Article: Taxpayers fork out for rural rail services

[ozbob]

From the Courier Mail click here!

Taxpayers fork out for rural rail services

Taxpayers fork out for rural rail services

    * by Ursula Heger
    * From: The Courier-Mail
    * June 21, 2010 11:00PM

TAXPAYERS are being forced to cover a massive blowout in the cost of regional rail services with the subsidy for a single passenger on some services more than a business-class flight to Vanuatu.

Four years after the State Government laid down a "use it or lose it" ultimatum for regional passenger services, new figures released to The Courier-Mail show the cost of the services will reach $145 million this year as patronage falls.

Transport Minister Rachel Nolan yesterday raised questions over the viability of the train services.

Three of the eight Traveltrain services cost more than $1500 per person, including the Westlander, which runs between Brisbane and Charleville, and the Gulflander, which runs from Normanton to Croydon.

The subsidy on the most costly service – the Inlander train between Townsville and Mount Isa – will skyrocket more than 40 per cent this year to $2034 a passenger.

Under the subsidies, more than $1 million a week is shelled out to take 2500 passengers between Brisbane and Cairns on the Tilt Train and Sunlander.

Ms Nolan said the costs were concerning. She also said if communities felt money could be better spent elsewhere, then they should consult with the Government.

"I'm concerned about the high rate of subsidy for Traveltrain," she said. "These services are a historical part of Queensland Rail, but such a high subsidy for such small numbers does raise questions of viability."

She said the Government was "constantly" reviewing Traveltrain services to ensure the best value for taxpayers, but did not say why services were more expensive this year.

But Townsville Mayor Les Tyrell said the services were vital to residents in regional Queensland and were small compared with the overall costs of the southeast's CityTrain.

"Regional Australia is more susceptible to the tyranny of distance and the ability for people to travel where they are to major centres for things like medical reasons," he said.

He said the services were necessary to encourage people to move to the bush.

"The Government has come out very strongly, indicating that they want more people to move to regional centres for obvious reasons, and subsidisation of public transport is one thing that comes part and parcel of the cost they need to cover if they want to achieve it."

Opposition transport spokeswoman Fiona Simpson said greater transparency was needed on where the extra funds were being spent.

"Obviously, there are social benefits with people being connected, but the public has a right to see where those costs are going and how they are being spent," she said.

The costs include a capital cost for a fixed asset.  This leads to distortions.  The fact is further investment and improvements in long distance rail as has been done in Victoria (which has been an outstanding success) will reap dividends.  The mayor is correct, public services are needed for the entire community.

[#Metro]

Not really sure about this one.
If the service was high speed it would be a different story.

Tilt train is worth keeping IMHO. But it really needs as speed upgrade to 250km/h or higher to compete with buses
and air transport. When I was on it, it was painfully slow, and then the line was flooded (seems to happen every year or so) so the trip had to be canceled. Not good.

As for the other services. We'll I'd like to see more trains and frequency boost in Brisbane!

[Dean Quick]

Here we go again. More tripe from the Courier Rubbish. How many times is this particular story to be rerun? Obviously there must be a lack of real news to publish, but then again I guess you need REAL journalists. Hospitals, schools, airports and more importantly ROADS are all subsidised by the Gov't, all conveniently missed by the writer (I use the term loosely). I can only hope that this daily rubbish we have come to know as the Courier Mail will someday improve its publishing credentials.   

[somebody]

Tilt train is worth keeping IMHO. But it really needs as speed upgrade to 250km/h or higher to compete with buses and air transport.

I agree about the Electric Tilt being worth keeping, but the Diesel tilt should never have been done.  Better to have a 3rd Electric tilt and a change at Rocky for the Sunlander.

Also, getting to 250km/h is unlikely on narrow guage.

[#Metro]

Under the subsidies, more than $1 million a week is shelled out to take 2500 passengers between Brisbane and Cairns on the Tilt Train and Sunlander.

Is this just for the tickets or does this include the track maintainence cost?
Are the tracks used by other services (coal and freight?)
How loaded is the tilt train?

If this much money is being spent per passenger, would it not be better spent on an upgraded, faster service that is going to pull the passengers? People are willing to pay more for a better service, and less for a worse one.

I think a high speed service up and down the Queensland Coast would be worthwhile and might even make enough money to cover its operations. As for the other lines, I'm not so sure. May be better to boost the backbone tilt train frequency and then have transfers for branch line destinations as suggested above.

For long distances, you need speed.

[somebody]

For long distances, you need speed.

Which is why you fly.

Got to say, I am pro getting rid of these 3 loss making services.  Those that cannot fly can still use the commercial bus services.  There is no feasible way that rail could compete with the coach service Brisbane-Toowoomba and it's advantages for those further afield aren't enough, I don't see the value of the Gulflander and I can imagine the Inlander being a white elephant too.

Sorry.

[#Metro]

Which is why you fly.

Got to say, I am pro getting rid of these 3 loss making services.  Those that cannot fly can still use the commercial bus services.  There is no feasible way that rail could compete with the coach service Brisbane-Toowoomba and it's advantages for those further afield aren't enough, I don't see the value of the Gulflander and I can imagine the Inlander being a white elephant too.

Sorry.

The Tilt train should be retained and sped up. Standard gauge the line, remove level crossings, high speed (only on standard gauge, too dangerous on narrow). Flying is fast, but it is point-to-point. There are people who want to catch the service (2500 per week) and a hop-on, hop-off service. Buses do this. Rail's coverage is very good, but people will not catch it if the service, speed etc is bad.

High speed is also good because if Rail has an advantage, there can be transfers and feeders to and from the rail stations.
The speed, followed by frequency, and reliability (flooding) is the issue. I decided to fly back rather than catch it back.
I don't think I will catch it again.

Faster services means more people using it
More people using it means less subsidy and more money
More money means boosted frequency
Boosted frequency means even more passengers
Even more passengers means even lower costs...

With a very fast train, you can get a fast trip to wherever and then complete branch journeys on a bus.

[somebody]

Standard guaging would be very difficult.  Most difficult part is Roma St-Beerburrum.

[SteelPan]

THIS article, which gets run like clockwork by the CM every year or so really _____ me off!   The taxpayer funds/subsidises ALOT of things.  As others have stated - what's the real return from a large freight truck to the "state" - alot of trucking tycoons have got seriously rich and we the taxpayer have helped subsidise them - when will the CM run that story?? Answer, never, cause your modern journo is as dumb as duck ___!

I do accept the diesel tilt was always a silly move, but that reflected the then transport minister!  One improvement they could make, is run the diesel tilt only north from Rocky.

In the end, it's just another example of rail getting a raw deal from the media!

[#Metro]

How much were the road subsidies to these areas?
The other thing is that every mode of transport seems subsidied, so this huge cash churn.

Why? Roads are an essential public service. 

[ozbob]

Nothing has changed ..

=========================

Media Release 4 July 2009

Queensland:  Long distance rail travel is part of the sustainable transport future!

RAIL Back On Track (http://backontrack.org) a web based community support group for rail and public transport and an advocate for public transport users has called on Traveltrain and the Queensland Government to maintain present long distance passenger train services and consider further innovative expansion of services.

Robert Dow, Spokesman for RAIL Back On Track said:

"Subsidies to Queensland Traveltrain long distance trains are both sensible and are of benefit to the whole community.  Support for the rural community particularly by the Queensland Government in maintaining these services is to be applauded.  It should also be noted that public transport in south-east Queensland is also heavily subsidised.  So is health, electricity, water, education and other transport modes.  Rarely is the true cost of road and air infrastructure, and their environmental penalties costed into those transport modes. If they were they too would show distortions of cost and subsidies. Queensland is more than just the south-east!"

"Governments are there to support their communities. Governments lost the transport plot in the 1950s and until recently have lacked the long term vision of our pioneers who laid down our basic rail network.  For example, the short term myopia demonstrated when the Gold Coast and Tweed Heads railways were closed during the 1960s and right of way lost, is now hitting home in exorbitant infrastructure costs to re-establish those lines."

"In twenty or thirty years it is highly likely that the only sustainable bulk transport mode will be electric rail.  Air and road will be subject to extreme fuel and environmental costs. Rather than pontificating about possible cutbacks, governments need to be thinking of long term needs and expanding and continuing support for rail networks.  Rail is the sustainable and environmentally friendly transport solution for Queensland and the nation."

"The long distance passenger trains in Queensland are unique.  Providing a quality tourist travel experience they are also important transport communication links for many remote towns throughout Queensland. The Sunlander, the Spirit of the Outback, the Westlander, the Inlander and the Tilt train services all value add to the economy of Queensland, directly and indirectly.  This was further reinforced with Queensland Rail's Traveltrain Holidays taking out the Major Tourist Attraction award at the 2008 Outback Queensland Tourism Awards (1)."

"That being said, modern rail cars could be a sensible option for reducing costs and improving the frequency and patronage on the inland services in particular.  Victoria has done just that and their country rail network is booming!"

"The aging Traveltrain carriage fleet should be upgraded with new diesel multiple units similar to the VLocity units in Victoria (2).  These units could also be used on regular runs throughout Queensland.  Regular commuter services could be introduced from places such as Gatton, Helidon, and eventually Toowoomba and similarly from Gympie North and Maryborough.  Apart from the long haul Travel Train services more local rail services for all the major provincial cities in Queensland could also be achieved."

References:

1.   http://backontrack.org/mbs/index.php?topic=1510.0
2.   http://www.vline.com.au/about/ourfleet/vlocity.html

Contact:

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org

[ozbob]

From the Courier Mail 23rd June 2010 page 32 editorial

Get rail back on track



A good selection of blog comments from here was published today as well in the Courier Mail today 23rd June, 'Blogger's View', clearly very supportive of rail!

[ghostryder]

Somebody
The media never let the truth get in the way of a good story. iirc unless the roads have been flood proofed that the Gulflander is during the wet season just about the only way to get supplies through unless its a real wet and nasty wet season. What many city folk seem to forget that there is a world outside the major cities and people do live out there and pay taxes and are entitled to some government services.

scott 

[Stillwater]

More information, please!  Just where is the subsidy applied?  How is it calculated?  Does it include, for instance, such things as depreciation on the cost of the train set?  Are extraneous costs factored into the calculation?  Is there not a certain number of 'free' trips a senior/pensioner can do each year, or every two years, on a QR long-distance passenger train?  Whenever I see a Tilt Train, it usually is always full, with a higher proportion of older people.  Is that because of the subsidy, or because retirees have more time to travel by train than by plane, which a younger demographic favours?  There are so many variables that the costs should be disected to make sense of the detail.  What is the cost (to society, the environment etc) if all those train travellers jumped in a car?

[#Metro]

Four years after the State Government laid down a "use it or lose it" ultimatum for regional passenger services, new figures released to The Courier-Mail show the cost of the services will reach $145 million this year as patronage falls.

I think there is an important point here. My view is that high subsidy is a sign that something is wrong with the service itself.
Of course, I'm not sure how they arrived at their figure, and how that figure was calculated and what information it used should be public. It's is a valid question to ask why patronage is falling, especially when Victoria is managing to have a regional railway boom.

Could it be any of the following:

(1) service has poor connections (particularly to bus)
(2) service is not giving good customer experience
(3) the level of service is bad
(4) the service is too slow
(5) the service is not competitive with other options

My experience with the QR Tilt train was not a good one at all.
It was very slow and uncomfortable. I don't think it went any faster than 100km/hour, IMHO this is uncompetitive with road and air.
It needs to be faster. Much faster.

IMHO a high speed railway along the coast might be worthwhile.
Linking:

* Brisbane/Brisbane Airport
* Caboolture
* Beerwah/Glass House Mountains
* Sunshine Coast
* Gympie
* Maryborough
* Childers
* Bundaberg
* Gladstone
* Rockhampton
* Mackay
* Proserpine
* Bowen
* Home Hill
* Townsville
* Ingham
* Tully
* Cairns
* Port Douglas

[Gazza]

^I think the issue is that it's not really possible to ever provide a service up the coast that is viable in the long term.

I mean at the present time we're only really seeing the early movements on a MEL-SYD (And SYD-BNE) high speed line (which I do think is necessary and want to see happen), and while there are a few things in it's favour that will make it worthwhile (Eg travel demand between these places, plus larger cities on the way), it's sort of right at the limits (Distance especially, we'll have to be using the fastest trains available to get travel times under that 3 hour barrier) in terms of what is a viable market for high speed rail.

But for north of Brisbane a lot of these factors aren't there. There aren't overloaded airports, there aren't busy air routes, and the anchor populations and demand for travel don't compare to MEL-SYD and SYD-BNE, and the distances are greater. Even with the fastest trains, a trip to Townsville or Cairns is not going to be competitive with air.

And even if you were to provide this high speed train you're looking at laying a system as long as the entire MEL-SYD-BNE proposal (And hence, it would probably be a long way off)

I'm definitely all for rail in our cities, for freight, high speed between the 3 major east coast capitals etc
But as a mode of passenger transport I don't think there's a way to make it work up the north coast that will be popular, and keeping it running for the sake of having a train is bleeding money away from places where you could easily get more people onto rail.

[#Metro]

I'm definitely all for rail in our cities, for freight, high speed between the 3 major east coast capitals etc
But as a mode of passenger transport I don't think there's a way to make it work up the north coast that will be popular, and keeping it running for the sake of having a train is bleeding money away from places where you could easily get more people onto rail.

I agree with this, but current operation is that there is a train that runs along this route, the Tilt train. If that were a faster service, it would pull many more passengers. I think the strength rail has over airports in this region is the 'join the dots' pattern of the smaller regional centres, the strong tourist market (backpackers) who would be familiar with fast rail in Europe/Japan/Overseas and the "hop-on/hop-off" nature of it. It may or may not be possible to share the costs of operation with freight.

The fact is, there are already trains that go from Brisbane to Sydney and from Brisbane to Cairns. And these are subsidized up to the hilt, as The Courier Mail loves to remind us. Part of this reason is because they are slow, extremely slow and this makes them uncompetitive, unattractive and therefore unprofitable.

A faster service may well have higher initial capital costs, but because it would save significant amounts of time it would also attract more passengers and *may* have a lower marginal cost to run one extra service. I can't remember if the corridor is electrified already.

Information on the Queensland Rail website http://www.queenslandrail.com.au/RailServices/Traveltrain/Pages/TiltTrain.aspx shows that the distance Between Brisbane and Cairns is 23 hours 55 minutes. Perhaps a high speed service running at 200 km/hour (on average) could cut that time by 65% to about 8 hours or so...

Its worth thinking about IMHO...tack it on to the latest study they are doing. No harm in exploring...

[#Metro]

PS: I would also like to add, before anyone starts spending billions on HSR, that money should be spending Cross River Rail and other projects that we desperately need ASAP. 

[#Metro]

http://www.cabinet.qld.gov.au/MMS/StatementDisplaySingle.aspx?id=24380
Blast from the past...

Premier
The Honourable Peter Beattie

Sunday, November 01, 1998

All aboard Australia's first Tilt Train

Premier Peter Beattie and Transport and Main Road Minister Steve Bredhauer today invited the public to come on board the Southern Hemisphere's first high-speed tilt train during a community open day to launch the service.

Two tilt trains will run the 639km route between Brisbane and Rockhampton starting next Friday (November 6).

The high-speed trains will cover the distance in seven hours, cutting two and a quarter hours from the current service.

During a launch of the tilt train at Brisbane's Roma Street Station today, the Premier said more of the high-tech trains were planned.

"Two new tilt trains, costing $122 million, have been ordered and are expected to run between Brisbane and Cairns by the end of 2001," he said.

Welcoming the public today, Mr Beattie said Queenslanders could see for themselves what he described as a "rail revolution", not just for Queensland but for Australia too.

"The tilt train represents more than five years of vision and investment by the Queensland Government.

"Not only does it represent a leap forward in technology, but it also represents a strong commitment to the future of the State and regionalisation."

The tilt train project will generate 300 jobs, providing a major economic boost for Maryborough where the trains will be built at Walkers Limited.

It will also give a major boost for tourism and create jobs between Rockhampton and Cairns.

"This is further proof of my Government's commitment to govern for all of Queensland," the Premier said.

Mr Bredhauer said the new trains were high-tech, high-speed and high-comfort.

"These trains will bring communities along the route closer together and allow people living in this area new opportunities in terms of lifestyle, investment and tourism," he said.

"The tilt trains represent Queensland Rail's push into the 21st century with a total project investment of $113 million.

"It really is a rejuvenation and revitalisation of the rail service," he said.

The two tilt trains will be the fastest of their kind in the world, running on narrow gauge and reaching speeds of up to 170kmh.

Hmm. I wonder if a wholly new track would be required... the investment was pretty small then too.

[Golliwog]

Depends on what the track is like now, particularly the corners. Not just the radius of the corners but the tilt of the track itself heading into the corner. The thing is depending on how fast you want your trains to go, you're probably going to need two seperate tracks as what is an appropriate tilt for a 100km/h train is very much different to that of a 400km/h train, so unless you're using the tilt train technology you would need to use seperate tracks, at least for the corners.

[mufreight]

Time for some to be a little realistic and practical in terms of cost and the benefits gained, If as has been proposed a separate track is required for tilt train operation to speed up their passage through curves then why not expend that money on a program of realigning those curves for the faster (and more economic) operation of all services doing away with the costs associated with the provision of the complex signalling and high speed turnouts that would be required to segregate the tilt services from other traffic on these curves.
Sorry the theory was great but in practice not worth the time it took to present it.

[Golliwog]

I don't think a totally new track would be the way to go either, I think realignment would be better. Just explaining stuff.

[Gazza]

I agree with this, but current operation is that there is a train that runs along this route, the Tilt train. If that were a faster service, it would pull many more passengers. I think the strength rail has over airports in this region is the 'join the dots' pattern of the smaller regional centres, the strong tourist market (backpackers) who would be familiar with fast rail in Europe/Japan/Overseas and the "hop-on/hop-off" nature of it. It may or may not be possible to share the costs of operation with freight.

And I think this is the crux of the problem. The primary travel market an enhanced tilt train would be serving would be between towns where you cant fly, which is a bit of a niche to be aiming for. The MEL-SYD-BNE is going to be serving population centres along the way and point to point between capital cities.

The other big problem is that to increase the speed of the service it's going to take a shipload of money...We're pretty much running at the speed limit of narrow gauge technology, so for an increase in speed that would actually generate more patronage  you're going to need to lay new track and It's a lot of money to be outlaying for something that wouldn't have the broad appeal.

As for the backpacker market...Don't they drive wicked campers  ?

As has been said, rail transport has a lot of benefits in terms of congestion, environment, reduced road trauma etc etc, but even so for the geographical/demographic area this train would be serving I still don't think the benefits would outweigh the taxpayer expenditure required.
Furthermore it would be bleeding money away from the low hanging fruit where money should be being spent on rail...I'm sure there are plenty of projects out there that have yet to be built that you know straight away would be a success from day one. For these projects it's easy to reel off a list of benefits, with very few cons.

However to get rail being used up the north coast requires a heap of preconditions to be met to actually make it work.

[mufreight]

Realignment duplication and upgrading of the NCL from Beerburrum to Gympie alone would see a possible transit time improvement using existing IMU sets create a time saving of better than 30 minutes, with tilt trains operating to their potential capability the time saving Brisbane to Gympie could be better than an hour.
Problem is that to do that it costs and who pays.

[colinw]

There would be significant cost savings for freight operators and in maintenance as well.

Just think of all those freight trains grinding around those 40 km/h curves north of Nambour.

How far north to you think duplication is justified?  I can see a case for going to Yandina or Cooroy, not sure about all the way to Gympie North.

[#Metro]

I think there might be a case, based on increased freight and the side-benefits that would have for things like the tilt train.
The distance to Cairns is 1681 km IIRC, so the absolute minimum time that would take, assuming that the train maintains top speed
of 160 km/hour is 10.5 hours.

At the moment, it takes about 24 hours to get to Cairns, so that is an average speed of 70 km per hour..., less than half the top speed.

IMHO the key to Long Distance Passenger rail services are:
* Speed (faster services, this may mean new trains or better track)
* Frequency (slowly inching up the services to daily)
* Connections with the bus/coach (free transfers/co-ordination/feeder network)

Some thought might need to go into seeing if tighter integration with connecting coach services and co-ordination could pull more passengers?
One idea would be to have free transfers from a coach connection on/off the train. At the moment you have to pay AIUI. The buses may make a loss but the idea is to, overall, get the system in a stronger position overall.

Feeding rail works for suburban systems, it could well work on a large statewide scale.

[#Metro]

This is what BrisbaneTimes ran last time around:

Tilt train sting for taxpayers: $850 per passenger

Train services between Brisbane and Cairns remain on track but the Queensland premier has signalled it doesn't come cheap.

Taxpayers fork out just over $850 for every passenger who travels the 1681km journey - or $115 million for the 2007-08 financial year.

And this time around:

Taxpayers face steep rail subsidy bill

The Queensland government says it will pay about $265 in subsidies for every person who uses the revamped Brisbane-to-Cairns passenger rail service.

So has the subsidy gone massively down in 2 years anyway?

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/articles/2008/12/28/1230399041087.html?s_rid=smh:top5

[#Metro]

http://www.greyhound.com.au/Help/types-of-passes/maps/map-australia.aspx

Partnering up with the bus network perhaps?
Discount last minute seat sales like Wotif.com?

(It's better to sell a seat and have someone in it paying something rather than run an empty seat with air in it and get paid zero).

[colinw]

If those figures are correct then the big news story should be "Rail Turnaround - Long Distance Passneger Subsidy Drops to 31% of 2008 level.".

Or perhaps the real story is inaccurate & dodgy reporting, in which case who knows what the true subsidy is?

Is there any way to access the true figures?

[#Metro]

perhaps contact the minister (good luck!)

IMHO if closer bus-rail integration and co-ordination works on a suburban scale, I do not see why it can't work on a larger statewide scale.

The buses actually take about 5-6 hours longer to get to Cairns, and this gap will widen even further if tilt speeds were to be improved. Freight would also benefit from a faster alignment.

Ideally coaches and buses should be feeding the tilt train service. This would mean a faster trip, less bus-km, less wasteful competition
and more frequent rail services.

Rail should be the backbone from Brisbane to Cairns, the buses should feed off that trunk.

[mufreight]

There would be significant cost savings for freight operators and in maintenance as well.

Just think of all those freight trains grinding around those 40 km/h curves north of Nambour.

How far north to you think duplication is justified?  I can see a case for going to Yandina or Cooroy, not sure about all the way to Gympie North.

Initially duplicate to Nambour then realign the line from Nambour to Gympie with no curve less than 90kph for a conventional ICE/IMU set with a bi-directional passing lane of at least 20klm length every 50 klm to minimise crossing delays and to allow high speed tilt services to overtake slower traffic.
Again this all requires the two M's, Motivation (commitment) and Money instead of spin and non core promises..

[somebody]

If we are going to the expense of realigning it, I would want 140km/h track wherever possible.  They could do it for the Gold Coast line.  Perhaps it is more hilly there, and so unachievable.

[mufreight]

Most of the realigned line would have speeds well in excess of the 140kph but reality is such that because of the topography it would price the realignment out of existence if a 140/160kph minimum speed were to be imposed for the entire line and some curves of 90kph for a conventional train set which would allow tilt train operation at speeds in excess of 120kph which I think most would find quite acceptable

[Stillwater]

Most NCL 'permanent' speed restrictions are now due to tight-radius curves, such as exist north and south of Cooroy. There are approximately 550 curves of radius less than 800 metres between Landsborough and Townsville and no less than 30 per cent of this track is laid on such curves.
A minimum curve radius of 800 metres is necessary to sustain normal train running operations at 90kph on narrow gauge track.  As a result of the excessive curvature, freight train operations are adversely affected south of Maryborough West and the Tilt Train averages only 66kph. This compares unfavourably with average speeds exceeding 100kph between Bundaberg and Rockhampton.
The Tilt Train can't operate at optimal performance without substantial track improvements -- and the greatest need is south of Maryborough West.

[#Metro]

Wow, that sounds like a massive and expensive headache.

[mufreight]

Nobody said it could be done on the cheap but a start has to be made somewhere and Beerburrum - Nambour is the logical section to start having as it will the greatest effect on the travelling times of the greatest numbers of passengers as well as the effect in reducing operating costs and transit times for freight and long distance services.

The realignment and duplication can be done in stages as the funds are available with the emphasis on the realignment to eliminate below standard curvature and sections of duplication to provide passing lanes.

The question is when and where do they start.

[ButFli]

The MEL-SYD-BNE is going to be serving population centres along the way and point to point between capital cities.

I sure hope it won't be serving too many population centres along the way. All the successful HSR systems of the world (the ones that compete favourably with air) have very few intermediate stops.

[Stillwater]

Agree, the most logical step is to upgrade Beerburrum-Nambour, because that is where the planning has been done.  With CAMCOS postponed until after 2031, the existing system of single-track NCL and connecting buses to the coast will have to be relied upon even more as the Sunshine Coast population grows.  Beerburrum-Landsborough would be a priority.

Just as the government upgrades the worst sections of a road first, a case could be mounted for works to then focus on realigning the track around Eudlo, where there are excessive curves and low speed restrictions.

However, the pressure for track realignment is likely to increase dramatically in next two years to the Woombye-Nambour section because of urban development planned adjacent to the track there.

[colinw]

Agree, the most logical step is to upgrade Beerburrum-Nambour, because that is where the planning has been done.  With CAMCOS postponed until after 2031, the existing system of single-track NCL and connecting buses to the coast will have to be relied upon even more as the Sunshine Coast population grows.  Beerburrum-Landsborough would be a priority.

Current version of SEQIPP Sunshine Coast document - click here.

Time frames are on page 7:

• Beerburrum to Landsborough duplication: 2014-15 to 2019-20
• CAMCOS - Beerwah to Maroochydore: 2020-21 to 2025-26
• Landsborough to Nambour duplication: 2026-27 to 2030-31

Not happy Anna!  

And to think our forebears built the line from Ipswich to Toowoomba, with 11 tunnels and two range crossings, in a mere 3 to 4 years.

I sometimes think our entire civiklization is choking to death on its inability to make a decision and actually do anything.  As I sit at work reviewing a document that is the digital equivalent of valium, and talks about possibly performing some engineering, instead of just getting on with the R&D, I feel that this malaise spreads far beyond the confines of Government and the public service.

Anyway ...

CAMCOS is somewhat "out of scope" for this thread, but it looks like long distance passenger & freight operators aren't going to get any significant upgrades to the worst sections of the NCL for quite a while, and north of Nambour isn't even on the radar yet.

I think there's work to be done in this area, to raise the profile of the Government's inactivity in this area.  The Sunshine Coast & hinterland have every right to feel like they have been shafted.

[SteelPan]

The Courier Mail article quoted, gets dragged out like Christmas Decorations - Taxpayers pay for everything govts do - this includes over-staffing of pretty much every govt dept there ever was, rather glamorous Parliament Houses - Ministerial limos - jets and officers and on and on and on....it includes sports stadiums that sit vacant for 99 out of every 100 days.... and on and on...at the fed level, it now includes a multitude of over-priced school halls across the nation and on and on...in any case, one the BIGGEST and most UNcosted items govts get involved in are ROADS - people like, for example, Lindsay Fox must laugh himself to sleep at night, given the vast truck based logistics empire he's built - with a very high percentage of the cost met by the road funding taxpayer!