Government must commit to pricing reform: ARA

<p>A report on Friday that the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) was considering raising rates on the east-west line by as much as 10% was not new, Australasian Railway Association (ARA) chief executive Brian Nye said today (Monday, September 3)</p> <p>The ARTC was deliberating over the cost increases, and had been doing so for some time, Mr Nye said.</p> <p>If the ARTC increased its prices, there would be an impact on container volumes moving between the east and west of the country, Pacific National chief executive and ARA chairman Don Telford told <em>The</em> <em>Australian</em>.</p> <p>Mr Telford said the Federal Government’s proposed $2bn-plus investment in rail infrastructure over the next decade was pointless without strong policy and appropriate pricing mechanisms. </p> <p>Mr Nye said the Federal Government &#8211 which underpins the corporation &#8211 needed to decide what it wanted from the national rail network.</p> <p>&#8220The industry is not anti-ARTC,&#8221 Mr Nye said.</p> <p>&#8220The key issue is rail and the government. What does it want? Does it want a national network?&#8221</p> <p>The continued &#8220subsidisation&#8221 of the trucking industry would result in a significant increase in the number of trucks, in particular B-doubles, on the road, Mr Nye said.</p> <p>&#8220It’s not a short-term problem. This is an on-going debate,&#8221 Mr Nye said.</p> <p>The ARTC was unable to respond before deadline.</p> <br />