Under-funded’ Labor plan to remove level crossings

    ANNIKA SMETHURST
    News Limited
    April 12, 2014
    Herald Sun.

LABOR’S election promise to remove 50 of Melbourne’s worst level crossings for $6 billion is in disarray after one of Daniel Andrews’ factional allies admitted it will cost more than $8 billion.      

In his submission to the Linking Melbourne Authority’s public hearing on the comprehensive impact statement prepared for construction of the East West Link project, Opposition spokesman for planning, major projects and infrastructure Brian Tee argues $8 billion can be spent to remove 48 level crossings.

He bases his submission on an average upgrade cost of $140 million to $165 million per crossing upgrade.

But Labor had previously pledged to remove 50 level crossings within eight years for between $5 billion and $6 billion, or about $120 million each.

The Opposition says it will pay for the crossing upgrades by selling the Port of Melbourne.

The Government has previously criticised the plan saying it didn’t believe it was possible to remove 50 crossings in eight years, and that it would cost more than $8.5 billion to complete the project.

Minister for Roads Terry Mulder said Mr Tee’s submission undermined Labor’s signature transport policy.

“Daniel Andrews has been running around saying his policy will cost five to six billion, when his own shadow minister now says it will cost more than eight billion,” Mr Mulder said.

“Thanks to Brian Tee, Daniel Andrews must now admit there is a colossal black hole in his transport policy.”

Mr Mulder said one of the most significant costs involved in grade separations is the construction of retaining walls and bridges, which can cost more than $20 million alone.

But Opposition spokesman Chris Owner said the Government was attempting to avoid scrutiny of its $8 billion tunnel project.      

“Mr Napthine doesn’t like Labor’s plan to remove 50 of the most dangerous grade separations because it will improve our train lines and free up our roads and it should be the number one priority for Victoria - not his $8 billion tunnel,” Mr Owner said.      

Many of Melbourne's level crossings date from the 19th century. You can imagine what it was like then - a train steaming into the outer suburban terminus of Essendon, with a man sitting in a booth at the level crossing waiting for the signal so he could run out and close it, with a few horses waiting on the dirt roads for the train to pass.

120 years later, and level crossings are everywhere, causing congestion throughout Melbourne at peak hour - and in some places all day. They are also dangerous. Every couple of months a level crossing somewhere in Melbourne claims a life, either the driver of a vehicle or an incautious pedestrian.

They also slow the movement of trains, with some train lines at capacity.

Getting rid of level crossings is a sound policy. Who cares really if the exact cost hasn't been worked out yet? It could cost several million dollars just to prepare an engineers' report on all the sites so a cost estimate can be made. Such reports cannot be prepared easily by a party in Opposition.

The Baillieu/Napthine government have also embarked on the removal of three level crossings, allocating funds for the removal of nine in total. Eight of these are in Liberal seats.

big deal...

im pretty sure that there's more important things to spend our money on... 

try our health system for instance...

and they are going to pay for it how??

by selling off OUR assets?

they don't have my permission to sell off MY assets..

once again Labor will put us further into debt like they did the last time that they were in...

maybe they'll build some more white elephants like the Desalinisation plant or the North South dust pipe... 

True Blue... wrote on Apr 13^th, 2014 at 10:00am:

Why is the value of a human life worth less at level crossings than it is when installing home insulation? Wake up!

True Blue... wrote on Apr 13^th, 2014 at 10:24am:

Typical vapid argument from the right, who can't understand the value of a human life. You haven't answered my question. Typical.

Maybe if you could think, you would understand why removing level crossings is a good policy.

If it's bad policy, why has just about every government in Victoria in the past 40 years removed level crossings in various places all over Melbourne?

I think its something you can chip away at slowly...

but putting us into massive debt on top of debt the last Labor government left us with is not the way to do it...

Labor has never been able to Balance the Budget and ALWAYS leave government in debt when voted out....

next time will be no different..

and I tell you what... if we have to increase tax or make cuts to pay back labors debt you'll be the first one to piss and moan about it

True Blue... wrote on Apr 13^th, 2014 at 10:00am:

Bam wrote on Apr 13^th, 2014 at 9:26pm:


like I said... they have no authority to see our Port.. so the only way it can be done is to put us further in debt like they did with other useless projects the last time that they were in...