St Marys Depot Opening
$14 MILLION ST MARYS DEPOT A BOOST FOR LOCAL BUS SERVICES
ComfortDelGro Cabcharge Pty Ltd’s (CDC’s) new depot in St Marys was officially opened today by the New South Wales Minister for Transport, the Honourable John Robertson.
Built at a cost of $14 million, the 28,000 square metre facility in Lee Holm Drive serves as a control centre for CDC’s Westbus operations in Western Sydney. Its location puts it close to the rapidly expanding population in the Penrith-St Marys area.
A total of 102 buses are currently located at the depot, which can house up to 150 vehicles. In all, 164 drivers and 19 mechanics and support staff are based at the facility, ensuring the smooth operation of 1,035 bus services every weekday. Over 5 million passenger trips will be provided by buses operating from this depot every year.
The St Marys Depot also boasts a host of environmentally friendly features. All lighting and equipment is set to work-hour timers and motion detectors, reducing consumption of electricity. Rainwater collected at the depot is reticulated and used to wash buses, in the amenities and in the sprinkler system for the depot’s nature area.
In addition to the St Marys Depot, ComfortDelGro Cabcharge has also invested another $22 million to redevelop a site at Foundry Road in Seven Hills to house 146 new buses. The majority of these buses are part of the New South Wales Government’s Growth Bus Initiative. The Company has also been investing in new business operating systems for greater efficiency and productivity including a new Scheduling System and a new Enterprise Resource Planning System.
Speaking at the opening ceremony today, ComfortDelGro Cabcharge Chairman, Mr Kua Hong Pak, said: “ComfortDelGro Cabcharge’s collective investments in New South Wales currently stand at over $565 million, and that represents our firm commitment to improving bus services in this State.”
Mr Kua added: “Let me publicly thank all the staff involved in making this new depot a reality. Let me also extend my deepest gratitude to the New South Wales Government for its continued support through the years. I would also like to thank the respective unions with whom we have worked hard to create a harmonious workforce to ensure the stability needed to provide appropriate levels of service to the community.”
Mr Robertson said the depot was a valuable addition to the $400 million in transport infrastructure being built in Western Sydney by the New South Wales Government. “Westbus and Hillsbus provide essential public transport services for tens of thousands of commuters in Western and North Western Sydney everyday on behalf of the NSW Government,” he said.
Mr Wayne Forno, the NSW State Secretary for the Transport Workers Union said: “The TWU strongly supports the investment by CDC in improving depot facilities for their NSW operations”.
CDC also operates a total of 12 other depots in Metropolitan Sydney and Hunter Valley and carries over 26 million passenger trips annually with its fleet of 1,046 buses. In 2009, 330 buses operating out of 5 depots in Victoria joined the CDC Group of companies.
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