Infrastructure Australia’s latest audit report suggests almost $40 billion is at stake if transport congestion cannot keep pace with the growing population by 2031.
With seven out of 10 work commutes taken by car and just one by public transport, the comparative costs for crowded public transport are projected to cost $837 million every year by the turn of the next decade.
It’s the first time IA has audited the cost of public transport crowding in large cities, and the results are in defiance of the “significant investments in new transport infrastructure across our largest cities, particularly Sydney and Melbourne”.
The IA report says Australia’s transport networks “must work harder” to encourage its use and that the 97 major infrastructure projects between Melbourne and Sydney since 2015 are merely a sign of “largely playing ‘catch-up’ rather providing additional capacity that will support substantial future growth.”
With investment in the public sector close to record levels, there is an urgent financial sustainability problem facing governments and commuters, as a “a weak link between usage and expenditure on the network” emerges.
The increase in vehicle fuel efficiency has created “a growing disparity between increasing traffic and the decreasing return of funds to governments from fuel excise”.
Fuel excise has decreased 20% in the 20 years to 2018, and “the gap between expenditure and income is as true of public transport as it is of roads,” the report states.
Cost recovery in Australia’s public transport is also a glaring blackhole for the economy.
“Many wellutilised transport networks cannot generate sufficient revenue in order to cover the costs of providing the service,” the report reveals.
” The average public transport cost recovery from fares is low by international standards, averaging
less than 30%… low in comparison to cities like Toronto, Auckland and Wellington (New Zealand),” it adds.
The Australian Automobile Association says there are 33 passenger transport
challenges facing the country.
Chief executive Michael Bradley says the report’s urgent calling for “congestion-busting infrastructure and road safety” couldn’t come at a better time.
“With so many complex issues, it’s clear we need a comprehensive national review and discussion on land transport via a White Paper process; it’s 15 years since the last Land Transport White Paper was completed,” he says.
“This has profound implications for how Australia manages freight demands and deals with congestion in our major cities, Bradley explains.
When making transport policy, decision makers must keep in mind that Australian motorists bring their own money to the table. Over the next four years, motorists will contribute about $60 billion in federal transport-specific taxes,” he adds.
Join the conversation