Committee for Sydney speech main points

27 October 2005

Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP said: "the main points from the speech I gave to the Committee for Sydney yesterday are: 

• Our transport problems and increasing road congestion are threatening Sydney's future. 
  
• Transport is central to our national economic development, and it is central to quality of life in our cities. 
  
• State and Federal Governments have been ignoring the problem and Sydney needs to have the debate about what the solutions are. 
  
• I'm calling for a new Transport Co-ordination Agency to cover both public transport and roads. 
  
• We need fully integrated ticketing on all forms of public transport. 
  
• If E-tolling is used constructively, in the public interest, it has the potential to better manage demand on roads and subsidise more investment in public transport. 
  
• E-tolling technology could be used to standardise road charges and encourage non-peak travel. 
  
• Need to look at the lessons from other world cities - how they have used E-tolling to help manage congestions and fund transport improvements, eg London (congestion tax) and Singapore (an E-toll device fitted to all vehicles). 
  
• Need to improve public transport, so people have a real alternative to cars - can't just impose congestion tax or road tolling in isolation. 
  
• E-tolling is not the only answer - it is just one option available to Governments in a range of measures which can lead to major improvements in our current transport system. 
  
• I'm promoting debate - the major parties are avoiding it because there are no easy answers, and they have been too busy concentrating on marginal seats in outer metropolitan and regional areas, at the expense of our cities and our economic future.
   
• I'm introducing legislation into Parliament to make major contracts public.

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