End of the road for Winnaleah service
• Community members gathered on Friday to farewell Sainty’s bus driver Wayne Quill as the passenger service ceases for the town.
• Sainty’s bus driver Wayne Quill being presented with a thank you gift by Josie Nichols at a farewell party in Winnaleah last Friday.
By Taylor Clyne
January 22, 2020
Just before lunchtime on Friday morning Sainty’s bus driver Wayne Quill pulled into the sleepy farming community of Winnaleah for the very last time.
After more than eighty years, sixteen of which Mr Quill drove, the passenger bus service will no longer be operating in the town due to low patronage.
The decision was made by the Department of State Growth early last year after an inquiry and complete overhaul of the regions bus services.
To celebrate the years of work transporting people in the town, Josie Nichols and the Winnaleah community organised a surprise thank you barbeque for Mr Quill at the completion of his last run.
“I was very surprised and overwhelmed with it all,” Mr Quill said.
“After 16 years I think I knew every pot hole in the road between Launceston and Winnaleah,” he laughed.
“Back when I started there were a lot more people on the run but slowly kids have grown up and moved on. I enjoyed taking people like Colleen Harper to and from to do their shopping, things like that. It was a good run.”
Mr Quill said there was never any problems he could recall although one day as he was driving out of the town a big gush of wind got his bus trailer and flipped it.
“It broke all of my back windows on the bus, it was a bit of a surprise!”
Sainty’s North-East bus service owner Fruncine Sainty said it was a great turnout of Winnaleah residents for his final day on this run.
“We used to call Wayne the Mayor; he knew everyone and everything that was going on in the region, it was great,” she laughed.
“We take pride in all of our staff and are privileged to have someone like Wayne to stay with us for so long.
“He is now having two weeks annual leave then changing positions to drive our special needs bus based in Launceston, a job I know he’s really looking forward to,” Mrs Sainty said.
As of January 19 passenger services will run daily from Derby, Ringarooma, Scottsdale and Bridport to find time tables and pick up points visit: www.transport.tas.gov.au