He is one of the most Flexible and Communicative CEO's in Australia.
These are two invaluable qualities in a CEO today. Change is all around. People are talking disruption and actively doing it.
TCL is a company founded in the 90s as a result of Mr Keating's Superannuation reforms. Its business model has been lots of debt invested in long road concessions. Collect the tolls and pay the divies Super funds love it.
But change is coming.
Driverless Cars.
Mr Charlton is a fan.
Transurban CEO emerges as loud advocate for driverless cars
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Governments need to plan for the arrival of driverless cars, says Transurban chief executive Scott Charlton.
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by Jenny Wiggins
Driverless cars will fundamentally change life in Australian cities, says Transurban chief executive Scott Charlton, and should be good for toll-road companies like his.
"Whether we are ready or not, this technology is here," Mr Charlton will tell The Australian Financial Review's National Infrastructure Summit in Sydney on Wednesday.
Mr Charlton will emerge at the summit as the highest-profile supporter of allowing driverless cars onto Australian roads, an issue that until now has mainly been debated among a small group of experts and public servants.
He will say that driverless cars technology is too important to be held back by more than 700 "outdated" regulations and laws, including road rules and heavy vehicle laws.
Computer-driven cars could increase the capacity of existing roads, increasing profits for toll-road companies such as Transurban. Related Quotes
May14GMT+1000 (AUS Eastern Standard Time)Jan12Jan176810125.4212.202
Last updated: Sat Jan 07 2017 - 2:43:48 PM View full quote Company Profile
Owner, operator and developer of electronic toll roads and intelligent transport systems. http://www.transurban.com.au/
Transportation Infrastructure (203050)
ASIC 129034439
While napping or playing cards in a car that drives itself 140 kilometres an hour may seem like a fantasy, more than 100 types of autonomous vehicles are already being tested around the world on public roads. The first convoys of automated trucks have driven to Rotterdam from Stockholm.
Driverless cars could be commercially available in five years, and mass adoption likely by 2040, forcing governments to rethink the need for traffic lights and stop signs, and how automated and manual cars will share the roads, Mr Charlton will say.
The car manufacturing, insurance and trucking industries also face upheaval. "Disruption and opportunities are not five, 10 or 20 years away," he will say. "They are happening now."
Driverless cars could ease congestion by increasing the capacity of road lanes by 10 to 25 per cent, while dedicated driverless lanes could accommodate around 4000 cars per hour, according to Transurban, which would benefit financially from increased numbers of cars on tollroads or providing driverless lanes that charge toll fees.
At the conference, Infrastructure Australia chairman Mark Birrell will argue it should be mandatory to use so-called "building information modelling" systems to design and deliver large, complex projects for governments.
"The use of these systems is par for the course in other countries including the UK and Singapore," Mr Birrell will say. "We should be considering how we can do the same."
The technology, which is being used on London's Crossrail project and Sydney's North West Rail Link, allows engineers to produce three-dimensional models of projects and gather data that can be used to help maintain infrastructure.
Plea for more transparency
More calls will be made for transparent decision-making on big projects. Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Anthony Albanese plans to argue Sydney's new $16 billion WestConnex motorway is an example of damage caused by funding a big project before finishing a cost-benefit analysis.
"It remains unclear where the exit to the tunnels will be, even whilst the project is under construction," Mr Albanese will say. "This is provoking a response from the local community who quite rightly regard the community consultation process as appalling."
David Higgins, the chairman of Britain's High Speed Two rail project – which will connect London with northern cities such as Leeds and Manchester – will argue good transport links can help reverse brain drains from regional communities to big cities.
London, one of the world's most expensive cities, is becoming "a victim of its own success" while northern cities in Britain find it difficult to retain and develop talent, creating an unbalanced economy, Mr Higgins will say.
By making it faster for people to travel between cities, the High Speed Two project will open up markets, he will tell the summit.
"Cutting the two hours it currently takes to go from Leeds to Birmingham to one hour will transform, not just the amount of time it takes to go from one city to the other, but also the trade in goods and talent as well."
The rail project was endorsed by the British Parliament this year and is expected to receive final approval by the end of the year, enabling construction to start next year.
Engaging communities
Community support for the project – which was initially controversial due to the £50 billion ($96 billion) cost – was achieved by engaging with regional communities and explaining how faster rail links could improve local economies, Mr Higgins will say.
"When the first railway bills were presented to Parliament in the reign of Queen Victoria, MPs argued the new-fangled mode of transport was not needed because the country already had the canals," he will say.
"Today that seems absurd. Why did they not foresee the transformation investing in the new infrastructure would bring about, not just in travel, but also in Britain's position in the world?"
Mr Albanese will say a high-speed rail link between Brisbane and Melbourne would "turbo charge" the economic development of centres along its route.
The Labor Party plans to create a High Speed Rail Authority if it is elected on July 2 and get expressions of interest from international construction companies to build a new rail line.
Resources and Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg will highlight the need for more innovative ways of financing infrastructure, including taking advantage of rises in land values and tax increment financing.
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