AusLink a major disappointment

“The evidence highlighting Australia's massive infrastructure backlog has been acknowledged, but action on it has been too long coming,” said shadow Minister for Urban and Regional Development, Transport and Infrastructure, Martin Ferguson in an address to the Informa Group's third annual Infrastructure Summit in Melbourne recently.

“An AusCID commissioned study, identified $10 billion in road projects alone, that should be in place today but are not…This is not a legacy I want to leave for our children and our children's children,” Ferguson said.

He referred to the Government's AusLink white paper as, “a major disappointment,” suggesting that “the much needed additional funding for transport infrastructure under AusLink is a good start. However the plan falls well short of the Commnwealth accepting its responsibility for Australia's national land transport network.

Commonwealth loses grip

“Its key failing, is that it has created more uncertainty than ever before about how transport infrastructure in Australia is built and maintained. Responsibility for the construction and maintenance of the national highway network is no longer in the hands of its rightful controller—the Commonwealth.

“Instead, we have a plan whereby projects are imposed from Canberra with only part-funding ain a scatter-gun approach and the states and local government are left to pick up the tab for the remainder.”

Before an audience of government and finance industry figures from across the country, Ferguson made a particular point of highlighting the alleged failure of AusLink in the area of cultivating PPP relationships. “The AusLink White Paper implies that there may be a role for the private sector in what the Howard Government now calls the National Network. But it will be the states, not the Commonwealth that will have the responsibility for engaging the private sector and making decisions about their capacity for involvement.”

M7 effectively funded

He cited the Western Sydney Orbital, a National Highway, now known as the Westlink M7, as a prime example of how private sector involvement in public infrastructure projects can be an effective means of reducing infrastructure backlog. The NSW Government has contributed $356 million to the construction of the M7 (due by the end of 2006) with the remainder financed by a consortium composed primarily of investment from Transurban and the Macquarie Infrastructure group.

Ferguson spoke of the benefits of Labor's proposed National Infrastructure Advisory Council, designed to consolidate and organise government efforts in the area of infrastructure development. “The Council,” Ferguson said, “will bring a strategic approach to infrastructure development that stacks up financially and in line with national priorities.”

Hands off Howard

The Shadow Minister accused the Howard Government of taking a “ridiculously hands off approach” to infrastructure development. “[Its] determination to distance itself from engaging with the private sector, does nothing to inspire confidence that we're on the right path towards addressing the infrastructure backlog,” he said.

The private sector was not an after-thought in Labor's plan. “It is a player with a key role in helping to address the infrastructure backlog. Government cannot fund all infrastructure development: it never has and never will. With the infrastructure backlog requirement, the cost of overcoming it will be great and leveraging the limited public funds with private investment, creates opportunities to bring projects forward.”

Meanwhile Virgin Blue in late September, called for some of Auslink's $11.8 billion of funding to be used to upgrade runways and terminals, at regional airports.

It believes it is unfair that rural councils must carry the costs of such improvements (see Earthmover , September 2004, page 26, New Tasmanian runway a big load for ratepayers ).

Those that the airline would like upgraded include Albury, Wagga Wagga, Port Lincoln and Albany.

Virgin said Hervey Bay in Queensland, has signed an agreement to improve a runway and the terminal in return for Virgin committing itself to low fare jet services to the nearest mainland point to Fraser Island.

Ferguson too was in favour of committing government funds to upgrading airports. But he thought the $300 million Roads to Recovery program would be a better source.

However he was not convinced that the money should be spent to open up new commercial opportunities for major airlines like Virgin Blue.

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“(AusLink's) key failing, is that it has created more uncertainty than ever before about how transport infrastructure in Australia is built and maintained”