The Inland Route and Transport Policy

Whilst work continues on rebuilding the Hume, Pacific and Newell to modern engineering standards, our existing interstate mainlines are left with sub-standard alignments, and an Inland Railway linking Melbourne Parkes and Brisbane is subjected to study after study - firstly by the former Coalition government and then the Rudd Gillard governments.

            On 22 June 2012 at a Melbourne to Brisbane inland rail Symposium hosted by Parkes Shire Council, Minister Albanese and Shadow Minister Truss maintained that their party had done more than the other party to advance the inland railway, and, that their party would do more than the other party in the future.

            Minister Albanese, after referring to some recent transfer of Melbourne Brisbane freight from road to rail a record $12 billion federal investment in rail and a national rail safety regulator could not announce funds to get the Inland Route 'shovel ready.'

            Two days later, Mr Truss suggested that the $2.1m in federal funding allocated to the Parramatta to Epping urban rail link should be used instead for upgrades of the Pacific Highway. He would have done better to suggest that some any released rail funds would be used on the Inland Rail link.

            More generally, the Coalition's new 50-page policy booklet has no fewer than 12 mentions of 'roads', but none of 'rail' or 'public transport'. Check for yourself at:

http://lpa.webcontent.s3.amazonaws.com/realsolutions/LPA%20Policy%20Booklet%20210x210_final%20LIB.pdf

B-Triples on the Hume

There are now advanced proposals to allow B-Triples access to the Hume Highway.   

            When introduced in the late 1980’s into NSW, B-Doubles were supposed to be much safer than semitrailers, and be professionally driven. However, a fatal road crash involving a B-Double and a car in early 2012 on the Hume Highway on or near the Menangle River Bridge led to examination of the B-Double and its speed limiting equipment and found reported tampering of this equipment.

            Before any further consideration is given to B-Triples on the Hume Highway, there should be an acknowledgement by the Australian and NSW governments that more measures need to be put in place to improve the safety of B-Doubles operating on the Hume Highway. These could include:

1. An absolute speed limit of 100 km/h for B-Doubles (this current limit is too often exceeded).
2. Keeping to the left hand lane, except in the case that there are three lanes in one direction.  (in other words, keep out of the centre lane). In some cases, where hills are to be climbed, there is a case for extra lanes to allow slow moving trucks, faster moving trucks and cars.
3. More effective use of Saf-T-Cam.
4. Reforms such as advocated by Mr Lindsay Fox AC and others to have better control of driving hours. Here, on Channel 9, on A Current Affair It's the crusade to stop the carnage on Aussie roads, for 26 November 2012, Mr Fox called for Locked Black Box truck monitoring, with a suggestion that State and Federal governments are asleep at the wheel.

Pacific Highway Concerns and Alternative Projects

The Wollongong Transport Coalition (WTC) is concerned that the Australian Government's record funding of the Pacific Highway is diverting both federal and NSW Government funds from other road and rail projects.

            For some years, high level of federal spending on the Pacific Highway has been conditional on significant contributions from NSW Government funds.

This, in turn, has delayed road projects such as upgrading the Appin and Picton Roads as well as the Princes Highway.

            This is despite it being increasingly obvious, and as pointed out by Infrastructure NSW in their 2012 report that future Pacific Highway projects  will be on sections with lower traffic volumes, with benefit cost ratios as low as 0.8.  As this pro road report states, the money would be better spent on other road projects.

            On 23 December 2012, there was fatal road crash on the notorious  Mt Ousley F6 intersection, which is at one level, allowing traffic from Fairy Meadow and other locations to turn left to proceed up the Mt Ousley Road. 

            WTC calls for an underpass or overpass at or near the intersection the Mt Ousley Road and the F6.  Such grade separation could also provide an improved access to the University of Wollongong.

Maldon Dombarton Rail Link Needs Accelerating

Whilst Infrastructure NSW in their 2012 report “First things first” considers that Maldon Dombarton can wait until the 2020s, the Federal Government in late 2012 awarded contracts for engineering, planning and environmental works for this long overdue railway line.

As SCLC Secretary Arthur Rorris noted on ABC Stateline on 26 September 2012 (view here):  "It is probably the most studied piece of half finished piece infrastructure on the planet by now."

The need for Maldon Dombarton has again being highlighted by formal advice from rail freight operator Pacific National to Boral: that Pacific National Bulk Rail is unable to identify a suitable commercial or operational train path for Pacific National to provide a 3^rd daily train for PN’s current operations for haulage from Boral’s Dunmore siding into Sydney.

As a result:

“Highway hell: quarryexpansion would see 55 more truckloads a day”  

(Illawarra Mercury Jan. 25, 2013)

Truck movements from Boral's hard rock quarry at Dunmore could jump 50% under a proposal being considered. The company is seeking to modify its existing development consent to increase the size of the quarry by two hectares and also to increase the amount of product hauled from the quarry by road.

The change would allow material approved for road haulage to rise from 1 million tonnes to 1.5 million tonnes a year.

WTC says ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

The Mt Ousley Road has seen a notable increase in heavy truck movements in recent years (more coal, imported cars, grain and now quarry products). How much more at a time heavy bulk truck operations are effectively being subsidized through underpricing of road access and add to road safety risk whilst there is no effective control of noise?

Some members of WTC can recall Premier Wran in September 1983 announcing that the Maldon Port Kembla Railway would be completed within three years.

WTC would welcome an announcement in 2013 that the Maldon Dombarton rail link will be completed by 2016.

In addition, WTC would like to see Port Kembla expanded to have container facilities with use of the new rail link to Moorebank Intermodal Terminal.