Page 1953 - Week 05 - Thursday, 3 May 2012
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
release in December about a third institution—not about what the Greens policy is. I am asking him why he took the action he took.
MR SPEAKER: Yes, minister, if you can focus on the matters for which you are responsible, thank you.
DR BOURKE: The announcements have been coming thick and fast since Christmas. The announcement that I made was in December last year.
Transport—infrastructure initiatives
MS BRESNAN: My question is to the Minister for the Environment and Sustainable Development and concerns the city to Gungahlin transit corridor study. Minister, you have announced that cost of the bus rapid transit or light rail transit projects will be approximately $300 million to $360 million and $700 million to $860 million respectively. However, there are significant opportunities to reduce the costs to the ACT through options such as value capture or private-public partnerships, and the benefits and avoided future costs are also worth many millions of dollars. Minster, what modelling have you done on the opportunities to reduce the costs to the ACT, and will you also publicise and consult on these reduced costs?
MR CORBELL: I thank Ms Bresnan for the question. It is important to clarify that, whilst there are opportunities to offset costs, there are not, in the government’s view, opportunities to reduce the cost of the delivery of the project. That might be a somewhat semantic difference, but it is an important one, because the delivery of the infrastructure has a particular cost, depending on the option that is identified, and it is in the order of the figures quoted by Ms Bresnan in her question.
In terms of offsetting costs through other measures, the government has undertaken already a range of analyses about what will be the impact on development along the corridor as a consequence of the delivery of certain transport options, whether it is bus rapid transit or light rail. That is helping to inform the benefit-cost ratio of the project analysis, and that will inform future government decision making about what is the best option to pursue along the corridor.
The government also expects that it will need to commence shortly work on an assessment of financing options for the different infrastructure options along the corridor so that we have a good selection of choices to make in terms of how projects and which particular project can be delivered in what manner in terms of financing and in terms of impact on the territory’s budget.
MR SPEAKER: Supplementary, Ms Bresnan.
MS BRESNAN: Yes, Mr Speaker. Minister, when will you announce conclusively whether the government will support bus rapid transit, light rail transit or neither? Will you guarantee this date will be prior to the 2012 election?
MR CORBELL: I am not in a position to commit the government to a decision that is not yet taken in relation to this matter, but the government is closely examining all
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video