Link soon redundant, say locals

source: community news

Link soon redundant, say locals

COTTESLOE residents have been told the proposed $1.6 billion Perth Freight Link (PFL) that may send more trucks through their town would be redundant soon after its proposed 2019 finish.

“The date of completion of the PFL is only 24 months before the Fremantle inner harbour reaches its capacity in 2021,” Cottesloe Residents and Ratepayers Association chair John Hammond said.

A summary of the Federal Government’s PFL business case estimates the port will handle about 1.1 million containers that year.

Last Tuesday, about 270 residents at a Cottesloe Civic Centre PFL meeting were told a 13km toll clearway of up to six lanes was proposed for trucks from Bibra Lake to East Fremantle, contracts were to be signed by December, but it was unknown how to get the PFL a further 3km to the port, costing a mooted $900 million.

Concerns include trucks using Cottesloe to avoid the PFL’s toll, pollution, and pressure to widen Curtin Avenue and Stirling Highway for a long-mooted coastal highway.

Since the mid-1990s, Liberal and Labor State governments have planned trucks using the Latitude 32 transfer yard near a new Kwinana port but the PFL, untested by Infrastructure Australia, was announced after the State Government got $925 million from Canberra last year.

Curtin University sustainability professor Peter Newman said Premier Colin Barnett was PFL opponents’ “only real hope” because State Cabinet was split over the project and Mr Barnett said recently the route may not get built in North Fremantle if there was no “elegant solution”.

The State Opposition has been blamed for the PFL conundrum by removing land for the Fremantle Eastern Bypass for port trucks, but Opposition leader Mark McGowan told the Western Suburbs Weekly the bypass was not needed after Kwinana port tenders started in 2007.

Mr McGowan said a Kwinana port costing a mooted $4 billion and a claimed $2.5 billion bill for a revised Metronet public transport plan could be afforded because they were a “tiny” part of future infrastructure spending.

“I think there’s hasn’t been real effort to work with the Commonwealth on a funding option for rail and a new port in Kwinana, and there should have been far more effort gone to work with the Commonwealth in terms of getting Federal assistance,” he said.

There will be a PFL rally at Stirling Bridge, 10am this Sunday.

Read the original story HERE from Community News

source: community news
Jon Bassett | August 25, 2015, 12:00 AM 

Cuttings considered

SWANBOURNE residents next to a highway cutting carrying trucks say southern suburbs’ residents facing Perth Freight Link (PFL) cuttings and flyovers should insist on suitable designs.

“Just don’t let them bull-ride over you and have a say on the final product,” Servetus Street resident Sylvia Peterson said.

The State Government estimates cuttings and flyovers to eliminate stop lights will shorten Fremantle Port container truck trips by nine minutes on the mooted $2.5 billion toll route.

Most Swanbourne residents who spoke to the Western Suburbs Weekly said they now liked the 1.5km West Coast Highway cutting that cost $29.7 million in 1999, including sound-deadening bricks and 2.8m boundary walls that were installed after they lobbied Cottesloe MLA Colin Barnett, who is not expected to attend a Cottesloe PFL forum next Tuesday.

“But we’re up high and look over the cutting and it’s not that bad, but if you were further down the hill or right close to it, it would be awful,” Servetus Street resident Patrick Gillespie said.

Cottesloe residents fought against the cutting’s dual carriageway going south into their suburb through Curtin Avenue, where it now bottlenecks.

The Government has allocated $40 million to move the avenue 3.5km further south to near the port, potentially leaving Cottesloe between upgraded sections of a long-mooted coastal highway that critics fear could be built for trucks avoiding the PFL’s toll.

PFL opponent and Cottesloe councillor Sally Pyvis said while the “costly” Swanbourne cutting had improved some amenity, Curtin Avenue’s upgrade could be “cheap and cheerless” with tilt-up concrete sound barriers.

The route is used by 1121 trucks daily and could increase to 3363 2030.

The FULL story can be read HERE from Community News

Residents’ rethink call

The proponents for this highway have a nasty habit of completely dis-regarding public opinion - endlessly. It will be interesting come election time to see who remains.

source: community news
Bryce Luff | August 25, 2015, 2:00 AM | FREMANTLE GAZETTE

Residents’ rethink call

THE City of Melville says it will support the Perth Freight Link until at least September when it considers a motion put forward by residents.

Last week an electors meeting was held, with residents requesting the city back away from supporting the controversial road until it undertook a new, open and transparent community consultation on the PFL with residents and ratepayers.

Having resolved to support the road in July, chief executive Shayne Wilcox said the city would not change its stance.

“The city cannot and will not pre-empt any decision of council,” he said.

Rethink the Link co-|convener Kim Dravnieks said there was serious opposition from the community for the $1.6 billion project to link Roe Highway to the Fremantle Port.

She said residents were concerned not only for Palmyra, but for other suburbs outside the City of Melville and in the path of the proposed toll road.

“We just need to keep putting pressure on council and the State and Federal Governments,” she said.

“We aren’t getting the data we want and we haven’t been consulted properly.”

Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett said the clear message from an increasing number of local governments and their communities was for the immediate stop to the PFL.

“There needs to be a round- table series of meetings called by the Premier to examine alternative options to the proposed route of the PFL,” he said.

“Reviewing the Infrastructure Australia Report would be a good starting point.”

That report, which was released last week, drew criticism from a number of fronts.

READ the rest of this article can HERE at Community News

Government defends freight link

souce: community news

Government defends freight link 

Mike Nahan (second from left) and Dean Nalder (third from left) at a
Melville Cockburn Chamber of Commerce meeting last week.

THE State Government says environmental concerns, cost and the time needed to build a new port means the Perth Freight Link should not be shelved in favour of a new outer harbour at Cockburn Sound.

But it does believe both are important pieces of infrastructure for Perth’s future.

WA Treasurer Mike Nahan said that after more than $20 million worth of planning since 2008, Roe 8 – the first stage of the |$1.6 billion effort to link Roe Highway to Fremantle Port – was good to go.
“We have a design, we have a route, we have EPA approval and now we have Commonwealth contribution to it and we’re getting on with the business,” he said.

Fremantle MLA Simone McGurk, among others, has called for the freight link to be scrapped and work to begin on the outer harbour.

“I think the better solution is to get on and start planning the outer harbour and to take freight away from communities and into an industrial area. That’s a solution for the 21st century. That’s where we should be putting our infrastructure dollars,” she said.

Mr Nahan said a new harbour could cost between $3-$5 billion.

Transport minister Dean Nalder said there were serious environmental concerns associated with a potential harbour in Cockburn Sound.

“People are thinking the environmental work has been done. I had it confirmed (Tuesday) … with the EPA that it would be a minimum of three years of environmental work that needs to be undertaken,” he said.

“The estimated time I’ve had on construction from my department is it would take six to seven years to construct the outer harbour.

“So we’re talking a minimum of 10 years.”

Mr Nalder said Fremantle Port could accommodate doubling freight movements but the outer “overflow” harbour would be needed.

Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett said a container park at Latitude 32 in Wattleup was a better option than the freight link.

He said he had support from Fremantle and East Fremantle councils.

“The intermodal facility at Latitude 32 is essential and the outer harbour can flow from that,” he said.

The original story can be read HERE

Minister to explore railway tunnel option

source: community news

Minister to explore railway tunnel option 

MELVILLE BACKS UNDERGROUND SOLUTION

A TUNNEL from Hamilton Hill through to Fremantle as part of the Roe 9 stage of the Perth Freight Link is looking increasingly likely, although it could be delayed after Transport Minister Dean Nalder said exact timing for the build was not locked in.

 Fremantle MLA Simone McGurk (centre) with Rethink Perth Freight Link protestors outside the Melville Cockburn Chamber of Commerce breakfast where Mr Nalder was speaking last Wednesday.

Mr Nalder told a business breakfast last week that being able to deliver a twin-bored tunnel railway line out to Forrestfield as part of the $2 billion airport link at a price in line with doing it above ground meant he “felt a lot more comfortable to explore this as a potential solution for getting us to the port”.

The other option is to continue the freight link down Stock Road and Leach Highway/High Street.
Mr Nalder said part two was yet to be finalised, but he did apologise to Palmyra residents for the uncertainty created while he explored alternative routes.

A Palmyra resident said her family was working around the clock to finish renovations so they could be compensated appropriately if the State Government resumed her home.

“We’ve just been spending money to try to get it finished potentially so they can knock it over,” she said.

Fremantle MLA Simone McGurk argued the uncertainty was widespread and the project should be scrapped.

There is more to read HERE

 

Officials seek Federal funds

source: community news

Officials seek Federal funds

FREMANTLE WA officials are in Canberra working with the Federal Government about funding for the last piece of the Perth Freight Link.

Transport Minister Dean Nalder said a tunnel across the Swan River was scrapped when it was realised this would mean digging up to 26m underground, making it too difficult for trucks stacked with heavy containers to make the journey back to the surface.

“There’s a certain gradient you need to comply with to get the vehicles up and that meant we’d be swinging a tunnel up and around Leighton Beach / Port Beach to come back in,” he said.

“The cost of that has removed that from our consideration.”

Read the rest of the story HERE

Mayor welcomes inquiry into road decision

source: community news

 Mayor welcomes inquiry into road decision
Fremantle MLA Simone McGurk (centre) with Rethink Perth Freight Link protestors outside the Melville Cockburn Chamber of Commerce breakfast, where Mr Nalder was speaking last Wednesday.

COCKBURN Mayor Logan Howlett has welcomed news the Senate will investigate the financing and |decision-making behind the controversial Perth Freight Link (PFL) in September or October.

Mr Howlett was hopeful information that group opposed to the $1.6 billion project have been looking to scrutinise for months would be made public.

“Transparency is of the highest priority, particularly when you’re spending billions of dollars of taxpayers’ money on a project which the community are generally saying they don’t want and there’s better options available,” he said.

Meanwhile, a tunnel from Hamilton Hill through to Fremantle as part of the Roe 9 stage of the Perth Freight Link is looking increasingly likely, though it could be delayed after Transport Minister Dean Nalder said exact timing for the build was not locked in.

Mr Nalder told a business breakfast last week that being able to deliver a twin-bored tunnel railway line out to Forrestfield as part of the $2 billion airport link at a price in line with doing it above ground meant he “felt a lot more comfortable to explore this as a potential solution for getting us to the port”. 

read more from this COMMUNITY NEWS story HERE

Perth Freight Link battle continues - Comminity News

source: community news

Perth Freight Link battle continues 

Fremantle MLA Simone McGurk with anti-Perth Freight Link protestors 

THE State Government looks like it is leaning towards a tunnel through Hamilton Hill, rather than taking part two of the Perth Freight Link down Stock Road and High Street.

Transport Minister Dean Nalder said part two was yet to be finalised, but he did apologise to Palmyra residents for the “uncertainty” created while he explored alternative routes.

“We’re going through the processes and working through all the options of not only phase two of looking at a tunnel, but also the last mile which means getting it across the river and into the port,” he said.

Mr Nalder continued to defend the State Government’s refusal to release key planning documents, including the full business case for the project.

“We are going through a process and working with proponents as to the appropriate contract and the pricing that goes with that,” he said.

“We’re not going to put at risk the contract negotiations and put a potentially higher price on anything by putting out information that would put the state in a worse position.”

“The Department is working through a paper which I wish to present once we finalise the routes through to the port that we can share with the broader community [showing] exactly what we’re doing and why we’re doing it.”

Fremantle MLA Simone McGurk said there had not been due consideration to the communities that would be “harshly affected” by the $1.6 billion project.

“The Government throws these figures around – 2000 trucks off Leach Highway as a result of the Perth Freight Link – but they are giving us no figures, they are giving us no data,” she said.
“We need full disclosure about the business case and traffic modelling underpinning this investment.
Ms McGurk said with Roe 8 to be signed off in the coming months, she was unwilling to wait for the government’s paper.

“It is reasonable for the community to know the business case and traffic modelling underpinning this project well before any contracts are signed,” she said.

“If the government had confidence in this project they would release the figures and they would ensure public scrutiny.”

Community News has the original story HERE

Link concern spurs meeting - community news

source: community news

Link concern spurs meeting

A NEW community group is urging residents worried about the impact of the Perth Freight Link to attend a special electors meeting, called by the City of Melville.

The meeting, on August 17, was called after the City received a request for one, signed by 166 local residents.

The meeting will address Roe 8 and the Perth Freight Link and the impacts these will have on City of Melville residents. Electors and ratepayers of the City are welcome to attend and vote on motions.

The Melville Community Association held its inaugural meeting last Monday night at the Melville Guide Hall, where Lisa O’Malley, Rod Short and Julian Hilton took on co-ordinating roles in the residents’ group.

Ms O’Malley said MCA would aim to develop initiatives around community concerns and work towards an organisational framework.

“Our first major initiative is the special electors meeting on Monday August 17, which will address the Roe 8 and the Perth Freight Link, and the impacts for the City of Melville residents,” she said.

“The MCA strongly encourages all residents of the City of Melville with concerns about the impacts to our community of the Roe 8 and Perth Freight Link to attend.”

READ MORE HERE

Forum-goers fume over link - Community News

source: community news

Forum-goers fume over link

The hall was full to the balcony with people voicing their opposition to the Perth Freight Link.

OPPOSITION Federal Parliament secretary for WA Alannah MacTiernan claims it took 45 minutes for the State Government to ditch a new Kwinana harbour planned for decades and back the Perth Freight Link (PFL) at a meeting with Federal ministers last year.

“They said to Transport Minister Dean Nalder, ‘Forget the outer harbour, we want to bring Roe 8 out of retirement and rebadge it as the Perth Rail Link,” Ms MacTiernan told about 700 people at a PFL public forum at Fremantle Town Hall last week.

A 16km PFL from Roe Highway to North Fremantle has sparked community opposition from Cockburn to Cottesloe after Canberra announced $925 million for its 13km, $1.6 billion first stage late last year.

The stage currently ends with six lanes 1km south of Stirling Bridge but there are no second stage designs over the Swan River into North Fremantle where Fremantle Port Authority estimates put trucks rising from 3000 to 13,000 daily by 2031.

read more HERE

Union favours harbour over road - Community News

source: community news

Union favours harbour over road 

WHETHER the State Government goes with the $1.6b Perth Freight Link (PFL) or performs an unlikely backflip and brings forward development of an outer harbour at Cockburn Sound, the Transport Workers Union says current conditions are not helping drivers.

WA branch secretary Tim Dawson said the stop-start nature and congestion of the road network out of Fremantle and along Leach Highway was causing undue stress on truck drivers.

“All the stopping and starting, the number of cars on the road – people should sit in a truck and see the pressure on the drivers. It can be horrendous,” he said. “It’s not good for stress and fatigue and something has to be done.”

read more HERE

 

 

Cottesloe breaks chain in Perth Freight Link - Community News

source: community news

Cottesloe breaks chain in Perth Freight Link

COTTESLOE Council has voted against opposing the controversial $1.6 billion Perth Freight Link for a second time, after claims container trucks will avoid the link’s toll by going through the Town.
“I urge you to be less political, and more thoughtful for the long-term future of Cottesloe,” motion proponent Cr Sally Pyvis said at Monday’s meeting, not attended by Mayor Jo Dawkins who is on leave.

Last month, a vote on another motion opposing the PFL was tied 4-4, before Mrs Dawkins used her casting vote for the status quo.

On Monday, PFL opponent Cr Jack Walsh criticised staff advice that said Curtin University and Fremantle Council reports on the PFL, both of which used Fremantle Port Authority figures of up to 13,200 trucks in North Fremantle by 2031, were “not based on particular references and require the reader to accept the findings as fact”.

“I see a graph, used by the reports and the officers, showing trucks doubling by 2027, and therefore trucks doubling on Curtin Avenue,” Cr Walsh said.

Main Roads WA estimates up to 42 per cent of port trucks use side roads.

However, deputy mayor Peter Jeanes, a daily commuter on the PFL’s proposed route to Roe Highway, said the “worst” outcome for Cottesloe would be if the PFL and a stalled Kwinana harbour for containers were not built.

Cr Jeanes said this could result in more trucks using Cottesloe to avoid a current North Fremantle to East Fremantle traffic bottleneck.

Cr Rob Rowell said opposing the PFL would not change trucks’ use of Curtin Avenue until there was a heavy haulage alternative to the route through the Town.

Opposing the PFL failed in a 3-5 vote, before all councillors backed asking the State Government to remove Cottesloe roads from routes used by trucks with restricted loads, to cap the number of Fremantle Port containers and build the Kwinana harbour and provide PFL costs and modelling.

read the original story HERE