Greyhound buses refuse to transport Adani mine workers to and from the site due to pressure from climate change protesters
- Greyhound buses has ruled out any further deal to transport Adani mine workers
- Bus provider criticised after agreement with the company building mine railway
- Greyhound said it has been inundated with both calls and messages from public
- Great Barrier Reef Foundation ended association with Greyhound over the deal
Greyhound buses has ruled out any further deal to transport Adani workers to and from the controversial mine.
The bus company was heavily criticised by opponents of the Queensland mine after signing a three-month contract with construction firm BMD, which is building the Carmichael site’s railway.
Greyhound Australia released a statement on Tuesday saying it had been inundated with messages and calls from the public over the deal.
Protesters against the Adani coal mine in Sydney last July. Greyhound buses, which had signed a deal transporting workers to and from the controversial mine, has announced it will not be renewing the agreement when it expires in March
The company said it had decided it would not pursue any further contract with BMD once the preliminary commitment ran out in March.
‘Following considered deliberation, and in the best interests of our staff, customers, and partners, Greyhound Australia has decided to not enter into a contractual agreement with BMD to service construction of the Carmichael Rail Network beyond our preliminary March 31, 2020 commitment,’ the company said in a statement.
‘Greyhound Australia has received numerous messages, emails and phone calls from people expressing their thoughts both for and against the Carmichael Rail Network and Adani Carmichael project.’
School Strike 4 Climate, who helped organise mass protests against climate change involving hundreds of thousands of people across Australia in September, had started a boycott against Greyhound on its website.
Greyhound’s association with the Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef Foundation was also ended by the conservation group after the contract with Adani emerged.
Adani Mining CEO Lucas Dow said construction of the mine would continue undeterred, with other transport providers ‘lining up’ to replace Greyhound.
Greyhound Australia said it had been inundated with messages and calls from members of the public over the deal (stock image)
‘Anti-coal activists have thrown everything they’ve got at us in order to stop our project from court cases to multi-million dollar advertising campaigns but they haven’t succeeded,’ Mr Dow said in a statement on Tuesday.
‘We are not intimidated and construction is progressing well.
‘This latest tactic will not affect construction of the project as bussing providers from around Queensland are lined up and ready to assist us and our contractors with our transport needs.’
Adani Mining CEO Lucas Dow (pictured) said construction of the mine would continue undeterred despite Greyhound’s announcement
Last week an internal email circulated to Greyhound staff and seen by The Guardian warned the company could be caught ‘in the crossfire of the anti-Adani campaign’.
‘Thank you for being courageous in servicing the regions and customers that mean so much to our business,’ the email said.
The railway links the Abbot Point coal port to the Galilee Basin – a vast untapped coal resource Adani will use to supply ten million tonnes of the material a year to power stations.
A protestor’s face is covered with a Stop Adani sign during a Stop Adani Mine Rally at Sydney’s Town Hall on July 5