I agree the train service leaves a lot to be desired for commuters and any one who cannot meet its two-hourly timing.

I have been contacting our local members for many years and have usually received perfunctory and at times facile replies. Mr Ward is the only who has engaged in contact and has supported the petition that was run, in conjunction with the SCR, for an improvement to an hourly service in 2015. The 1250 signatory petition was presented to the minister and was  brought up in the NSW Parliament in March last year.

No change has yet been announced but wheels are still turning. A fresh push by readers might be sufficient to achieve a change. Please contact Mr Ward  to add your voice for the need for a service that fits the Bomaderry and  Shoalhaven community.

In reply to T. Prescott of Bomaderry, I am a frequent user of our public transport system and a strong advocate for public transport. I frequently catch the train between home and Sydney and know the service very well. In my time as a local representative we've seen 125 new express services added to our line, a brand new station built at Shellharbour Junction, upgrades to train stations at Gerringong, Albion Park, Bomaderry and Dapto and new commuter car parks installed at Kiama and Oak Flats. While there is always more we can do, I wanted to assure you that I am a strong supporter of public transport and improving local services. Next time you see me on a train, please come and say G'day!

I attended the extraordinary council meeting on Wednesday night about the proposed rate rises. Who wants to pay more taxes or have a rates rise? Nobody does, of course. None of us want to be more out of pocket.

But, who wants to have our roads repaired properly, our public toilets cleaned regularly, garbage collected, swimming pools and sports fields maintained, bicycle paths built and maintained, libraries, men’s sheds and other community services funded, other council assets maintained, vandalism damage repaired? 

What about the extra services the community expects such as additional garbage collection days at our beaches when the tourists come in summer? This all costs a huge amount money. And not only are our costs ever increasing, we also have lost a significant amount of federal funding.

Professional council staff have done extensive studies and these have been audited by external sources and all point to the fact that without increasing our rates significantly we will be operating to an ever increasing deficit and will not be able to have our facilities maintained as the community expects.

Shoalhaven residents enjoy much lower rates than many of our neighbouring councils. It appears that we have been paying too little over the long term, which has put us in the precarious situation in which we find ourselves.

Would you rather pay a few extra dollars a week for the services we have come to enjoy? Or would you prefer services and facilities be allowed to deteriorate?

The Shoalhaven Independents have been active in organising protest meetings and then claiming that they have community support to not put the rates up by the 11.5 per cent deemed necessary by staff. It’s easy to gain support when people’s hip pockets are affected. But if people saw the big picture and the reasons for a rate rise, they may be more understanding.

There is the facility for those unable to afford the rate rise to access council’s hardship policy.