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. 

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.