Re: [Adelaide] White cement elephant

["Barry Campbell" <campblbm@ozemail.com.au>]

Peter Homann wrote in message <3A30A549.C6EA3DC2@optushome.com.au>...
>Tell wrote:
>
>> South Australian pollies since Premier Dunstan have no
>> interest in Railways.

>Yes they have - all of them.
>
>As long as you're talking about closing, dismantling, ripping up or
>whatever, they're all ears!
>
>As for the route, does it stop at the southern "expressway", or continue
>beyond?
>
<snip>
 I haven't been to Adelaide since 1979 and I hadn't lived in a capital city
since 1972 (Sydney) until 1999 when I finally gave up and moved to Brisbane.
I currently live in the bush out of Beenleigh and work on the Royal Brisbane
Hospital Campus at Herston. One good thing about this area is that we get
the best of both types of trnaport because of the proximity of the Gold
Coast. I have commuted by train for long periods which involves leaving home
at 6.35am and arrival in the Valley at 7.40. By the time I get to work it's
8am. OTOH if I drive I get to work at 7.30 am from the same start. Rarely
drop below  80 km/hr and I have only 4 sets of traffic lights, 3 in
Beenleigh. Similar stories could be told in any of the smaller capital
cities.

 Population growth is predicted to make a difference to the  comfort of car
commuting in Brisbane in ten years or so but I will be getting to retiring
age then. Those population pressures do not exist in a static city like
Adelaide. Given that only a minute percentage of commuters use public
transport of any kind it makes sense to politicians to continue promoting
freeways which people generally like when you have the knowledge that you
can get ahead of traffic congestion by building more.

What odd bits that are left can take the bus.

I must say I don't think this is necessarily the best position but it has
inescapable logic to politicians who are eleted to do what the people want.


Barry Campbell