Two articles published independently yesterday show just how corrrupt transport policy has become.

Alan Davies, at the Urbanist, argues in Is Labor Genuine About Building Melbourne Metro that neither party has any intention of starting the Metro project in the next term. The Liberal’s realignment to suit the propoerty developers in Montague means that the 50 million planning over the last four years has to be restarted. Labor is using the level crossings as an excuse to delay the project. In any case, it would require a change or heart in the Abbot Governemnt (or a change of governmnet) to get federal funding for a rail project. Even if that was forthcoming, both parties are now committing to signing the East-West’ Link $18 billion cheque for $1million per metre, bankrupting the city for a generation.

Also published yesterday was an article in The Conversation by Associate Professor Philip Laird of the University of Wollongong called Australia’s transport is falling behind on energy efficiency. Laired is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport and a Companion of the Institution of Engineers. Continue Reading…