Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Gwydir for his question. It was in the role as the Minister for Transport and Regional Services that the member for Gwydir first flagged that there should be a study undertaken of a north-south rail corridor through the eastern states of Australia. That study was announced early in 2005 and it started in September of 2005. Ernst and Young conducted that review and Minister Truss released that study only last month. That study indicated that there are three options for a north-south rail corridor through the eastern states. It also identified the significant growth that is going to take place in the freight tasked. In fact, within that north-south corridor over the next 25 years the freight tasked is going to double. So it is going to require some significant planning in terms of being able to deal with the balance between the freight tasked on road and the freight tasked on rail.

On the 25th of last month, I participated in a public meeting in Parkes—joining about 180 delegates, representing more than 20 local government areas. The forum was held to discuss the released review of the rail corridor. It expressed interest in and support for the development of a north-south rail corridor. A number of private sector operators and private sector interests have also expressed great interest in being involved in the development of a north-south corridor. Many industry players have said that publicly. Pacific National, Toll Holdings, Coles, Queensland Rail and the Australasian Railway Association have all welcomed and offered their support. Coles, for example, which reportedly transports 450 containers a week by rail, says the proposed link would help absorb an expected doubling in the eastern seaboard freight over the next decade. It should not be an either/or decision about rail; it should be about how we manage that task over the next decade.

Don Telford, the CEO of Pacific National, has said that an inland rail corridor will deliver rail’s long-term capacity and performance needs to handle Australia’s future freight task. I can assure the House that the government is keen to listen to the expressions of interest from industry and the communities along that corridor as we press forward with the development of a strategy. Of course, this builds on the work that we have been doing with the $15 billion AusLink package that is in place and which was added to in the budget of this year. It goes without saying that it is only through strong representation in government that rural and regional Australia will get looked after by our government as far as transport infrastructure is concerned.

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