City braces for traffic snarls

Water taxi operators Rod Howard, left, and Darryn White are ready to help commuters affected by the bus drivers' strike today. Picture: SAM ROSEWARNE

THOUSANDS of Tasmanians are being forced to find alternative transport to work and school this morning as bus drivers go out on strike.

Commuters are being urged to leave earlier than usual to avoid being caught in congestion on major roads as people who normally catch buses drive their cars or ride bikes.

To help commuters, Hobart Water Taxis is putting on an extra boat today, and dozens more taxis will be on duty this morning. Hobart City Council has offered free parking at the Regatta Grounds.

Tasmania Police said unnecessary travel should be delayed.

Officers will patrol school areas to ensure there are no problems with the expected increase in traffic at drop-off zones.

Metro Tasmania said about 13,000 travellers would be affected, including 7500 school students, and anyone who normally caught the bus any time until 11am should make other plans.

"Becoming agitated isn't going to solve the problem. We will have highly visible patrols around schools. If people have to travel they should be very tolerant and more considerate than they would normally be," police southern traffic Sgt Penny Reardon said.

The Rail, Tram and Bus Union confirmed another stopwork meeting on Tuesday from 6-8pm in Hobart and Launceston, with routes affected for an hour or more before that.

RACT spokesman Vince Taskunas said drivers should leave home 30 minutes earlier to stretch out the peak traffic period and car sharing and car-pooling to school would minimise problems in school zones. Non-essential travel should be delayed.

"Remember that even a minor crash on a key arterial road such as the Brooker Highway in Hobart or Westbury Rd in Launceston could cause significant traffic snarls, so giving extra attention to safe driving distances is essential," Mr Taskunas said.

He called for extra caution in school zones.

Metro chief executive officer Heather Haselgrove said she and the board would not budge on the offer of a pay rise of 2 per cent a year for three years.

But union Tasmanian secretary Samantha Simonetis said drivers had waited long enough and 3 per cent was only fair.

Ms Haselgrove said Metro could not afford the extra $585,000 over three years for the extra.

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