News & Discussion: Other Transport Projects

[AG]

Cloud over $550m expresswayKim Wheatley

August 05, 2006 11:30pm
Article from: Sunday Mail (SA)Font size: + -
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FEWER lanes and a route change may be the only options for the survival of the planned $550 million Northern Expressway, an angry Federal Roads Minister Jim Lloyd said yesterday.

It comes as the Opposition yesterday raised the spectre of further blowouts arising from acquisition of land for the project.
On Friday, Transport Minister Pat Conlon announced a $250 million cost blowout for the 22km expressway, the latest embarrassing admission in a list of Transport Department project cost overruns.

The State Government has asked the Federal Government to boost its $240 million contribution to $440 million, in a project designed to link the export and freight route from Port Wakefield Rd to Gawler.

The State Government also found another $50 million for the project, placing further pressure on the upcoming State Budget.

Mr Lloyd said yesterday he had been told about the blowout only hours before it was announced.

"I got a note yesterday morning (Friday) with a draft of what the SA Government was going to say," he said. "How did they get it so wrong?

"This is an 80 per cent increase – from $300 million to $550 million – it's not even in the ballpark, so it is quite concerning and it certainly does put a cloud over the project."

While maintaining the project was "not dead", he foreshadowed major re-scoping and called for urgent high-level talks.

"Is there potential, instead of having three lanes each way, to have two lanes each way . . . and are there route selections that would provide a cost saving?" he said.

"The Australian Government is still committed to the project but we can't just pluck another couple of hundred million out of the air. I'm very annoyed."

Mr Lloyd appeared unimpressed with Mr Conlon saying a robust economy was forcing cost blowouts in projects around Australia.

"Claiming an 80 per cent increase can be blamed on a good economy and increasing costs for steel and concrete just doesn't wash," he said. "We all have to factor in cost increases – but not to that extent."

Mr Conlon said he was confident the project would go ahead, largely because construction was due to start in 2009. "All states will be getting new Auslink allocations in that time anyway," he said. "We'll be getting, I would suggest, more than an extra couple of million dollars over the next life of the project over five years."

However, he welcomed any Commonwealth assistance to reduce costs, including discussions about the State Government's preferred route, which is yet to be made public.

"If the Commonwealth believes there's another way of doing it that is cheaper, we're more than happy to look – it's certainly in my interest for the numbers to come in low," Mr Conlon said.

"But we've scoped it, we think, as efficiently and effectively as possible . . . and it is predominantly four lanes and you can't scope below four lanes. That is literally how you end up with one-way expressways." The Opposition labelled the blowout "financial mismanagement" and believes the project could result in further embarrassment.

Transport spokesman Martin Hamilton-Smith said: "They've done their costings behind closed doors on land aquisitions – they haven't consulted land owners – and what may well happen is that it will blow out further because, when they actually start speaking with the people who own the land, they might find out their sums are wrong.

"And apparently there's a wetland that's affected by the alignment and there's also an Aboriginal site."

The expressway blowout follows news the cost of one of three planned South Rd underpasses will increase by $35 million to $100 million and the Bakewell Bridge replacement will rise by $11 million.

[AG]

Restructured Outer Harbor open for business
August 08, 2006 02:20pm
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SOUTH Australia has spent $45 million on deepening its main harbour under a plan to treble exports in seven years.


The redeveloped Outer Harbor, west of Adelaide, was officially opened today - the main shipping channel now two metres deeper and almost three kilometres longer.
Transport Minister Patrick Conlon said that for the first time, fully-laden Panamax sized ships would be able to dock at Port Adelaide.

"For the first time in history, we can confidently showcase the upgraded precinct to attract national and international importers and exporters to do business in Adelaide," Mr Conlon said.

The harbour restructure was a key to fulfilling the government's target to triple the state's exports income, to $25 billion, by 2013, he said.

[Ben]

From "Adelaide Now"

Call to ban new city road projects

NICK HENDERSON, POLITICAL REPORTER

February 05, 2007 02:00pm

DEMOCRATS MP Sandra Kanck has called for a ban on all new city road projects as part of a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Ms Kanck said the State Government should instead build an expensive public transport system.

"Transport is the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases but we all know - and recent reports have confirmed - that South Australia has the second worst transport system in Australia," Ms Kanck said.

"I call on the government to reassess the value of car-centred projects such as the South Rd underpass and the Northern Expressway in the light of the need precipitated by climate change to develop a transport strategy focusing on public transport, cycling and walking."

Be intersting to know who has the worst.

[Al]

I call on the government to reassess the value of car-centred projects such as the South Rd underpass and the Northern Expressway in the light of the need precipitated by climate change to develop a transport strategy focusing on public transport, cycling and walking."

I thought projects like the south road upgrade was to reduce congestion. ie. reduce the number of vehicles sitting idle whilst pumping out greenhouse gases. Maybe we should just rip up all the roads and replace them with horses and dirt tracks. I wonder where she gets her ideas from.

[bdm]

She is making a good point though. Imagine all the South Road money being invested into improving PT in the southern suburbs and upgrading our railways so they take more freight.

[AG]

Sandra Kanck's call to ban all new road projects is a bit extreme. It's possible to have a city with roads but no public transport, but not vice versa (with a few small exceptions). I agree that we should be investing on improving public transport far more than we currently are. The $10 million that Pat Conlon boasts for improving timetabling on the rail network is really pathetic, considering other cities are investing hundreds of millions upgrading and expanding their rail networks. It's hard for a city like Adelaide to be very dependant on public transport considering the sprawled layout of the city, but planning is very short-sighted.

[Will]

During the last state election campaign, my local Democrats candidate, pledged that if the Democrats came to power, they would legislate to force people to have chicken coops in their backyards!

[AtD]

Yes, it's fun the things they promise when they know they have no realistic chance of winning. It gets headlines.

[Al]

During the last state election campaign, my local Democrats candidate, pledged that if the Democrats came to power, they would legislate to force people to have chicken coops in their backyards!

They wanted to do what!?

[rev]

Dont know if anyone has been up the Port way, or saw on the news, but some crane from Germany, half the height of Santos has arrived to work on the new bridge.

[AG]

This is the water based crane that rev was talking about:

[BillD]

There's been much said here about the state of our rail infrastructure.

As 2105 led 2011 & 2106 into Oaklands Pk station this morning a derailment occurred.
According to the media, no passengers were injured.
Here are a few shots taken about 3 hours after the event.

Small shuttle busses were working between Oaklands Pk and Brighton stations.

[stelaras]

OOOOPPS!!!!

[Cruise]

id love to get a job at the rail yards

[jimmy_2486]

Was this caused by the dying state of the southern tracks??