Page 924 - Week 04 - Thursday, 3 May 2007
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What is the difference between this and the work done in the 1960s by the commonwealth in reserving land for the construction of the Gungahlin Drive expressway? The land lay empty, unused and unrestricted for 40 years before the Gungahlin Drive extension was commenced. It lay for 40 years as a dedicated, reserved land for planned transport infrastructure, just as the Belconnen to Civic busway is.
MR STEFANIAK: I am still uncertain whether it was done by cabinet or Mr Hargreaves. What discussions did you, Chief Minister, have with Mr Hargreaves—did you have any with him?—before he made these announcements?
MR STANHOPE: There was no decision for cabinet to make on the Belconnen-city busway. The Belconnen-city busway and the planning that has been done for it are an exemplary piece of forward thinking and planning by a government that understands its responsibilities to the community.
Explain to me what you would do in future years, as you sought to respond to our climate change, greenhouse gas and public transport needs in relation to busways for the city. You would look back and do what? Would you compulsorily acquire that infrastructure that had been built all over a potential busway? What would you do? Would you build tunnels? I know Mrs Dunne’s initial response to the Gungahlin Drive extension was to tunnel completely under O’Connor Ridge. She was prepared to do it in the current circumstance. Imagine if the reserve had not been there for us to utilise.
The commentary that has been made on the Belconnen-city busway was a commentary on: will it be funded and constructed? The answer for this year is quite clearly no. I imagine the answer for next year is quite clearly no. Beyond that, I do not think it is particularly profitable to speculate. Let me say and repeat: I have absolutely no doubt that the Belconnen-city busway will be constructed at some time, at some stage that is appropriate, in the future. It is necessary; it is viable.
The minister and ACTPLA are to be congratulated for undertaking the planning for this first phase of an extended public transport corridor for the people of the ACT. They are to be commended; they are to be congratulated. It was fundamentally important work. I am pleased that it has been undertaken.
There are two questions, though. The first is the need to reserve the land to ensure that infrastructure can be built in an uninhibited and unconstrained way. We now have that capacity, just as we have it as we now build the Gungahlin Drive extension on land reserved by planners such as those that we now have in ACTPLA, developed by a minister such as the minister who developed the Belconnen-city busway project.
It is vital planning, and we need to do more of it. We need to ensure, as we develop this city, that we do not constrain our capacity to look to our future needs. I would have thought any government worth its salt and any community that was concerned about its future would have wanted a government that had the capacity, the understanding and the intelligence to look to the future needs of the city.
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