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Country Rail Services

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About this Item
Subjects -  Railways; Rural Industry; Wheat and Grain; Floods; Freight
Speakers - Armstrong Mr Ian; Watkins Mr John; Maguire Mr Daryl
Business - Matter of Public Importance


    COUNTRY RAIL SERVICES
Page: 19192


    Matter of Public Importance

    Mr IAN ARMSTRONG (Lachlan) [4.51 p.m.]: I ask the House to note as a matter of public importance country rail services in New South Wales. When I framed the motion this morning I wanted to draw attention to the state of rail lines, the future of rail lines and their management in New South Wales. However, during the day I learnt that the matter is far more urgent than I thought it was this morning, in many respects because of the extraordinary rainfall we have had across much of New South Wales—in the north west, the central west, the south west and the Riverina—in the past 24 hours, and the flooding that is currently occurring. As the honourable member for Orange said this afternoon, Eugowra is about to experience its second highest flood in history.

    The roads and rail lines of inland New South Wales have been inundated with unprecedented rainfall, which has not occurred for many, many years. We are just coming through—hopefully, we are through it—the longest and toughest drought statistically in more than 100 years. That means that many places have now gone for up to five years without their normal seasonal rainfall. Most areas of New South Wales have certainly suffered for three years. The ground has contracted enormously; thus we hear reports in many towns, and indeed suburbs of Sydney, of cracking in brick buildings which has not been seen before. As I said in the House a couple of weeks ago, cracking is also occurring in many roads across New South Wales. The roads crack because of the dryness; when it rains the water runs into the cracks and gets under the bitumen. Then the bitumen starts to lift in pieces ranging from about the signs of one's hand up to pieces perhaps a square metre in size. That is happening across the State but particularly on the road from Young to Temora. The edges are breaking off the roads.

    I turn now to the problem regarding rail lines. We have had a number of inquiries into the future of rail branch lines used for carting wheat in New South Wales. Indeed, a couple of years ago the Government set up the Grain Infrastructure Advisory Committee [GIAC], which involved a number of major players in the industry. The committee had representation from New South Wales Farmers, the New South Wales Grain Growers Association, the Australian Wheat Board, GrainCorp Ltd, Pacific National, the Local Government Association of New South Wales and the Shires Association of New South Wales, the New South Wales Labor Council, the Roads and Traffic Authority, the Rail Infrastructure Corporation and the Office of the Co-ordinator General of Rail.

    The committee met and subsequently released a report, which in essence recommended that four branch lines be suspended, another four be considered into the future and another four be considered for closure. It simply means that the bulk of the freight-carrying capacity of the New South Wales rail system for wheat has been in some form of hiatus since then. It was estimated that it would cost about $170 million to bring these rail lines up to a reasonable standard to cart an average crop of about 18 million to 22 million tonnes to its ultimate destination, the port.

    The Government has flirted with this for some time but it has not made a commitment, except it closed the Rankin Springs to Barmedman line. It has announced that it will close the line from West Wyalong to Burcher, and it is still reviewing a number of other lines. The Government will not say whether it will upgrade the line from Ungarie to Lake Cargelligo, bearing in mind that this year Lake Cargelligo could produce a crop of 170,000 or 190,000 tonnes on what is known as an 18-pound line. It should be a 23-pound line so the trucks can go straight through to port. But on Monday of this week, 7 November, the Government made an announcement about trains in New South Wales. It was very exciting! We raced to our letterboxes to get the announcement. The press release stated that the Labor Government would undertake a considerable upgrade of rail in New South Wales by painting the railway stations. The Government will provide $1.7 million to paint the railway stations, to pretty them up a bit.

    Mr Daryl Maguire: And then they lock them up so you can't get into them.

    Mr IAN ARMSTRONG: That is probably quite reasonable because there will not be any trains going past the stations; there will not be much ash or dust and so forth. So painting the stations in pretty colours will keep out the white ants. The railway station at Young is one of the most attractive railway stations in inland New South Wales. It is a beautiful old station, circa 1910 or 1915, and white ants are merrily eating all the timber out of it. Can I persuade Government Ministers to do something about it? Can I persuade the Government to lease the railway station to the local council—with some assistance to control the white ants—to convert it into a tourist centre? No! Instead of undertaking a practical solution with a co-operative Young Shire Council, the Government's answer is to leave the railway station as it is and let the white ants live in it.

    So the New South Wales Farmers Association—the premier farmers organisation in this State—rightly said on 7 November that they called on the Minister for Transport to look at the real issues facing country rail lines, rather than glossing over them with a coat of paint. GIAC member Angus McNeil said that the announcement of the Country Station Renovation Program worth $1.7 million is insulting to rural communities that have had their rail lines closed over the past few months. I could go through a lot of the detail in the report brought down by the GIAC some months ago but it has been done before. Having had some experience with these matters, I simply say this. Unless the Government quickly realises that it is facing an enormous disaster in terms of inland transport, it has real problems.

    Unless grain is kept on rail this year, unless the rail lines are kept open and brought up to a standard that enables the grain to be carted quickly, the grain will go on roads. I assure the Minister that even if an extra 30 per cent of the New South Wales wheat crop for 2005 is put on roads in western New South Wales, the Riverina, the central west, the south west or the lower north west, we will see one of the most massive break-ups of roads, and in many cases streets—in towns such as Forbes and Parkes the silos require street access—and the cost of remediation of the roads will exceed by far the $25 million to $30 million necessary to bring some of the lines up to an ordinary standard to cart this crop. The Minister is in an invidious situation. It is too little too late, and now he has a double-whammy. If he does not fix the lines I sincerely believe that he will be bitten not only by the wheat farmers and the wheat industry, which is disfranchised in terms of getting its product to port, but also by motorists and motoring organisations, which are saying that we have a major crisis on our hands.

    Today I raise this matter of public importance as an appeal to the Government to recognise that those branch railway lines should have had the $160 million spent on them as promised to bring them up to standard. That has not happened. We are now probably within a week or two—depending on how much more rain there is in the next few days—of this year's harvest getting under way. We are now within two weeks of seeing B-double trucks, grain trucks, rumbling into virtually every country railway station across inland New South Wales. It is surprising how effectively the crop will come in. We are now on the cusp of hearing every country radio station, every country member, including Country Labor members, saying we have a major disaster on our hands.

    I ask the Premier and the Deputy Premier to act now. They do not have a choice. They will lose both the rail lines—which they have turned their backs on for the carting of grain—and the roads unless they act in the next 10 days. They must recognise this is a major calamity of economic significance and of significance to the export industry of this country. Wheat is one of our major export industries. Australia is not a big producer of wheat but we are one of its major exporters. Many European countries, such as Italy, France and England, produce more wheat than we do, but they consume it domestically. We produce around 30 million tonnes a year, and that is basically an export industry.

    The Deputy Premier, and Minister for Transport should revisit tonight the GIAC report on the factors involving the carting of wheat and the neglect of the railway lines. He should tell his department that we have a serious problem on our hands and it should advise him by tomorrow afternoon how to stop the roads collapsing as well as how to get the wheat to the ports to satisfy our export orders. The Government is in danger of losing export orders, the roads, the rail system and the confidence of those who voted for its Country Labor members.

    Mr JOHN WATKINS (Ryde—Deputy Premier, Minister for Transport, and Minister for State Development) [5.01 p.m.]: I welcome the opportunity to talk about the Government's commitment to providing safe and reliable transport services for the people of New South Wales, wherever they live—rural or city areas. I know how important local transport services are to those living in remote areas of the State. I have travelled to many of those areas and spoken to many people who depend on passenger transport and goods transport. The day-to-day activities of country people often depend on rail services.

    We have embarked on an unprecedented investment in the State's rail network, both city and country. A lot of that investment has been in the city but there has been significant investment in country New South Wales to enable the passage of interstate and intrastate passengers and freight. In July this year I announced that the Government would spend an additional $69 million over the next three years on upgrades and maintenance of western New South Wales restricted rail lines. These restricted rail lines, the grain lines referred to by the honourable member for Lachlan, were laid down many years ago at much lower engineering standards than the normal country rail network. In some places sleepers and rail were laid virtually straight onto the bare earth, without the normal ballast one gets on a more highly engineered rail line.

    For many years those lines worked. They have a different type of locomotive and carriage. They work at a much slower speed and a much lower tonnage than those on the normal country rail network. That is the way it has always been. Quite often these very long trains would come off the track at a certain point. They would be fixed and put back on the track. The point at which there had been a failure would be fixed and on the train would go. The lines were fixed at fail. That is how they were maintained because they were built to a much lower standard.

    Over recent years things have changed. The Independent Transport Safety and Reliability Regulator—which was established following the Waterfall inquiry—said appropriately that no matter whether the rail line was a passenger, goods or grain line, it had to be maintained at a particular standard and could not be allowed to fall below that standard. That placed real pressure on these restricted lines or grain lines because they were never built to that higher standard. Those lines could no longer be operated as a fix-at-fail process. A much higher standard of engineering had to apply to these remote grain lines.

    That is why in July this year I announced that the Government would spend an additional $69 million over the next three years—a large amount of money—on these restricted grain lines. The only thing they do is haul grain, but an extra $69 million will be spent on them over the next three years. The grain lines funding package represents an additional $15 million a year for three years over and above the $8 million already committed. That comes on top of the $21 million announced in April this year. That latest boost in funding for those restricted lines—this is not for the normal country rail network; it is only for the restricted lines—allows for the replacement of 212,000 sleepers, the upgrade or replacement of 72 rail bridges and the replacement of ballast along 716 kilometres of track. That work will ensure that the lines are in good order for this season's harvest and beyond.

    However, a difficult choice had to be made. Some of those lines were not up to standard and four had gone into suspension. They have not been closed absolutely, but they are suspended from this season on. We received special representation from farmers along the Gwabegar-Binnaway line. Extra grain had been stored in silos along the line from last year's harvest, so despite the fact that the line was suspended farmers were still delivering grain to those silos. That grain had to be moved, so we spent some extra money to bring the Gwabegar-Binnaway line up to standard, enabling us to shift last season's grain out of those silos. That line went into suspension at the end of October. Money is being spent on 11 lines to ensure that they can bring the crop down over the next three years, and four lines are in suspension.

    Work on those 11 lines will ensure that they are in good order for this season's harvest. It is important to note that the movement of grain from larger storage facilities to port is dominated by rail haulage. The Government remains committed to this being the preferred means of transport for this section of the supply chain but in the case of the initial movement of grain from the farm gate to the early consolidation points of silos, economic reforms in the grain industry and the rail freight sector mean that this part of the supply chain is much more heavily contested between road and rail operators. Road haulage has increased its share of the market throughout New South Wales.

    I am advised that the current situation is being exacerbated by the investment in super silos by private participants in the grain industry. The Government does not control the grain industry. The Australian Wheat Board and GrainCorp are outside government controls and they compete with each other. They have made certain investment decisions that have impacted on the nature and quality of the grain industry in New South Wales. These large grain consolidation facilities, these super silos, have been constructed off the restricted grain line network with the intention of facilitating the movement of grain by truck from the farm gate to the point of storage.

    The decision to suspend services on some restricted lines was made very carefully after comparing forecast combined peak tonnages, the cost of transporting grain from these areas by rail and road and the high cost of maintaining those lines. The extra funding announced will secure those lines while the Government continues to work towards a long-term lease arrangement for all 15 restricted lines. I acknowledge that the decision to suspend those four lines places added pressure on the councils that are responsible for the roads in those areas. I have made it clear in discussions with several councils and farmers groups that if they believe their roads are adversely affected they should make representations to the Government and we will give serious consideration to their requests. I have given that message to the councils and farmers groups that have approached me. This week I was disturbed to learn that the Grain Growers Association did not seem to be aware of various matters.

    Accordingly, following a critical press release last week by the Grain Growers Association, on behalf of its members, I have arranged to meet with them in the third week of November to see whether any further measures can be taken. I well appreciate their concerns. I will listen to them and see whether we can assist with any issues. In consultation with the Opposition, I am committed to finding the best solution for the grain industry. I do not apologise for the recent expenditure of more than $1 million on country rail stations. Country people use those stations and it is appropriate that we spend money on them. However, that does not mean that we will not attend to their other needs.

    Mr DARYL MAGUIRE (Wagga Wagga) [5.11 p.m.]: It is refreshing to see the Minister for Transport in the House to contribute to this debate. These days most Ministers send their Parliamentary Secretaries. I congratulate the honourable member for Lachlan on raising this important issue. The Minister for Transport spoke about CountryLink, the upgrade of stations and the very important issue of grain rail lines. First, I refer to CountryLink. Whilst I acknowledge that the Minister will spend more than $1 million on country railway stations, I indicate to him that during private members' statements I will refer to a problem encountered by one of my constituents at a railway station, which I assume will be upgraded. Although the station will look nice freshly painted, it is locked. Travellers cannot access the building and do not have security at this particular railway station. I will expand on that issue during the appropriate debate.

    I have on the notice paper a motion that is due to be debated this week—if the Leader of the House does not suspend standing orders to cancel private members' day. My motion refers to The Rock to Boree Creek branch line. Over the years this railway line, which is 57 kilometres long, has had haulage of 230,000 tonnes. The Grain Infrastructure Advisory Committee [GIAC] study referred to an estimated 88,000 tonnes being moved on the railway line. In fact, that figure was underestimated by more than 28 per cent, or 34,000 tonnes. For the $11.5 million invested on this 57 kilometres of line, the old railway lines the Minister referred to could be upgraded. Steel railway lines that are capable of lifting the axle capacity of the trains from about 19 tonnes to 23 tonnes are being taken off the main railway line from Sydney to Melbourne. Importantly, the ballast and sleepers need replacing. Already we are seeing the impact that these major silos are having on the road system.

    I was pleased to hear the suggestion that councils who can demonstrate that their roads have been adversely impacted upon can put forward a proposal. I would expect their proposals would be funded immediately, because the roads are being affected. In particular, Lockhart Shire Council can give examples of the impact on its budget. The $11.5 million will ensure that The Rock to Boree Creek line is viable for another 30 years. The grain estimates, which the committee has worked on for the past two years, will increase from more than 216,000 tonnes this year and up to 300,000 tonnes and more. The $11.5 million will ensure that second-hand lines currently being used on the Sydney to Melbourne run will be used and that there is sufficient ballast and sleepers. It will allow the trains to exceed the 20 kilometres per hour speed limit that is currently placed on them.

    To move a tonne of grain from The Rock to Boree Creek line to Melbourne port costs $7 by truck. It costs $1 per tonne by train. I would assume that a Government hell-bent on reducing greenhouse gas emissions would embrace the use of rail, particularly in relation to such large quantities. The statistics used by GIAC in its study were taken in drought years. As the honourable member for Lachlan explained, we have a bumper harvest, which will mean ultimately more trucks on the road.

    Pursuant to sessional orders business interrupted.




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