Road haulage of coal

As noted by the Port Kembla Coal Terminal in their Annual Environmental Management Report 2015-16, consent was given by the NSW Department of Planning to lift the limit of road haulage of coal to 10 million tonnes per annum.  This follows the 2009 consent that lifted the long standing night-time, Sunday and public holiday curfew to allow coal trucks to move 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with a limit of 7.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa).

No public consultation was undertaken by the NSW Department of Planning in lifting the limit from 7.5 to 10 mtpa. And this at a time when the Mt Ousley Road is getting more and more congested, and funding has been denied to construct the long awaited grade separation at the foot of Mt Ousley Road.

Giant A-Double trucks are now moving some of this coal with 11 or so axles, and a maximum weight of 72 tonnes. See HERE.

Coal truck operators are seeking even heavier trucks, claiming that sub-optimal loading is costing them about $3 million per year.

A good question is how much would the road wear and tear increase each year if the heavier mass was approved by the Roads and Maritime Services (RMS)?

A further question is what are the present hidden subsidies to coal trucking? Back around 1992, based on data from the Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) (now RMS), Wollongong City Council Coal Task Force reckoned it was three cents per tonne kilometre in unrecovered road system costs. 

So for each million tonnes hauled, the 40 or so km from near Appin to Port Kembla, has a hidden subsidy of $1.2 million.

With 85 % CPI applied, this is now $2.2 million for each million tonnes of road hauled coal.

More information on hidden subsidies to heavy trucks is given in a recent article.

NSW FREIGHT AND PORTS STRATEGY

           Throughout 2013, WTC had been watching with interest the development of a NSW Freight and Ports Strategy, and supported the submission lodged in February 2013 by Neighbourhood Forum 5 of Wollongong City Council in response to a draft strategy. The draft strategy had scope for a marked improvement as it proceeded to a final version, not only for the Illawarra, but the state of New South Wales as a whole.

            It appears that the NSW final Freight and Ports Strategy, released in late 2013,  gives priority to heavier trucks (such as B-Triples on the Hume) as opposed to increasing rail freight productivity and competitiveness.

            However, the Queensland Freight Strategy released in 2013  has as its first set of priorities getting more freight onto rail. The 2013 Victorian freight strategy has a Mode Shift Incentive Scheme. 

            For related comment, see

https://theconversation.com/too-many-loads-on-our-roads-when-rail-is-the-answer-24118

             Wollongong Council Neighbourhood Forums 5 and 6 at its meeting of February 2014  requested: 

1          Rail improvements for better safety, reliability and speed of passenger and freight services:

i           a commitment from the NSW Government to make a financial contribution to expedite completion of the Maldon Dombarton rail line;

ii          as per the original consent condition for Port Kembla Inner Harbour, 20 per cent of all car imports to be moved by rail from Port Kembla.

2          Road freight improvements:  

i         bulk haul trucks to pay more than their road system costs not less and to cover their social and environmental costs, this to include a surcharge on all road deliveries of bulk coal and grain to Port Kembla and quarry products passing through Wollongong to Sydney;

ii          the timing of the Mount Ousley Road grade separated access to Fairy Meadow and the University of Wollongong ;

iii         upgrade the Appin Road to Campbelltown.

3.         Noise mitigation

More efforts to reduce truck noise arising from heavy trucks using the F6 and the Mt Ousley Road.

4.         Mode Shift

  The introduction of a Mode Shift Incentive Scheme into New South Wales, similar to the Victorian one.

5.         Transport Strategy

   Advice as to when the previously promised Illawarra Region Transport Strategy is to be released.