Article: $10 million study shows bypass shortfalls

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From the Courier Mail click here!

$10 million study shows bypass shortfalls

$10 million study shows bypass shortfalls
Article from: The Courier-Mail

Emma Chalmers

May 05, 2009 12:00am

THE future of the Toowoomba bypass has been thrown into doubt by a report which dismisses the likelihood of private funding for the $1.75 billion crossing.

A business case for the Toowoomba bypass concludes the road does not stack up as a potential public-private partnership, as pursued by the State Government.

The study also warns the Federal Government that it will pay the price for further inaction, with an extra $100 million to be added to the cost for every year the project is delayed beyond 2010.

The proposed 42km second crossing, which was initially costed at $680 million, would link the Warrego Highway at Helidon to the Gore Highway, with 735m twin tunnels at the top of the range.

The $10 million business study, commissioned by the Howard government and finalised last year, concludes the road would not be commercially viable for the private sector, even if heavily tolled.

The study said the upfront costs for the Government to partner with the private sector would be too much, driving the overall price of the road up by as much as $1.83 million.

If the road were tolled, the report proposes it could cost cars between 89? and $3.86 to use the bypass and heavy vehicles between $6.86 and $27.47.

It also questions how many trucks would use the bypass and raises the prospect that all heavy vehicles not heading to Toowoomba city could be forced to use the road, driving up toll profits by $100 million.

The Howard government pledged $700 million towards the project during the last election but said it would demand the Queensland Government contribute as much as half the final cost.

However, Premier Anna Bligh rejected the bid outright, saying the bypass was part of the national highway and therefore solely the responsibility of the Federal Government.

A Main Roads spokeswoman said yesterday that the state had "no scope" to fund such a huge project.

[Jon Bryant]

If the $1.75B was invested in the Inland Railway how many of the trucks that need to bypass Toowoomba would no longer be travelling on the road?  Was that ever included in the study?  These studies need to start investing what is the best investment of he funding not the singe option.  Sir Rod Eddington said as much at the CEDA Infrastructure Forum last week about the projects that had been submitted to Infrastructure Australia.