Arabic version: خفض التمويل يهدد خمسة خطوط حافلات في وسط أستراليا
According to ABC News, funding cuts could force Centre Bush Bus to halt five routes connecting remote Central Australian communities with Alice Springs. The service has carried passengers, critical medical supplies and goods to remote Indigenous communities from Alice Springs for three decades.
Funding ended in late February for five twice-weekly services, prompting the operator to reduce them to one trip a week. The affected routes serve Santa Teresa, Atitjere-Engawala, Willowra, Hermannsberg-Areyonga and Titjikala-Finke. Owner Tahnee Passmore-Barns said the company had been operating those routes at a loss and that they could be cancelled without support.
Local Aboriginal organisations and politicians said the service was vital for health, safety and housing. Purple House chief executive Sarah Brown said fewer buses could leave people stuck in Alice Springs, placing further pressure on families already living in inadequate and overcrowded housing. Central Land Council chief executive Les Turner said remote residents needed transport options to access services.
Infrastructure Minister Bill Yan said Centre Bush Bus did not receive 2025-26 funding because its costs were not comparative with services in other Territory regions and it did not meet the criteria. He said the Remote Transport Program budget for 2026-27 was $3.132 million, and that extending the previous grant for 12 months would cost $1.6 million to serve nine communities. He said the earlier $667,000 grant, covering five runs from October 1 to February 28, was time-limited and the operator could reapply.
Centre Bush Bus is the only scheduled transport and freight service on regular timetables for some communities. Passmore-Barns said the stated concerns about cost effectiveness and criteria were new to her, while pointing to diesel prices, long distances and staffing costs. Bus user Marlene Nampijinpa Spencer said people needed the service to return to their communities for health needs and funerals rather than being left in town.
