Basil Cameron, Goonengerry
Thirty five per cent of the NSW population lives outside Sydney, yet neither party (coalition or Labor) are offering more than ten per cent of the dollars to the ‘rest of NSW’ and even less for ‘regional and rural’ areas like the North Coast according to research from the Grattan Institute into the transport ‘election promises’.
There’s recognition of the value of public transport, particularly rail, reflected in the promises made by both parties – but only in Sydney. There are no commitments for either types of infrastructure north of Sydney.
The total value of the promises are $70 billion for the coalition and $50 billion for Labor. The Grattan Institute calculates that each billion amounts to $125 ‘from every person in NSW’.
It’s scandalous that the rail line that connects our population centres remains ignored by the major parties while traffic banks up for kilometres. It’s becoming clearer by the day that emissions from transport are continuing to rise and that urgent action is required to provide sustainable alternatives before we cook in our cars.
Council is undertaking a study for reactivating the rail line that will account for the social and economic needs of our community. Which candidates at this election will back our community’s vision and be effective advocates once the election is over?
The NSW governemnt in its last term funded thousands of new bus services in NSW of which we got just four. That is what happens when you spend your time pissing in the wind trying to bring rail when neither NSW governemnt has any interest in funding it. The train does not connect the major optional centres – it goes nowhere near the largest, Tweed Heads and the Tweed Coast nor what will be shortly the second largest, the Ballina Coast. More importantly those areas have far the largest number of households dependent on public transprot, and unlike the corridor that number is growing. I note that the Gratton Institute, and also the Productivity Commission, criticised the ACT for introducing light rail in a city with double our area’s population arguing rapid buses were a better value and more equitable solution.
There is no evidence that a train will relieve the Bay’s congestion which is a result of decades of neglect of road infrastructure. Ballina which gets as many visitors at peak season and gets more commuter traffic does not face the same problems. There is similarly no evidence that a train running off the grid along the e Casino Murwillumbah line on diesel will use less fuel than a modern car with a passenger, and certainly it would use more than an EV bus running on renewable power.
We will read with interest the Byron Line proposals for a tourist train and whether it will attract funding and add to affordable transport in the Byron Shire. The hourly seven day and evening bus services that carries more passengers down the Tweed Coast than all of the bus services along the corridor and the Byron tourist train and Jeff Provost has recently got a commitment for more services along that route.. Now the policies of TOOTs/NRRAG and Bill Fenelon touted for years have been overwhelming rejected by the electorate, it is time to support support Janelle Saffin and Tamara Smith who both argue for better bus-based public transport to put in place flexible road transport services to villages and regular bus services like the Tweed Coast’s along the main commuter routes, particularly those in an out of Ballina, but also along the disused rail corrdior. .
Well said Peter. The people of our region have spoken and not voted for parties that support the nostalgic dream of returning the train on the corridor that was built in the age of steam trains. TOOT and Basil Cameron please take note!. After 15 years it is well and truly time to put this train dream to rest so something useful can come of the corridor before it is lost forever.