A record breaking number of people have ditched cars for the Minns Labor Government's expanded Snowy Mountains Bus Service which has hit a major milestone of more than 90,000 customer journeys for the first time.
This snow season has been the service's most successful ever, with more than 10,000 additional journeys taken compared to the 2023 season.
The success of the service has led to improved road safety, with Transport for NSW estimating about 30,000 fewer car trips have been taken to and from the Alpine slopes due to the availability of the bus service.
The winter school holidays was unsurprisingly the busiest period this year, with an additional 50 services scheduled to manage the demand. Between 8 and 28 July, 409 services ran at 100 per cent capacity - or about 20 per cent of all services.
Feedback from passengers was again overwhelmingly positive, with 90 per cent of those surveyed saying they would use the service again.
The Snowy Mountains Bus Service for 2024 will conclude on 6 October.
Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Jenny Aitchison said:
"The Minns Labor Government is proud to have supported another successful season for the Snowy Mountains Bus Service which is going from strength to strength.
"In response to this growing demand, we delivered an expansion of routes to include a Cooma via Berridale to Jindabyne service while more trips were also added to support the school holiday peak.
"Increased services led to improved safety on our roads at the busiest times for the snowfields, contributing to fewer journeys by car on roads impacted by ice and snow.
"The convenience was experienced by both locals and visitors to our region who not only used the bus as a reliable way to get to the snow, but also to access our mountain trails for other recreational activities."
Member for Monaro Steve Whan said:
"The Snowy Mountains Bus Service continues to offer a reliable public transport option improving access to the snowfields for workers, visitors and locals. This also means less cars on the road which is a great safety outcome.
"The service allows a stress-free journey to the snowfields for all snow goers and takes the stress off drivers who might not have much experience driving in the alpine conditions."
