Hervey Bay Gossip

Passengers in the Wide Bay region will be able to ‘dial’ a bus and be collected from their front door, when the new Kan-go Flexible Service trial begins next month.

Member for Hervey Bay and Main Roads Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Transport and Main Roads Andrew McNamara announced the start of services today.

Mr McNamara said services would be trialled in the Hervey Bay suburbs of Point Vernon/Pialba for a 12-month period from March 12.

“It allows passengers in these suburbs to dial a toll-free 1800 number 15 minutes prior to the commencement of the service, and the bus will pick up and deliver as close to their front door as possible,” Mr McNamara said.

“Passengers will pay the regular bus fare and experience greater levels of convenience, security, safety and comfort with door-to-door services. A new bus will also be put into service that is wheelchair accessible.

“The technology used for this flexible transport system is leading edge, with passenger details logged into the system. The bus driver is then sent booking details via a satellite navigation system that includes the best route for the driver to follow.

“The service runs a fixed route component around the city centre, operating as a loop service serving the major shopping centre,” he said.

“At present, route 14 is the only service for the Point Vernon/Pialba area. The service has doubled as a school run and covers a limited section of the suburb, with limited frequency.

“The Kan-go service will replace route 14. It will be able to cover a wider area and provide better service coverage from 8am to 6.10pm weekdays and Saturdays. There will also be a separate service for the school run,” Mr McNamara said.

Timetables and other Kan-go information will be delivered to every household in the Point Vernon/Pialba suburbs to alert residents to the new service this week.

“Kan-go provides a user-friendly, convenient service to residents and it is also a great alternative to taking the car out of the garage,” Mr McNamara said.

“Other changes have been gradually implemented over the past few years to improve services in the Wide Bay area such as added services and improved Saturday services.”

“These changes have been positively received, with a substantial rise in patronage in Bundaberg and the Maryborough/Hervey Bay region.”

Mr McNamara said the Kan-go service would be reviewed regularly throughout the 12-month trial, with a view to extending the service depending on passenger patronage.

The free hotline number for Point Vernon/Pialba residents to dial the Kan-go Service is 1800 231 248  from 5 March 2007.

In the last week or so ‘Sold’ sales have been popping up faster than grass after the rain. Sales seem to be right across all price ranges too.

Property values are also increasing and the last 12 months have seen some big increases in several parts of Hervey Bay. Today the Australian reported on the increasing property values in various part of the country and it had this to say about Hervey Bay

A 25.4 per rise in the 12 months to September took the median price of homes at Dundowran Beach, in the northern suburbs of Hervey Bay, to more than $473,000.

Prices at nearby Toogoom rose 13.4 per cent to almost $329,000, while at Burrum Heads they were up 3.7 per cent to $350,000.

You can read the full report here

Thinking of moving
to Hervey Bay?
See what your current
home is worth.

For those who have been Peppers Watching and wondering when we would finally begin to see signs of the place opening the Gossip can report that the cafe in Peppers is now open for business.

But don’t expect them to do take-away.

While this sounds like a great idea you do have to wonder why the ordinary people here in Hervey Bay aren’t represented on this ‘team’. Aren’t there any locals who could have an input into this?

Where are the representatives of the retirees, the small business owners (smaller than Retravision), the ordinary residents of Hervey Bay - why don’t we have a direct voice in this? Don’t we have anything of value to contribute to all this?

Hervey Bay is set to become an even safer community, following the establishment of a community safety program between the Department of Communities and the Hervey Bay City Council.

Communities Minister Warren Pitt said the formation of a Building Safer Communities Action Team (BSCAT) in Hervey Bay was a significant step forward for the local community.

“BSCATs are comprised of local people, who develop local solutions to local crime and safety issues,” Mr Pitt said.

“Locally developed solutions are frequently the best solutions - which is why BSCATs have proven so effective at enhancing community safety.”

The commitment of Hervey Bay BSCAT members was officially acknowledged today, when they were presented with certificates of achievement following the successful completion of their initial Department of Communities training.

“The BSCAT members have undertaken a specially designed training course that focused on increasing their knowledge of community-based crime prevention,” Mr Pitt said.

“Armed with this information, BSCAT members will now identify local safety issues, then develop and implement a local action plan to address these issues.”

The Hervey Bay BSCAT members are:
• Ed Gibson - general manager, Hervey Bay Boat Club
• Pauline Laskowski - business owner, Retravision (Hervey Bay)
• Larry Bell - solicitor specialising in legal care for seniors
• Davena Munro - Indigenous consultant
• Joanne Lambden - director, Community and Environment, Hervey Bay City Council
• Maurine Gibson - manager, Community and Culture, Hervey Bay City Council
• Senior Sergeant Dan Willett - officer-in-charge, Hervey Bay Police Station
• Sergeant Nick Paton - officer-in-charge, Howard Police Station
• Mannly Dubroy - guidance officer, Urangan State High School
• Peter Nell - regional manager, Department of Tourism, Fair Trading and Wine Industry”

Heavy rain fell across Hervey Bay yesterday and last night. Already you can see brown lawns starting to turn green and with more rain forecast there is some hope that the dry spell is coming to an end.

Yesterday’s rain initally came in from Fraser Island and this was the precursor for Urangan

The official forecast for today includes the possibility of more storms and as I write this the weather radar shows more storms coming in from the sea at various places along the coast.

More than 300 ‘at risk’ Wide Bay and Sunshine Coast youths will get to earn or a second chance to learn under the Queensland Government’s Get Set For Work program in 2007-08.

Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations, John Mickel said the program which began as a trial in 2003-04 as a ’safety net’ for early school leavers was now being offered in more areas and organisations across the state.

“Get Set For Work projects give youth an alternative pathway into employment through practical activities to develop their work and social skills and assisting with literacy and numeracy when required,” Mr Mickel said.

“Young people aged 15-17 are helped to build a career or access to training within their own community.

In Hervey Bay the money will be used by theThe Baptist Union of Queensland - Community Services Group to assist 25 youths for a period of 12 months.

For those of us who live here in Hervey Bay it can be hard to believe that not everyone sees this beautiful place as we do.

And I’m sure that the directors of Hervey Bay would be surprised to learn that to one couple who were visiting Hervey Bay recently the boat club is:

a sort of glorified bingo hall with prizes such as a tin of mixed veg!!!

You can read their blog entry here

Although there was still obvious signs of construction going on at Peppers when this photo was taken last week we may finally be getting close to the opening of the resort at Urangan.

Furniture for the bar and other public areas was being moved in when this photo was taken and advertising for the resort has begun to appear on Google although the online booking facility is not accepting bookings at the moment.

It’s believed that, after missing several opening deadlines, Peppers may be open by February 22 for they have a large function booked there for that day. However, if you look behind the page at the code you see a note that the resort will be opening in March.

I wonder if all the shopkeepers and small businesses that have leased space in the retail section of Peppers will be receiving any compensation for what the delays in opening will have caused them.

A driver was killed when his car collided with an oncoming vehicle and burst into flames on Friday night around 7pm.

The accident happened on Main Street near the foot of Ghost Hill (on the inland side of the hill). The driver of the second vehicle was taken to hospital in a critical condition.

Residents and other motorists rushed to the aid of both drivers but there was nothing they could do to put out the flames that engulfed the first vehicle.

We’ll never see these sea giants in Hervey Bay and I’m not sure I’d want to sail on one either.