David Gillespie (Lyne, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

In the age of infrastructure delivery I want to highlight to members of the House that high-speed rail is the answer and the solution to so many problems in our congested cities, but it is also a key to developing regional Australia. Cities like Sydney are suffocating under congestion and the problem of motorways. The best friend of a congested city that a freeway system ever had is a mass transit rail system. The best friend of regional towns and cities of the future will be not only a secure water supply and internet highways but also connections by high-speed rail.

High-speed rail is viable now, just on the basis of commuter numbers. Car volumes alone coming from Newcastle, Maitland and the Central Coast to Sydney every day number 38,200. To the south, down to Wollongong it is 30,000. To the west, it is almost 27,000 out to Penrith; and 13,500 up into Katoomba. In the south-west, down to Menangle, it is over 20,000, and it is even 11,000 car movements per day to Goulburn.

So I commend to all sides of the House—and all members of state governments and local governments—to secure a corridor now for the part of the infrastructure puzzle that Australia, both metropolitan and regional, needs: high-speed rail.

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