Australian Transport Minister Catherine King has blamed the previous Morrison government for the current state of the Inland Rail project, saying it had been treated like “a strange vanity project” while failing to meet budget and schedule expectations.
Addressing the National Press Club on March 1, the minister said there were “significant concerns” about the project, one of the country’s largest infrastructure investments, as she shared some details of an unreleased independent review.
King said the project was a “damning indictment” of her predecessors when calling out on the Morrison government for losing sight of the project’s goals.
“The previous government, I think, lost sight of (its goals). They didn’t see it as a project that had those goals,” she said.
“Under my predecessor, frankly, I think the project became something of a strange vanity project for him. And now Inland Rail, it is way over budget, and it is way behind schedule.”
The Inland Rail Project
As its name suggests, the Inland Rail project is a network of railways in mainland Australia that is set to connect two capital cities, Melbourne and Brisbane, and runs through regional Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.The project includes 1,100 kilometres of existing rail lines, which will be upgraded and enhanced, and another 600 kilometres of new track.
Once commencing operation, the $14.5 billion (US$9.81 billion project) will complete Australia’s national rail network and allow commodities to be transported more effectively.
Specifically, businesses adopting the new rail network could reduce transport fees by nearly 50 percent for freight moving between Melbourne and Brisbane.
On average, the Inland Rail will potentially lower freight costs by $168 for every tonne of vehicle transported through the network, $99 for each tonne of horticulture products, $87 for general freight, and $40-$60 for other types of products.
When construction work started in 2018, the Inland Rail project was estimated to cost $4.7 billion.
Other Problems with Australia’s Transport System
Apart from addressing the problems of the Inland Rail project, the minister also told those present at the event that other transport links in Australia had been “neglected for too long” and that the country’s vital freight network was at risk of being cut off.She noted that some Australian rail networks could only operate up to 80 percent of the time, while others were subject to increased risks due to natural disasters.
“The transcontinental rail line, the Stuart Highway, the Carpentaria Highway, the South Coast Highway in Western Australia, and the main western rail line out of Sydney–all are vital transport links, and all are rated at high risk,” she said.
“These routes struggle to cope at the best of times. As the climate changes, we will see more and more disruptions.”
Contradicting expectations that the government would pour more money into raising the transport system’s capacity, King said her department might need to slash some investments to reduce costs and prioritise limited resources.
In addition, King said the government would introduce a smaller, “targeted” list of project priorities using stricter planning and assessment criteria in the review of Infrastructure Australia to be released later this year.
Another problem facing Australia’s transport system is labour shortages, which significantly affect the construction of ongoing infrastructure projects.
The minister warned that Australia could fall short of 112,000 construction workers by September, up from the current 94,000 workers.
“This shortage is particularly felt in relation to engineers, surveyors, project managers and labourers, amongst many others,” she said.
“Without getting too political, we have to work out which projects are actually deliverable and which were just political window dressing.”
