(Not so) Smart Mobility – the woes of being a regional commuter

Having lived on the Central Coast of NSW for many years, while working down in Sydney, I’ve had plenty of time to reflect on the daily challenges faced by an ever-growing number of commuters. Whilst the Central Coast is relatively close to Sydney, due to a historical lack of infrastructure planning, the average commute for a journey of under 90km is typically in excess of 4 hours per day. As Romilly Madew, CEO of Infrastructure Australia, explained recently at Smart Cities Week conference:

“[In Australia] we have an infrastructure gap and population growth. And it’s not going away”.

Aside from the loss of productivity and the impact on families that is caused by spending 20+ hours per week commuting by train or car to and from work, the fact that 25% of the Central Coast workforce commutes out of area for work is generating an estimated 500 tons of carbon emissions, burning ¼ million litres of fuel, every day. Bad for the economy, bad for productivity, bad for families, bad for the environment.

The commute itself is somewhat akin to a multivariate optimization problem. When I first started driving down to Sydney in the late 1990’s, I could typically leave the house just before 6am and still have a comfortable drive down the freeway to the office. 10 years later, 5.30am was the latest I could leave to avoid being stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic. These days, it’s more like 5am and the traffic is still heavy. The rush-hour now seems to extend from around 5-10am in the morning and 3-7pm in the evening.

More recently, I’ve switched to using public transport. On the Central Coast, this means driving to a hub such as Gosford or Woy Woy, due to the lack of public transport options to get from the beach suburbs to a train station. This is where the fun begins. The existing commuter car park, which is open 24/7, is typically full by 6.30am. Yet the Council-run car park closes at 8pm. In my case, I often have afternoon meetings or evening Board meetings down in Sydney, leaving me with somewhat of a dilemma… either I resign myself to a very long day and park around 6am in order to ensure a spot, then return later in the evening, or I park much later in the Council car park, but run the risk of being locked out if my train pulls into the station after 8pm. As I’ve found several times in the past, cutting it too fine can be costly, since regular train delays such as signal failures can see many commuters returning to Gosford station after 8pm, finding themselves unable to access their vehicles.

Interestingly, the trains used to actually run faster in previous years. For example, the trip from Gosford to Central Station is reported to have taken a little over an hour in the 1960’s, and I recall the trip being 1hour 10 minutes around 10 years ago. Now the same trip takes 1 hour 20 minutes, the trains apparently having been slowed down to improve on time arrival statistics. Clearly, compensation drives behaviour.

Still, at least travelling by train provides some level of comfort and productivity, as I am able to jump on the internet and get work done, catch up on emails and so on. Aside, that is, from the 25 minute blackspot between Woy Woy and Berowra where there is little to no 3G/4G coverage for internet access. This fact alone makes the timing of the morning commute a tactical mission requiring of almost military precision, as I often need to join early morning conference calls with US colleagues, partners and customers. Factoring in other variables, such as the fact that some trains start their journey in Gosford (Pro: guaranteed window seat. Con: uncomfortable seat in one of the new ‘Oscar’ carriages), whereas others are express trains from Newcastle (Pro: comfortable purple leather seat, and a hook for your jacket, in one of the old Express carriages. Con: getting a seat can be a bit of a lottery), I often find myself reflecting on a desire to develop some kind of complex probabilistic route optimisation algorithm. The joys of getting to and from work when you live on the Central Coast.

Professor Margaret Maile Petty (Executive Director, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Unit, UTS), observed:

“the past is increasingly less relevant as a guide for the future”

Strategies like building more roads, or more commuter car parks, are no longer effective – it’s like loosening your belt to solve obesity. With an estimated population growth for the Central Coast in excess of 80,000 over the coming years, it’s clear that the entire transportation system is at breaking point. New thinking, and new approaches, are needed from our Councils, from our infrastructure and transportation planners. If we can put more quality time into people’s lives, in a smart environment, only then have we got Smart Mobility and a Smart City.

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