Half of all Sydney businesses are making changes to their operations as a direct result of worsening traffic congestion in and around the city.
The NRMA BusinessWise Survey of 600 businesses found almost 50 percent of SMBs in metropolitan Sydney have made changes to operations because of the effects of congestion.
“As congestion continues to get worse in Sydney it’s no surprise that it’s now starting to have a greater effect on an increasing number of businesses,” NRMA president Wendy Machin said.
Some 40 percent of businesses said congestion results in staff getting to work late and has also reduced their ability to deliver goods on time, so in response almost 60 percent have changed the start and finish times of its employees and another 33 percent have extended delivery times to meet deadlines.
Over 66 per cent revealed they’ve had to increase fuel use because their fleet vehicles were stuck in traffic for longer periods of time.
“In recent times small businesses have had to make some very tough decisions about how they operate and when they make deliveries; they’re also using more fuel than ever before because of the delays in getting in and around the CBD centre,” Machin said.
Despite this frustration with traffic conditions, of those businesses surveyed almost 70 percent remain opposed to a congestion charge designed to discourage people from driving during peak times. Instead, many are looking at the government for a solution. The survey found 50 per cent of businesses want to see the Government to make the duplication of the M5 Tunnel and 48 per cent want the completion of the M4 motorway to the CBD made a major infrastructure priory.
“Given the importance of roads to the state’s economy, it’s time that we build Sydney’s missing links to take pressure off the existing road network and make it easier for small businesses to get around. Sydney businesses cannot continue to operate under these conditions,” Machin added.
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