Roads plan raises new truck route fears

NEW laws that would see some Melbourne roads prioritised for tram, bus, bicycle, pedestrian or freight use have alarmed local councils, who see them as an attempt to ram through new heavy truck routes.

- Truck highways fears
- Trams, buses, bikes to get priority
- Move to unblock public transport routes

The changes would give the State Government power to prioritise transport types on all public roads across the state.

A new VicRoads register would be established, listing how roads had been prioritised and the laws could mean new bus or bike lanes on a local road or the sudden appearance of massive freight trucks.

The local government sector is concerned about a lack of detail in the new laws and the potential for new truck highways through suburbs.

The proposed laws before the State Parliament would give Roads Minister Tim Pallas the power to prioritise bicycle, pedestrian and freight roads. The Roads Minister and Public Transport Minister Lynne Kosky would have the power to prioritise roads for trams and buses.

The only check would be that if the public road were a municipal road there must be consultation with the Local Government Minister. There is no mention of the local council.

Municipal Association of Victoria chief executive Rob Spence has written to Mr Pallas requesting more details on the laws.

"We are talking about heavy vehicles, that is the real tension point in our sector," he said. "There has been no discussion with us on the detail of this at all."...

Read the whole article at TheAge.com.au

The road to perdition - TheAge

John Whitelegg

MELBOURNE — a world-class city with a rich cultural diversity, fantastic architecture and a dynamic mosaic of communities — is drowning in traffic because of its love affair with the car. It is a love affair fuelled by over-generous budgets and the space provided for roads and illustrates a nervousness Melbourne has about getting to grips with its public transport system and making sure it is as good as Vienna's, Frankfurt's or Basle's.

This combination of boldness in catering for cars and shyness with public transport, walking and cycling could propel Melbourne down the list of the world's most liveable cities and cancel out its multiple advantages. It will also add to the burdens of poor health, especially through low levels of physical activity, obesity and early onset diabetes. The time is right to make sure that Melbourne's budgets and policy priorities contain a clear map of how the city can celebrate the virtues of walking, cycling and public transport, reduce car trips and reward its residents with cleaner air, less noise, lower greenhouse gas emissions, fewer deaths and injuries and a calmer, more child-friendly and more economically successful city...

Read the entire article at TheAge.com.au. No, no... seriously... read it! I've been to Basle... I've also been to Bangkok. I know which city I'd prefer to get around in!

Fed Govt to review priority infrastructure projects

The Federal Government has released a preliminary audit of its infrastructure project priorities.

Infrastructure Australia has listed 94 projects which will be further examined ahead of a final list to be handed to the Government next year.

The audit recommends that investment be directed towards seven key areas including broadband and the national energy grid.

Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese says while the list is a positive start, more work needs to be done to develop projects for the long term.

"We are determined to get it right and with this advice and the process that we have from Infrastructure Australia, we are making sure that we invest taxpayers' money wisely and in the national interest," he said.

The projects listed include the $4 billion northern Sydney rail freight corridor, the $3.5 billion east-west rail tunnel in Melbourne and the $14 billion Brisbane inner-city rail upgrade.

Other key New South Wales projects on the shortlist include $4.8 billion for Sydney's CBD metro, $8 billion for the city's western metro under Parramatta Road and nearly $12 billion for the expansions of the M4 and M5 motorways.

Also shortlisted are $6.7 billion dollars for updrages to the Pacific Highway and $1 billion for the Princes Highway.

But the list will have to be narrowed down considerably to fit into the Government's Budget.

Mr Albanese says the list contains projects needed to improve the nation's productivity.

"Much more work needs to be done to determine the relative merits of these projects and whether they should be included on the final priority list which will be given to the Government as determined in the first quarter of 2009," he said.

Read the original article at abc.net.au/news

Tim Pallas Underestimates the West, Pays the Price

An obviously under-prepared Minister for Transport, Tim Pallas, drew the ire of residents from Footscray, Kingsville, Tottenham, Yarraville and Sunshine on Wednesday 17th December when addressing a Public Meeting organised by No Freeway for West Footscray and Brimbank Transport Action Group.

Pallas clearly failed to understand the concerns of residents, particularly in relation to the proposed “Westgate Alternative” which will see Road freight spilling out in West Footscray and causing a truck-onslaught for Tottenham and Sunshine Residents.

While some Footscray residents clearly welcome a truck diversion, there is general consensus that a tunnel opening into Sunshine Rd in West Footscray is bad policy. We suggest that Minister Pallas do some homework and real consultation before he puts his head up in the Western Suburbs again. We also suggest that he not use the term “market value” in relation to compulsory acquisition, given that his Government’s Transport Plan has caused property values in affected areas to nose-dive.

Lastly, we register our disgust that promises of information and consultation that were made by the Department of Transport in the weeks leading up to the launch of the Transport Plan, have not been honoured.

If sitting MPs don’t start to listen, they will find themselves voted out - “safe” seat or not.

Read the original at respectthewest.wordpress.com

Tunnel mooted to fix Hoddle traffic - TheAge

What IS it with this State Government and car tunnels... hey?

Clay Lucas

A traffic jam on Hoddle Street.

A FOUR-kilometre road tunnel from the MCG to the Eastern Freeway is among key recommendations in a report into fixing traffic jams on Hoddle Street, commissioned by the Brumby Government.

- $1.5b Hoddle Street tunnel plan
- Would remove 17 sets of lights
- Average journey cut by 12%

The $1.5 billion tunnel concept is in a report by engineers GHD, which was commissioned by the Department of Premier and Cabinet as it developed its recent transport statement.

The report will feed into a $5 million study to be completed by VicRoads next year into how to improve traffic conditions on Hoddle Street.

The proposed road tunnel would start at the Punt Road Oval in Richmond and end at the entrance to the Eastern Freeway in Collingwood, running 18 metres beneath Hoddle Street. It would remove 17 sets of traffic lights, and cut the average journey on Hoddle Street by 12 per cent, the report says.

The project would shut part of the MCG's car park for at least two years, for use as a construction site.

The Government, in its transport plan, said it would investigate "the feasibility of grade separating key junctions on Hoddle Street".

Tunnelling under Hoddle Street is backed by key groups, including the Victorian Employers Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which want a more dramatic solution to Hoddle Street's traffic problems.

The RACV has long backed a series of underpasses and overpasses for Hoddle Street. It repeated its call to improve conditions last week, saying there were few north-south routes in Melbourne.

The GHD report details other options for smaller tunnels on Hoddle Street, including:

• A $600 million underpass at Victoria Parade, which would require some property acquisition.

• A $530 million tunnel at Bridge Road.

• A $70 million "park and ride" facility at Victoria Park train station.

Hoddle Street has some of Melbourne's worst congestion points, with 47,000 cars a day battling to get through the intersection at Swan Street in Richmond. At the corner of Hoddle and Victoria streets, another 40,000 cars a day cause some of the city's worst traffic snarls.

Read the original article at TheAge.com.au

Doubt cast on need for new rail tunnel - TheAge

Clay Lucas

A $4.5 BILLION "metro" rail tunnel that is the centrepiece of Victoria's transport plan has not been adequately justified, and other options to increase train services in Melbourne should have been investigated, a Government-commissioned report has found.

- Options should be investigated: expert
- Methodology's 'critical flaw'
- Passenger numbers set to soar

Senior rail consultant and transport planner Edward Dotson was hired by the State Government to help assess rail projects including a tunnel from Footscray to Caulfield, which was recommended in this year's report by transport expert Sir Rod Eddington.

The Government's plan proposes building a first stage of the tunnel, from Footscray to the Domain, within a decade.

But Mr Dotson found that while planning work for the rail tunnel should continue, some key assumptions behind it have not been proved.

He is particularly troubled by Transport Department passenger projections, which show a continued soaring in numbers over the next 13 years.

It was not possible to reliably make such projections beyond five years, Mr Dotson wrote.

And little work had been done to look at other options for running more trains on the network besides building the tunnel, he wrote. "This is a critical flaw in the methodology."

He said forecasts for passenger growth on Melbourne's trains, and alternatives to the tunnel, needed to be examined further.

The Department of Transport says a maximum of 20 trains an hour can run on each of Melbourne's train lines. But international rail experts argue this is, at best, unambitious.

Mr Dotson agrees, saying Melbourne's rail system should have a target of 24 trains running each hour on each line.

Read the rest of the article at TheAge.com.au