Sydney’s transport crisis hits the headlines
March 2nd, 2007
Sydney’s transport future is the issue du jour now Chris Stapleton and the ‘10,000 friends of Sydney’ have started releasing their strategy.
I support the Stapleton vision because it’s far superior to the government’s feeble Transport Plan.
However it limits itself to current funding levels. That’s a straightjacket in some respects, for instance in settling for frequent buses to serve Sydney’s northwest instead of the planned heavy rail link to Rouse Hill.
Buses would be far less greenhouse-efficient than electric trains, especially if Sydney’s power was being generated by the Solar Thermal plant I have proposed.
The Greens Transport Vision proposes Public Transport Bonds to finance a fully fledged system for Sydney, built on solid spines of metro and heavy rail with buses mostly deployed to fill the gaps.
Yes, this means debt, but this kind of debt carries a far lower interest burden than private finance and can be repaid over several generations just like the 75-year-old Harbour Bridge was. This is not an unfair burden on our grandchildren as they will be enjoying not only the economic benefits of a world-class system but an environmental dividend as well.
