Not the end of the world after all

Today, the long-overdue bus lanes came into operation on Grenfell Street. Contrary to the many dire predictions, the world did not come to an end. Expect for the next few months the bus lanes to be blamed for every delay into and out of the city.

We have seen this sort of thing before time and time again and all over the place. Give it a few months and the traffic will sort itself out. In fact, I was walking along Grenfell Street today and there is no problem. Previously, car and bus drivers would rush to claim any piece of available road space while trying to convince themselves that they were making progress. Now with the new system, I saw a line of cars and a line of buses next to each other doing there thing with ease.

Things may get a tiny bit worse once the school holidays end but the problems (if that word is even justified) will slowly resolve.

We still hear the odd complaint about Pirie Street and the problems apparently caused by the (no longer new) scramble crossing at King William Street. The queue on Pirie Street is no longer anywhere near as long as it used to be - even during rush hours.

This sort of thing is definitely the way forward and it is so refreshing to see. In a couple of years, we'll all wonder what the fuss was about and will look in horror at any politician who suggests we revert back to pre bus lane days when everybody blocked each other to make a complete shambles.