Page 453 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 18 March 2014
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commute to and from work. But really this is a project that is focused on facilitating road freight well into the future.
Meanwhile, rail has received very minimal attention. Interestingly, the United Nations environment program’s report on decoupling recommends a shift to rail freight as an opportunity for green growth. A report by ARRB consultants found that rail freight produces up to 90 per cent fewer emissions per tonne of freight carried than road freight. Any government committed to emission reductions should be looking at how to facilitate a switch to rail freight. Road freight also causes significant dangers on the roads. Members will recall the significant community concern when, about two years ago, we saw a decision taken to ship petrol into the ACT by road on trucks rather than on rail, as it traditionally had been. Members will know of the very considerable community disquiet that was expressed about that from a safety point of view.
An intermodal freight terminal would allow the easy transfer of freight from rail to truck. A terminal in Canberra would facilitate the shipping of freight into the ACT by rail rather than continuing our growing reliance on long-distance road freight or, for that matter, airfreight. There is a possibility for work to be done at Hume, for example, where the area is flat and suitably located near the existing railway line and the Monaro Highway. I understand the land is currently unused and is located in a designated industrial precinct. It could possibly be used for an intermodal freight hub where rail freight could transfer to trucks. Potentially this could involve the ACT government leasing the land for use as a freight hub as well as discussing repairs to the rail line with New South Wales.
This has been looked at before. The government released a rail master plan in 2009 which said that there are opportunities for the growth of rail freight in the ACT. It said that an intermodal freight terminal was an option for Canberra. It identified viable sites and recommended looking at the feasibility of developing an intermodal facility. This, unfortunately, dropped off the agenda. We are now waiting for an ACT freight strategy to be released this year. I am hopeful that rail freight options form a solid part of this new freight strategy.
I simply draw out that example to illustrate the choices that we face when it comes to building momentum in the ACT economy and supporting local jobs, and the difference when it comes to a triple bottom line assessment of some of these possibilities. A rail freight hub would be excellent for the ACT. It would provide environmental benefits. It would provide jobs and local economic growth.
Compare that to the proposed airfreight hub that is being discussed and is proposed to expand in the Canberra airport master plan. It will also provide jobs and economic growth, but it will come at a cost to the quality of life in this city in recognition of the fact that airfreight is considerably more greenhouse unfriendly than rail freight. Canberra should be positioning itself for future considerations when there will be pressures on oil, whether it is through political disruption or issues of supply.
These are the sorts of things we should be taking into account now in our decision making. The ACT government should be working closely with its interstate
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