Infrastructure Insanity

Transurban chief executive Scott Charlton will today make a fresh plea for a bipartisan approach to infrastructure planning and funding at all levels of government, warning that Australians are increasingly becoming ‘’frustrated and saddened’’ by party politicking hijacking long-term planning.
In a speech to the American Chamber of Commerce in Melbourne, Mr Charlton will highlight how technology and policy reform could help tackle the growing problems of congestion and crumbling existing infrastructure that are increasingly plaguing both Australian and American cities.
“I think it’s fair to say that in both Melbourne and Sydney, infrastructure and road projects, including our own, have a daily presence in the news agenda,’’ Mr Charlton will say.
“Unfortunately infrastructure has become a political tool and I believe all Australians are frustrated and saddened by the lack of long-term planning.’’
His comments come amid an increasing war of words between the federal and Victorian governments over Transurban’s planned $5.5 billion Western Distributor project. Under the original plan, there would be no contribution from Victoria, with the new road paid for by the Commonwealth, by tolls, and by Transurban.
In return, Transurban would get a 10 to 15 year extension on the existing tolling period for its CityLink toll road, which is due to end in 2035.
But the plan has led to the federal government accusing Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews of standing on the sidelines “demanding cash” after he abandoned Melbourne’s East-West link road project, which was being supported by substantial federal funding.
Mr Andrews has said he was seriously considering the Transurban Western Distributor project. It is understood that despite the bickering, there has been some progress on funding and support for the project in talks involving Transurban and the two governments.
Australia is facing a $700bn backlog in infrastructure projects and Mr Charlton will reiterate today that road congestion is costing an estimated $15bn in lost productivity a year.
Transurban opened an Express Lanes facility on its I95 toll road outside Washington DC in the US last December, a facility equipped with so-called dynamic pricing that moves the toll price up and down depending on traffic density.
“On Mondays commuters on the Express Lanes are saving an average of 30 minutes compared to drivers in the regular 95 lanes. Incredibly, when the regular lanes are reduced to a crawl, drivers on the Express Lanes are saving more than two hours,’’ Mr Charlton will tell the audience.
Over the next 12 months Transurban plans to conduct a simulation excise to test various road-pricing models and derive data to help progress options for a sustainable funding model.