Weekend Grab Bag: MAXX, Zimbabwe, Women and Babies

Lots of things to think about today.

Zimbabwe

What about Zimbabwe? In a few hours we'll know whether or not Mugabe cheated. Part of me thinks he has. Part of me thinks maybe this election is a face-saving exit strategy for him and a chance to demonstrate Zimbabwe is a real democracy and always was.....ahem. We'll find out soon enough. I'm hopeful but not optimistic.

Population

Kiwi women not having babies? Interesting that the first comment after that is from the usual demographers who appear to argue in favour of the pyramid scheme that sees population never able to shrink because we might have too look after each other until the eldest generation passes....and then those who come after enjoy the benefits of a smaller population and more resources to go around. They don't talk about that. In my view, the world actually needs to produce fewer people and we do have to wear the temporary inconvenience of looking after the elderly in each generation for the relatively brief time (for the the vast majority of them) they would need looking after....if at all.

The alternative is an ever-growing population and that isn't sustainable. Why go the way of the UK and make NZ into a South Pacific ant hill where the quality of life is considerably degraded as compared to the present? I don't want to and few Kiwis will disagree with that, I suspect. Interested in your thoughts.

MAXX Redux

After noting on Thursday the sudden disappearance of the public forums on the revamped website, Friday saw the MAXX issue come up again.

Let's start at the beginning. I support public transport. It makes sense. I've used public transit only (no car) in getting around cities like Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, London, Hong Kong, San Fransisco and Singapore. As far as I know, all those cities have a single, operator providing services and the services, while not always perfect, are generally very good.

Auckland: I like MAXX. It's a worthy attempt to overcome the serious obstacles created by having regional transport services operated by a diverse set of competing private operators. MAXX is an attempt to herd cats and as such will only ever meet with limited success. I've been measuring that success from my own point of view since arriving in Auckland in early December. While there some good bits in places, I find MAXX's overall services expensive, slow and poorly integrated. One is frequently required to walk half a km or more to move between services offered by different providers. Each way. Plus a walk at either end that may be a few hundred metres or a lot more than a few hundred metres. The suitability of MAXX services for a family of four to go anywhere is more the exception than the rule. The family car is almost always BOTH cheaper and faster. That is not how it should be. It could be a lot better.

I've had a few problems with services where I live (north shore) and I've been trying to deal with them in a positive and constructive way: Call MAXX. Report problem. Await feedback and result. This can work and work very well. Several situations have been effectively resolved this way. The bus driver who refused to drive down our street, forcing my wife to walk 1/2km home, has been told he must drive down our street as it is part of his route.

But MAXX has some serious issues where children are concerned. You'd think they would get this right, given they are the future of public transport and they are among our most vulnerable citizens. Unfortunately, at least for Birkenhead Transport, they have not got it right.

I've had a query about MAXX's policy regarding child fares recorded with MAXX since late January. The first query was on January 30th. They said they would come back to me in 7 working days. At most. When I called back a month later, on March 4th, that query had mysteriously disappeared. I opened another. Well over 7 working days went by and no word, so I called again on the Wednesday prior to Easter. The matter had not been touched. After speaking with the supervisor, the person I was speaking to said I would be called back within 24 hours.

I waited a week and heard nothing. So I called back on Thursday this past week, got another 24 hour commitment...and by 5pm Friday had not been called back. That is four (4) failures in a row to abide by the service expectation they had given me with respect to my query. Not good. Total system failure.

What's my query? Very simple. MAXX's policy on child fares is that children aged 5 to 15 ride for a concession rate. That's it. Policy complete. Any child on earth who finds themselves in Auckland can ride on MAXX services for a concession fare.

Except that isn't how it REALLY works if (at least) Birkenhead Transport is your local bus company. They require kids to be in school uniforms or have student ID to pay the concession fare. So the first time my 14yo daughter got on a bus, having never attended an Auckland school, she found herself in an argument with the bus driver over her fare. Welcome to Auckland public transport, young lady. What was happening was not consistent with MAXX's stated policy.

Given MAXX's stated policy on child fares, what ID is required to ensure a child can ride for the correct fare? Remember the child concerned could be from anywhere in New Zealand or around the world. The question appears to defy any attempt to get an answer.

Then, on Friday a new wrinkle appeared. My daughter has been coming home from school telling me that bus drivers on Birkenhead Transport are not allowing school kids on "adult" buses in the morning. A child standing at a bus stop at 08:20am is refused entry to the bus AT ANY PRICE and instructed to get the school bus...which left at 07:41AM (40 minutes prior). They then have to walk. This is clearly contrary to MAXX's policy on children riding buses. It leaves school kids walking 40 minutes plus to school while their parents may have reasonably expected them to be quickly - and safely - conveyed to school on the bus, having paid the required dollar.

What will happen if a 14yo girl who was forced to walk to school, by a bus driver / company ignoring MAXX policy, is later run over, raped or worse? I can just imagine the anger and anguish that would produce. Why go there?

Just to confuse things, my daughter has had no problems because she uses a 10-trip rather than buying a single ticket. I can only assume this is some confusion with the tertiary student policy. Or maybe some bus drivers favour girls and refuse rides to boys. Who knows? As it is, bus drivers are reportedly sailing past stops with school kids waiting on the basis they should get the school bus.....tomorrow as today's left 40 minutes ago.

I then called Birkenhead Transport and asked what was going on. They tacitly admitted the policy was a company policy, not just bus drivers behaving badly. The (unnamed) person I spoke to said that children were filling the adult buses at peak times while the school buses were empty. So they are, as a matter of policy, refusing to carry children on normal buses. Clearly a violation of MAXX policy.

I logged another query with MAXX over it and I think this one will see a quick response. But we'll see. As it stands, the people who are the future of public transport, and arguably among the more vulnerable bus patrons, are being taught that arbitrary refusal of service is their lot. Capricious authority strikes again. Death to petty bureaucrats....etc..etc. Not good for them....or public transport in Auckland.