AusLink
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AusLink is an Australian Government land transport funding program, established in June 2004 and administered by the Department of Transport and Regional Services. It was first proposed in a [Green Paper] (see Green Paper), issued in November 2002. In response 550 submissions were lodged by State and Local Governments, Industry, Environment Groups, Tertiary Education and Research Groups, Bicycle Groups and interested members of the public. In May 2004 the Australian Government issued a [White Paper] (see White Paper), setting out the policy to be adopted by the Government in response.
The White Paper states that AusLink is based on better long-term planning, encouragement of the best ideas and solutions and targeting investment to achieve the best outcomes for people, the national economy, regions and communities and that it has the following core components:
- a defined National Network (superceding the former National Highway system) of important road and rail infrastructure links and their intermodal connections;
- the National Land Transport Plan which outlines the Government's approach to improving and integrating the National Network and the investments it will make;
- a single funding regime, under a new AusLink programme, for the National Network
- separately earmarked funding for local and regional transport improvements;
- new legislative, intergovernmental and institutional mechanisms.
National Network
Australian Government land transport funding is focused on the National Network, which includes rail and road corridors, connecting at one or both ends to State Capital Cities (see [map] and [details of links]):
- Sydney - Melbourne, road (Hume Highway) and rail
- Sydney - Brisbane, road (Pacific Highway route and New England and Cunningham Highways route) and rail (North Coast railway line)
- Sydney - Adelaide, road (Sturt Highway) and rail (via Cootamundra, Parkes, Broken Hill and Crystal Brook)
- Melbourne - Adelaide, road (Western and Dukes Highways) and rail (via Geelong)
- Melbourne - Brisbane, road (Goulburn Valley, Newell, Gore and Warrego Highways)
- Adelaide - Perth, road (Princes, Eyre, Coolgardie-Esperance and Great Eastern Highways) and rail (Trans-Australian Railway)
- Perth - Darwin, road (Princes and Victoria Highways)
- Adelaide - Darwin, road (Stuart Highway) and rail (Port Augusta-Darwin)
- Brisbane - Darwin, road (Warrego, Landsborough and Barkly Highways)
- Brisbane - Cairns, road (Bruce Highway)
- Brisbane - Townsville, rail
- Townsville - Mount Isa, Queensland, road (Flinders Highway) and rail
- Melbourne - Sale, road (Princes Highway)
- Perth - Bunbury, road (South Western Highway)
- Hobart - Burnie, including link to Bell Bay, Tasmania, road (Midland, Bass and East Tamar Highway) and rail
- Melbourne - Mildura, road (Calder Highway) and rail (via Geelong)
- Sydney - Dubbo, road (Great Western and Mitchell Highways) and rail (via Bathurst and Parkes
- Canberra connectors to the Hume Highway (Federal and Barton Highways), road only
- Sydney - Wollongong, road (Southern Freeway and Princes Highway)
- Melbourne - Geelong, road (Princes Highway) and rail
- some urban road and rail links in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide, connecting the long distance links to each other and to ports and airports
- Hunter Valley rail links (Dubbo to Merrygoen, Werris Creek Muswellbrook and Port of Newcastle and Merrygoen to Muswellbrook via Ulan)
Road funding
Major projects in the first five years of AusLink include ([Auslink project search]):Sydney - Melbourne (Hume Highway)
- Coolac bypass ($145m) - tenders closed in May 2005. The award of the construction contract has been delayed pending resolution of indigenous heritage issues.
- Albury bypass ($518m) - due to open in mid 2006
- Craigieburn bypass ($306m) - opened December 2005
- Duplication of the unduplicated sections, except for three sections near Tarcutta, Holbrook, and Woomargama, totalling about 20 km ($800m) - due to be opened by the end of 2009,
- F3 Widening between Cowan and Mount Colah (north of Sydney), widening the Freeway from four lanes to six lanes ($50m: 20% funded by New South Wales) - due to be completed in early 2008
- Karuah to Bulahdelah, section 1 duplication ($114m joint funding) - due to be completed in June 2006
- Karuah to Bulahdelah, section 2&3 duplication ($227m joint funding) - due to be completed in 2009
- Taree to Coopernook duplication ($58.6m joint funding) - completed in August 2005
- Bulahdelah bypass ($165m joint funding) - due to be completed in 2009
- Bundacree Creek to Possum Brush, Nabiac bypass ($115m joint funding) - due to be completed in June 2006
- Coopernook to Moorland duplication ($80.5m joint funding) - due to be completed in 2009
- Bonville deviation, south of Coffs Harbour ($217m joint funding) - opening due September 2008
- Ballina bypass ($271m joint funding) - initial construction due in 2006 of a section with soft soils where embankments will be constructed and pre-loaded
- Brunswick Heads to Yelgun duplication ($256m joint funding) - due to be completed in 2007
- Tugun bypass, near Coolangatta on the New South Wales/Queensland border ($543m: $120m from Australian Government, balance from Queensland) - due to be completed in 2008
- Weakleys Drive interchange at Beresfield ($25m) - due to be completed in 2008
- Halcombe Hill realignment, north of Aberdeen ($17.8m) - due to be completed in 2007
- Devils Pinch realignment, between Armidale and Guyra ($24.8m) - completed in 2006
- Deer Park Bypass and Leakes Road Interchange, in western Melbourne ($294m, 20% funded by Victoria) - due to be completed in 2009
- Moree Bypass ($35m) - due to be completed in 2008
- Bogan to Coobang upgrade, near Parkes ($20.9m) - dut to be completed in 2007
- Arcadia Duplication ($40.5m) - due to be completed in 2007
- Eyre Highway - Sawyers Valley to The Lakes re-alignment and duplication ($35m) - due to be completed in June 2006
- Great Northern Highway upgrading, Perth to Wubin ($86m) - completion due in 2009
- Victoria Highway - Victoria River and Lost Creek Bridge Replacement ($20m) - completion due in 2008
- Tiger Brennan Drive/Berrimah Road upgrade in Darwin ($27.3m. joint funded) - due for completion in 2008
- Toowoomba Second Range Crossing planning ($43m)
- Mount Isa to Camooweal upgrade ($117m) - due to be completed in 2007
- Caboolture Motorway widening ($200m) - due to be completed in 2009
- Plain Creek to Saltwater Creek (Wilmington Railway Crossing), between Bowen and Ayr ($23m) - due to be completed in 2007
- Douglas Arterial and Townsville Ring Road ($77m: shared funding, about half to be funded by Queensland) - due to be completed in 2009
- Tully Flood Immunity ($80m) - due to be completed in 2009
- No projects
- Pakenham bypass ($242m: joint funding) - due to be completed in 2007
- Peel Deviation and Kwinana Freeway extension/New Perth-Bunbury Hwy ($450m: $170m from Australian government, balance from Western Australia)
- Bridgewater Bridge replacement ($150m: $100m from Australian Government, balance from Tasmania) - due to be completed in 2011
- Penguin to Ulverstone duplication ($66m) - due to be completed in 2008
- Kyneton to Faraday duplication ($178m: joint funding from Australian and Victorian Governments) - due to be completed in 2009
- Faraday to Ravenswood duplication ($214m: joint funding from Australian and Victorian Governments) - due to be completed in 2009
- No projects
- Planning for duplication and Murrumbateman Bypass ($20m)
- No projects
- Geelong bypass ($370m, joint funding: $180m from Australian Government, balance from Victoria
Rail funding
Rail funding has been announced for the following projects ([Auslink project search]):- $550 million from AusLink and additional Australian Rail Track Corporation funds for an upgrade the 684 km of AusLink Network track and signalling along the North-South rail corridor from Maitland to Brisbane to reduce transit times substantially and to permit more trains to operate safely on the largely single track line.
- $192 million through the Australian Rail Track Corporation for a new access route for freight trains through the south-western Sydney metropolitan area from Macarthur to Chullora, the Southern Sydney Freight Line project.
- $110 million on the Rail Corporation New South Wales metropolitan track system towards improving rail access for freight trains between Strathfield and Hornsby. Some of these funds will be available during the later part of the current five-year AusLink investment programme, for the development of the Port Botany rail link.
- $110 million to the Government of Victoria for a new rail link and grade separation from Footscray Road between the Dynon intermodal freight precinct and the Port of Melbourne.
- $45 million to convert the broad gauge line between Geelong and Mildura and between Melbourne and Albury to standard gauge.
- $42 million to the Australian Rail Track Corporation to extend the Code Division Multiple Access mobile phone system to cover the interstate rail network. This will achieve a single national media for voice and data communications for the non-metropolitan interstate rail system. This is being provided through Telstra and will later need to be converted to 3GSM when Telstra replaces its CDMA network with 3GSM.
- $40 million to the Australian Rail Track Corporation towards the cost of the line upgrading and signalling system between Tottenham, Victoria and West Footscray.
- $20.3 million to the Australian Rail Track Corporation to develop Australia's next generation of train control technology, including the capacity for computerised on-board signalling to replace the current track-side system, satellite-based location technology to track trains to within 3 metres, and a computerised warning system that alerts drivers to impending dangers.
- $20 million towards a Wodonga rail bypass to ewmove the Melbourne-Sydney line running from the centre of Wodonga.
- $8 million for crossing loop extensions at Jamestown, South Australia and Mingary, South Australia between Crystal Brook, South Australia and Broken Hill, New South Wales at Yarrabandia and Matakana between Broken Hill and Parkes.
- Up to $5 million from for a major study of the North-South rail corridor between Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. The study will examine future freight demand, capacity and options for development of the North-South rail corridor. It will form part of the broader AusLink corridor study of transport links between Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.
- $4 million for new passing loops at Mungala and Haig on the Trans-Australian Railway.
- $3.5 million for the upgrade and strengthening of the Albury Murray River rail bridge.
- $2.6 million for the installation of an In-Cab Activated Points System to avoid the need for train crew to manually change points (railroad switches).
- $2.5 million for the upgrading and strengthening of the Murray River Bridge at Murray Bridge, South Australia.
External links
- [AusLink]
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