Great Southern Rail will halve services on the iconic Ghan and Indian Pacific passenger routes, with $9 million in funding from the Federal Government set to end by July 2016.
GSR boss Chris Tallent reportedly told the ABC this week the funding allowed the passenger operator to subsidise travel cost for pensioners, veterans and seniors taking a trip on the Ghan – between Alice Springs and Darwin – and the Indian Pacific – between Sydney and Perth.
According to the ABC, the operator will now only be able to offer a 20% concession, and is expecting a 20% reduction in customers as a result. It will respond with plans to cut its 13 to 14 double-weekly Ghan services, during the dry season, to just a weekly service.
“At this point we are looking to withdraw those services and continue on with a firm weekly service on the Ghan,” Tallent was quoted, “albeit with longer trains potentially to cater for increased demand on those services.”
Similar changes are expected for the Indian Pacific.
Shadow minister for infrastructure Anthony Albanese ripped into the Abbott Government for the move.
“The cuts will seriously damage regional tourism in South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia by reducing the number of tourists visiting regional centres and spending money in local economies,” Albanese said.
“While Tony Abbott spent part of this week in Adelaide seeking to lift his sagging political stocks, he should have explained why he is undermining regional tourism at the very time we need growth in the sector to help make up for the end of the mining boom.”
Speaking later on Thursday with Adelaide radio station FIVEaa, Albanese had more to say.
“It’s not a huge amount of money but it makes a big difference to the quality of life of those war veterans and pensioners who get to have a holiday at a reasonable price,” he said.
“A fare for a sleeper for a war veteran on the Indian Pacific between Adelaide and Broken Hill [is] expected to climb from $83 at the moment to $969. From Adelaide to Kalgoorlie it will rise from $243 to almost $2000.
“That’s an enormous increase. At a time when our war veterans and our pensioners should be treated with respect, this is a mean spirited cut.”
Albanese rejected claims the subsidy should be paid by the states, rather than the Commonwealth.
“It’s interstate. That’s the issue here. States are certainly responsible for the issue of concessions on the Noarlunga to Seaford line or intrastate travel around Adelaide, between Adelaide and regional cities, but these are iconic rail journeys.
“They’re a part of the Australian history and tradition. They’re more than just economic. Wouldn’t it be a tragedy if we lost these rail routes? It’s a part of who we are, and there is a national responsibility.”
One hopes that Mr Albanese is aware that GSR are not taking bookings for the “Overland” train operating between Adelaide and Melbourne past the end of 2015. That means there will no longer be an interstate rail service between the two capitals. It’s a sorry state! One hopes that the the two states are talking to each other about what to do. What might appear to be a solution (that will, no doubt still require some SA state money put into it) is the operation of the train as part of a more integrated and coordinated package of multi-modal services that extends the scope of V/Line rail (they already operate coach links) into SA and allows a revamp of western Victorian and eastern South Australian public transport. It would be good to hear some noise about this!
If the fares show are correct they show that the fares for veterans are only one tenth of the real fare.
It would be far cheaper to fly these few travellers in business class on an airline.
Albanese’s comments are just grandstanding and only what one would expect from politicians who fly their families on holiday at the public’s expense.