A Liberal National Government in Queensland will back a proposed Brisbane Metro rapid transit system, but LNP leader Tim Nicholls will not commit to progress Cross River Rail if his side wins the state election slated for November 25.
Nicholls, whose Queensland Liberal National Party released its 14-page Better Public Transport document this week, said the party was prepared to support the Brisbane City Council’s idea for a rapid transit Brisbane Metro project, designed to replace the some of the city’s most congested bus lines with ‘high capacity vehicles’ running between stations.
But Cross River Rail, which the Palaszczuk Government has already set in motion, was not mentioned in the document.
“We’ve said very clearly that we’re happy to invest in [Brisbane mayor] Graham Quirk’s Brisbane Metro project, $30 million on the table to deliver a project that will get up and get going, that has a proper cost benefit analysis attached to it,” Nicholls was quoted by the Brisbane Times this week.
“In terms of Cross River Rail, we’ve always indicated that we have concerns about it, these are concerns that have been raised by Infrastructure Australia.”
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and transport minister Jackie Trad expressed their frustration earlier this year when Infrastructure Australia came back with a negative assessment for Cross River Rail, all but ruling it out for funding from the Federal Government, without a reworked business case.
Nonetheless, Trad and Palaszczuk have pressed on with Cross River Rail, with early works already taking place, and the procurement process for major contracts also underway.
But if the LNP wins when Queenslanders go to the polls later this month, the project may be cancelled; the latest billion-dollar-plus project to be canned by a state election, joining a list including the East West Link in Victoria, and the Perth Freight Link in WA.
Nicholls told ABC Radio he was concerned billions of dollars may be spent on Cross River Rail “before it’s necessary”.
“There are other higher priorities around the place,” Nicholls said. “We’ve always indicated that we’ve got question marks about it. We certainly know that at some stage in the future we’re going to need a second crossing of the Brisbane River, whether that’s a rail crossing or otherwise, but the question is what are the highest priorities that the government needs to spend its money on.”
The LNP’s transport plan also includes freezing bonuses for Queensland Rail executives, a speedier training policy for drivers, and free off-peak bus and rail travel for seniors.
The LNP has also committed to the duplication of the Sunshine Coast rail line from Beerburrum to Nambour, to allow up to 150 extra weekly services.