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- 26 September 2007
Sydney Orbital Road Network
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Mr ALLAN SHEARAN: My question is directed to the Premier. Can the Premier update the House on new initiatives to provide more information to motorists about Sydney's orbital road network?
Mr MORRIS IEMMA: It is no secret that the Government has put the development of an M-4 East project firmly on the agenda. While we spend billions on our public transport network, on improving bus services and on integrating new rail links to the north-west and south-west, we also must consider the best possible strategies to fight congestion on our roads and motorways and keep this city moving. As our city grows our road network must grow with it. Exploring the M-4 East is one of those priorities but it is much more than just a road project. Any development of such a road would not only complement the recently completed Sydney orbital network but also provide a comprehensive solution when it comes to trucks, freight, buses and local access.
That is why Professor David Richmond and his Coordinator General's office are working hard on that next logical addition to the Sydney road network. I expect his report into possible solutions later this year and I have made it clear we will have a dialogue with local communities when that work is complete. Making our existing motorways work, and work together, is one of the key targets in the plan to fight congestion. It is one of the most important priorities we can have and is part of the work that the Coordinator General's office is doing. It is all about making our road network work more efficiently to reduce congestion and to improve mobility.
The opening of the $1.1 billion Lane Cove Tunnel and expanded Gore Hill Freeway saw the completion of the orbital. This 110-kilometre ring around Sydney allows motorists faster travel around the city without having to pause at a single traffic light. While the completion of the orbital is a major achievement, it should not be seen as the end of the work on changing traffic behaviour on those routes. That is why the Roads budget is a record $3.6 billion. That is why we are investing $660 million in the Urban Transport Statement and a further $100 million to remove congestion hot spots from city roads. I note the latest research from the NRMA shows motorists who use motorways can get to work and return home around 70 per cent faster than those who use alternative routes. The NRMA's travel time survey also found motorists who use motorways use up to 40 per cent less fuel.
One of the immediate ways motorists can improve their journeys is to get an E-tag. An E-tag means no more queuing at a coin bucket at the toll booths, no more waiting as the driver in front searches for that last 10 cents under their seat or in the ashtray, and no more carrying around a tonne of shrapnel for every trip to and from work. Our next challenge, and one the Government wants addressed quickly, is to move to a fully cashless motorway network. The way forward for Sydney is to have a fully cashless motorway network.
The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of The Nationals will cease interjecting.
Mr MORRIS IEMMA: I have asked the Minister for Roads and the RTA to work hand in hand with the motorway companies to make cashless tollways a reality for Sydney. The M7, the Cross City Tunnel, the Lane Cove Tunnel and the Harbour Tunnel are already fully cashless. I recognise that around the world it is always more difficult for motorways to move from cash to tags than it is to simply implement a cashless road from the start. But that is no reason to say it cannot be done here in Sydney. We recently had a major achievement in transforming the Sydney Harbour Tunnel into a cash-free roadway. That is a credit to the 80,000 motorists who use it every day and who virtually without a hiccup changed to cashless, improving traffic flows and congestion in the daily run to work as a result. The cashless Harbour Tunnel is working well. The change over saw an extra 68,000 motorists stick an E-tag to their windscreens.
The Government wants to harness that momentum, to pick the next road and target date, and get on with delivering those changes. I am asking the RTA and the private operators to work together. They have the expertise and the obvious motivation. It can be done but it will be done with conditions. We need the RTA and the motorways to deliver an inter-operable casual user pass to protect visitors to Sydney, pensioners, young people, or people who for one reason or another cannot immediately transfer over to an E-tag. We need detailed traffic plans to make the transition smoother, and we need the best possible tag technology to maximise the number of benefits for motorists and businesses. I await a timetable and implementation plan for our next step forward.
I can today announce the official launch of a new campaign and website to make using the 110 kilometre Sydney orbital even easier. It is being launched on YouTube and can be found by searching for "Sydney Motorways" on www.youtube.com . We are on YouTube for a number of obvious reasons but mainly so members of the public can access this information whenever they want. I can also announce the official launch of a new website www.sydneymotorways.com . This is an interactive website which allows motorists and visitors to Sydney to plan a trip and view common trip routes, calculate their tolls for using motorways, view traffic conditions via online traffic cameras, and find out about traffic incidents or road works and everything they need to know about tags and tolls.
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