Page 3542 - Week 12 - Thursday, 20 September 1990
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Athllon Drive provides a direct link between the Woden and Tuggeranong town centres and any improvements to this road must be considered in the context of the central role it has been assigned as an inter-town transportation link.
The proposition for the role of that road was the subject of a substantial consultation with the community in 1986-87 and massive investment on the strategy agreed at that time has taken place - for example, on the Eastern and Tuggeranong parkways. That investment is being further boosted by an additional allocation of some $11m this year on the Eastern Parkway. The first report on Athllon Drive was made publicly available in early 1989 and some further subsequent discussions have taken place. The proposal gives bus travellers, often the less well-off in the community, a much improved service and saves ACTION considerable recurrent costs. The Government believes that it is important for this work to proceed.
I noted with some regret, Mr Speaker, that, while the committee called for submissions from the public, only five, in fact, were received. The public hearings held by Assembly committees such as this are an important way for the public and special interest groups, such as the construction industry, in this case, to have input into the decision making process of government. The lack of response on an important issue such as the new capital works program is, frankly, most disappointing.
As its major theme, Mr Speaker, the committee looked at the extent of community consultation undertaken in the development of the capital works program. The committee has subsequently made a number of recommendations, the most far-reaching of which proposes broad-based community or regional consultative groups to provide input on construction proposals. The Government supports this proposal but considers that existing community groups provide the appropriate access. While the Government has adopted the former approach for consultation with the public in the development of the Territory Plan, we do not see that there is any application for this approach in the capital works arena when the current practices are, frankly, quite successful.
In the majority of cases, construction proposals have a fairly localised influence and therefore liaising one-to-one directly with the groups or individuals who are likely to be affected by the proposed work is a far more effective means of consultation. The Government will therefore continue the current practice of consultation with the public by speaking with those who may be directly affected.
Where projects have a broader influence, such as in many roadworks, it is important to develop broad consultation programs in the context of the Territory Plan and environmental impact statements. Of course, there may well be some further consultation required for particular projects beyond that stage. Indeed, the Assembly's
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