Article: Baillieu told: Get a move on

[ozbob]

From the Melbourne Age click here!

Baillieu told: Get a move on

Baillieu told: Get a move on
Josh Gordon and Shane Green
April 9, 2011

Infrastructure supremo Sir Rod Eddington has warned the Baillieu government it needs to develop a long-term transport plan for Melbourne as New South Wales launches an aggressive push to secure billions of dollars of funding for major projects.

Sir Rod, chairman of Infrastructure Australia, has urged the government to clarify its position on transport projects worth more than $20 billion left over from the former Labor government while developing its own transport plan.

His warning comes as new NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell signalled that his government will compete for funds to pay for an ambitious list of projects. ''I make no apologies,'' he told The Saturday Age. ''NSW will be competing for every big project and every dollar as we reverse the 16 years of neglect that occurred in this state under Labor.''

Business groups and infrastructure experts are concerned the Baillieu government has said little about how it plans to relieve overburdened road and public transport networks, with Melbourne swelling by around 1500 people a week.

State Treasurer Kim Wells said last night the government was determined to deliver election commitments but would not unveil new projects until it sorted out problems surrounding existing projects inherited from Labor such as the regional rail scheme.

''Even if it means that some projects will take longer to deliver, Labor's poorly designed and underfunded projects must be fixed first to make sure that public money is not wasted,'' Mr Wells said.

Sir Rod said the government should also consider how any transport priorities might be funded, including issuing public infrastructure bonds similar to those to be offered by the NSW government.

''Given the limits on the state budget, there needs to be substantial private-sector investment,'' he said. ''That includes government infrastructure bonds. The health warning is for the government to invest the money wisely, because if you invest in unproductive projects you incur debt with no productive benefits.''

Included in the list of outstanding projects is Sir Rod's 2008 proposal for a 17-kilometre rail tunnel linking Melbourne's western and south-eastern suburbs and an 18-kilometre road linking the western suburbs to the Eastern Freeway.

The government is also facing calls for action from Engineers Australia, the profession's peak body, which wants a Victorian infrastructure body established.

''We seem to have a lot of plans but not a huge amount of action,'' the group's Professor John Wilson said. ''And when we do have action it seems to be on plans that haven't been really well developed. They become more political projects rather than the highest priority projects.''

The group last year rated Victoria's transport, energy, water and telecommunication infrastructure as ''barely adequate''.

Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Wayne Kaylor-Thomson also warned that ''substandard'' infrastructure was threatening Melbourne's liveability.

Included on the business wish-list is the extension of the Melbourne Exhibition Centre, an east-west road and public transport link, completion of the metropolitan ring road and a regional superhighway between Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton and the Hume Highway.

Federal Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese said one of the biggest challenges for Victoria would be the ''de-linking of infrastructure investment from the political cycle''.

''Infrastructure investment is long-term and often there is political pressure to prioritise decisions which have a shorter-term impact,'' Mr Albanese told The Saturday Age. ''In the long-run that catches up with you.''

Mr O'Farrell is expected to meet Prime Minister Gillard soon, with funding for NSW a key issue. NSW is also looking to fund projects using so-called Waratah Bonds, and is establishing an oversight body called Infrastructure NSW.

[#Metro]

Without a proper funding source, NONE of these projects will proceed.
This is also news for Queensland. Infrastructure Australia cannot be a license to make up projects as if funding supply were infinite.

I think the focus should be on how to fix up the current system.

[Stillwater]

 Some food for thought here:

Imagine you are Sir Rod Eddington with a finite number of Infrastructure Australia dollars and five or seven quality submissions for funding land on your desk from NSW, Victoria and Queensland, the Queensland bid being CRR.  You can fund just three of the seven.  How does the CRR proposal stand out?

It is worthwhile keeping in the back of the head that Sir Rod is from Melbourne and probably would have a greater knowledge of that city's transport woes.  Among candidate projects for funding is Sir Rod's own 2008 proposal for a 17-kilometre rail tunnel linking Melbourne's western and south-eastern suburbs and an 18-kilometre road linking the western suburbs to the Eastern Freeway.

I read this statement in a Queensland context:  ''Even if it means that some projects will take longer to deliver, Labor's poorly designed and underfunded projects must be fixed first to make sure that public money is not wasted."

The Engineers Australia spokesperson might as well been shouting at Anna Bligh when he said:

"We seem to have a lot of plans but not a huge amount of action,'' the group's Professor John Wilson said. ''And when we do have action it seems to be on plans that haven't been really well developed. They become more political projects rather than the highest priority projects.''

More thought for the Queensland Government (and it applies equally to the LNP and Labor):

Sir Rod said the government should also consider how any transport priorities might be funded, including issuing public infrastructure bonds similar to those to be offered by the NSW government.

''Given the limits on the state budget, there needs to be substantial private-sector investment,'' he said. ''That includes government infrastructure bonds. The health warning is for the government to invest the money wisely, because if you invest in unproductive projects you incur debt with no productive benefits.''

And how true is this.  I have substituted 'Queensland' for 'Victoria' to better illustrate the issue.

Federal Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese said one of the biggest challenges for Queensland would be the ''de-linking of infrastructure investment from the political cycle.  Infrastructure investment is long-term and often there is political pressure to prioritise decisions which have a shorter-term impact,'' Mr Albanese told The Saturday Age. ''In the long-run that catches up with you.''

[ozbob]

Funny how things work out, when we raised the possibility of funding through 'infrastructure bonds'  a while back many laughed  and dismissed it outright.  It always pays to be persistent .. lol

[#Metro]

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/mayors-infrastructure-bond-plan-20101128-18cf0.html

I hate to say this, but there is a real danger that Cross River Rail may not ever be funded. It is a real possibility. If the cost goes up to 10, 15 or (gasp) 20 billion, what are you going to do???
Remember there were TWO Cross River Rail projects discussed in the ICRCS. CRR1 (current) and CRR2 (via Toowong and West End).

The current system could be slimmer and there are many things that could be done to fix up the current system
(like simple things such as BUS lanes, traffic light priority, a better train timetable, altered seating layouts (controversial) and signalling upgrades ).

Something must also be done about cars. Things that distort people's transport choices should be removed or reduced to the extent of the distortion.
Fringe benefits for one example. Decongestion pricing might be another.

Ideas for rail extensions to everywhere, costly busway extensions, metros, high speed rail to the gold coast, and the like are nice but are
a) costly
b) take a long time to construct even if you have got the $$ for (a).

The two limiting factors in any infrastructure project will always be cash and time.
We need to rediscover the practicalities of Class B ROW and prioritisations to Class C ROW (traffic priority etc).
This could mean bus in bus lanes. Class B is B grade but much better than nothing and cheaper. And it can always be upgraded.

[#Metro]

The government is also facing calls for action from Engineers Australia, the profession's peak body, which wants a Victorian infrastructure body established.

''We seem to have a lot of plans but not a huge amount of action,'' the group's Professor John Wilson said. ''And when we do have action it seems to be on plans that haven't been really well developed. They become more political projects rather than the highest priority projects.''

The group last year rated Victoria's transport, energy, water and telecommunication infrastructure as ''barely adequate''.

Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Wayne Kaylor-Thomson also warned that ''substandard'' infrastructure was threatening Melbourne's liveability.

Time and cost...

Meanwhile, Metro Trains Melbourne quietly improves capacity on it's train network...