Further to my blog post on the Forestville LATM I wish to direct your attention to a small, fleeting observation not given much emphasis in the GTA Consultant report, which concerns Public transport.

The report identifies that the use of Public transport is a significant contributor both to the amenity of the area and its desirability as a suburb to live. It also identifies that the use of Leah Street as a public transport corridor must be reviewed by the State Government and that we (Unley) should lobby for this. The use of Leah Street as a public transport corridor is a major contributor to the traffic issues we face.

I have raised this very question before only to receive feedback that this is DPTI domain and they will not change the stats of this road from a collector road to a residential rad because the need the buses to use this road. Well now we have a consultant echoing my sentiments on the subject.

Surely the reason residents in Leah Street pushed for the speed cushions in the first place was they see their street as a residential street not a collector road.

Central to this is where buses using Winston Avenue should go once they reach the Winston/East Avenue, Cross Road intersection. Is there a need for them to continue down East Avenue and then into Leah Street whose physical size says it is for any intent ad purpose a residential street.

If the buses were found to not needing to take this route we could see in time an improvement in the traffic amenity for Clarence Park Ward residents. I understand patronage is low on this service. If it is and the Government follows it’s recent attitude toward non or low patronised routes we could see the buses disappear and then …. well.

Improved frequency of tram and train journeys along with the conversion of South Road into a non- stop corridor may go a long way to assisting not only the residents of Forestville but (as I have blogged about previously) the residents of Black Forest and Clarence Park & Millswood by seeing commuter traffic (Southern Rat Runners) disappear from our suburban streets.