealed there are a large number of employees from both organisations who commute to work from Strathfieldsaye by car.

Mr Elkington said Bendigo and Adelaide Bank was keen to encourage its employees to reduce their car usage.

"As one of Bendigo's largest employers we have a role to play in ensuring the city remains a great place to live and work," Mr Elkington said.

"Walking or riding to work and catching public transport will reduce congestion and this will add to Greater Bendigo's overall appeal."

Mr Niemann said reducing congestion on Bendigo's roads is one of the key objectives of the soon-to-be-released ITLUS.

"The City and Bendigo and Adelaide Bank have agreed to explore opportunities to collaborate to deliver the ITLUS objectives," he said.

"If four per cent of all trips in Bendigo are made by healthy and active transport then traffic numbers will go down. For most households, four per cent equates to one bus ride to and from work a week and one trip on foot to the local shops.

"In this instance, we are encouraging staff from both organisations to trial this proposed new bus service as an alternative to driving to and from work.

"The service includes two modern buses and a proposed new bus route that is more direct. PTV is also planning to eventually have later and more frequent service."

The proposed new service will be operated by Whitmores Bus Lines and will take around 30 minutes during peak times.