On topic, in Victoria there have long been plans for rail transport that covers all of and beyond what is currently populated. There’s land reserved specifically for numerous rail links and new lines.

The only things stopping them being implemented are funding and lobby interests. The state governments can’t fund it easily without tax payers going nuts about how much they’re spending. Special interest groups in particular business and automotive don’t like commuter rail upgrades. Rail doesn’t help business unless it’s freight and automotive (and auto-related) industry wants everyone to use cars.

If the federal government stepped in with additional funding then that would get rid of one of the problems. It’s governments trying to do things on the cheap that leaves us with half-assed solutions and patch-up jobs, but, governments will continue doing so since we don’t like them spending/wasting lots of money.

1. Visit London.
2. Visit Singapore
3. Visit Hong Kong….and Seoul…and Paris…and…oh, you know. Anywhere but here.

Stop State Governments pissing $1bn on ticketing systems and make them start buying trams and trains off the shelf (good reason to start on Metro, sorry Mike! :-) ).

Stop new toll-road construction and stop anti-competition clauses in road construction that prevents public transport duplication. Do proper park and ride infrastructure, which means big, secure car parks under shopping centres with servicing, washing, shopping, the lot. Trains every three minutes in peak and lo and behold, stuff will happen.

Stop bloody urban sprawl and start building medium density homes that are big enough for families, not students, close to the city.

Oh, and make bicycling on a road a capital offence. They’re bastards, aren’t they?

Here are two observations I’ve made in the past week which indicate to me we will NEVER have any top calibre public transport system:

1. Walking home from work last Friday I saw six guys “working” night shift – if you classify lying on a rug on the side of the road and snoring “working”.

2. Walking in the Sydney CBD on the weekend and I noticed it took about sixteen workers to replace damaged road lights – four to operate a crane and act as spotters and riggers, and twelve standing around watching and chatting.

And if he thinks that if/when he gives the State Governments money to improve Public Transport that they will actually spend it on Public Transport; the man is a bigger idiot than Gearge W Bush

I guess it makes sense really as Buses.Trains are about as exciting as your average Toyota.. apart from the bullet trains which aren’t powered by Toyota

nsw labor for 13 yrs has slowly stuffed the state now we are made to believe dudd is gonna be our survior??

we got 21 billion surplus budget last yr….australia should have the best of everything but it dont cause governments are only looking after themselves

he has already doing a back flip on the computer for every school kid scheme cause of the on going running costs states will have to endure..we need more trains and buses on the system now is the best opportunity for governments to do something now fuel price out of control

problem is here in nsw the government would love to run more buses and trains but who will pay for the all those useless overpriced motorways which have built….have 2 lanes each way and pay $5 each way…how pathetic

laurie

More frequent buses (if the service is there, people will use it), electrify and rebuild/re-align the Hobart-Burnie rail line and run a proper passenger service on it, a light rail service for the suburban section of the Hobart rail line, a light rail service sharing the line between Devonport and Burnie, run the buses on biodiesel, repair the friggin roads so that travel is safer and smoother for all road users, run the Spirit of tasmania ferries on biodiesel, look at putting trolleybuses back on Hobart and Launceston streets. Of course all this will take political will (of which there is precious little at the moment).

Telcos already going ahead with fibre to the node so don’t need to give them any money.ACCC will make them retain copper network if they don’t give access so it will be their LOSS no ours.

I want to shake u!!!

A computer for every child at school. Parents cannot get them off their computers at home and u want them addicted at school as well.

What a complete waste of money and oh the ongoing cost of maintaining and updating all these PCs and the extra electricity used!!!

Spend this on more books and better teachers!!!

This is bloody madness!!!!!!!!!

Spend the money u got for Telstra lying in the future fund wholly on public transport improvements and other !!!!!!WORTHWHILE!!!!!! infrastructure improvements.

Ditch the FIBRE TO THE NODE !!!BULLSHIT!!! white elephant and let the Telcos pay for it and try and get their money back instead of giving them billions of dollars so kids can play World of Warcraft better u idiots!!!

Remember cable TV and how much money has been lost on that white elephant.

OH but wait…. we have a $45mill tram extension that serves 0.07% of the population. And they plan to spen $2bill on more trams, so that they can serve up to 1.8% of the states population.
Media Mike Rann & Labor are stuffing it all up.

- Make the North-west rail link heavy rail, NOT a metro-style system.
- Build a metro-style system to serve the city and inner city suburbs or extend the Pyrmont light-rail
- Re-start the Parramatta to Chatswood line that was stupidly canned.
- Get rid of all the complicated ticketing on trains and buses, and replace with an integrated system.

Now we have bugger-all when we really need it and as Dlr1 expressed it’s gunna take ages before anything happens.

I won’t hold my breath.

BTW, I am selling one of my cars and will start to catch the bus to work next week…..serious!! (wish me luck).