Page 5518 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 9 December 2009
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
with huge picture windows to the west, which is very beautiful, but it does lead to considerable overheating problems, particularly in the summer, as many of these houses do not have external awnings. That can also hardly be regarded as thoughtful planning. The fact that some of the streets in Tuggeranong are so small and narrow that garbage trucks and buses cannot easily access them is hardly an example of thoughtful planning. Overall, I commend this motion to the Assembly. I am pleased that both the Liberal Party and the Labor Party are taking it seriously and have moved some quite thoughtful amendments to it.
MR DOSZPOT (Brindabella) (11.35): I thank Ms Bresnan for the motion today. The opposition strongly believe that more consultation with the community will be beneficial and that a planning study and a master plan is a good way to start this conversation. I acknowledge that there is funding in the 2009-10 budget for the staged development in the Tuggeranong town centre. However, this has been a long time coming. It can be said that generally Tuggeranong has been relatively left out of much of the overall infrastructure planning of the territory. In saying that, it must also be said that the Tuggeranong Valley has come a long way. In the 17 years that I have been a resident there I have seen some tremendous changes, but with those changes comes the need to examine the efficiencies of infrastructure.
There is still much growth on the horizon and the rapid expansion of the Lanyon Valley is one perfect example of this. Members of the community are very clear on what they want to see happen in the valley. They want to see better access and egress via Tuggeranong’s three major arterial connections: Tharwa and Johnson Drive onto Monaro Highway in the south; Erindale Drive; and Drakeford Drive onto the Tuggeranong Parkway.
The community also want to see more efficient and effective public transport. Commuters are often stuck in the bottleneck that exists in most of the arterial roads of Tuggeranong. When they do finally get into the city or Woden they are faced with the issue of parking, both the availability of it and the cost. The implementation of park and ride facilities provides a viable and sustainable option. The Canberra Liberals took to the election a comprehensive plan to provide park and ride services across the ACT—free parking for cars and safe lockers for bicycles—all close and convenient to major transport routes and convenient shopping. In fact, we supported funding and upgrades at four additional locations for park and ride facilities.
Ms Bresnan’s motion is obviously welcome. As a Tuggeranong resident, I strongly welcome and applaud the bipartisan approach that is taken here today. But I do wonder why north side residents have been neglected in this discussion so far by the Greens. As my colleagues Mr Coe and Mrs Dunne have reflected recently during the Redex trials, there is quite an urgent and fundamental requirement for park and ride on the north side as well.
As I mentioned, we supported funding and upgrades at four additional locations for park and ride facilities to help commuters reduce their reliance on car travel and to reduce parking pressures in town centres. Such a policy, and indeed the intent of this motion, should be positive for residents, commuters and the businesses of Tuggeranong as well as have benefits for the environment.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video