Re: Melbourne Darwin Railway

[Andrei Souprounovich <andrei@ausisp.com>]

from:
http://www.dotrs.gov.au/media/anders/archive/2000/jul_00/a111_2000.htm

Media Release
John Anderson
Minister for transport and regional services

14 July 2000
A111/2000

INLAND RAILWAY STUDY SHOWS PROMISING RESULTS

The Federal Government today welcomed completion of a pre-feasibility study into
a
proposal to build a private inland railway between Melbourne and Brisbane.

"It’s a captivating concept – and now we have available some work to flesh out
the idea –
the proponents and governments can give it some serious consideration," the
Deputy Prime
Minister and Minister for Transport and Regional Services, John Anderson, said
today at the
Queensland National Party State Conference on the Gold Coast.

The Commonwealth provided a $300,000 grant towards the pre-feasibility study
conducted
for ATEC (Australian Transport and Energy Corridor Ltd), as an indication of the

preparedness of the Government to foster major infrastructure projects.

"The consultant’s findings look promising. This work should provide the basis
for a
commercial decision whether to proceed to a full feasibility test of the
proposed railway
service."

The consultants concluded that minimalist options to create a Melbourne -
Brisbane inland
freight corridor demonstrated strong financial viability and could be
implemented on a no
cost to Government basis.

This would be based on utilising the existing rail network through Victoria and
NSW and
building a new standard gauge line into Brisbane. The study found that
investment on
existing and new railway lines could be justified up to total project costs in
the range $1.2 to
$1.4 billion.

The study findings will be assessed, Mr Anderson said, to see how the proposal
could be
developed further by private enterprise and what role governments may have in
that event.

"The State Governments of Queensland, NSW and Victoria will need to do
likewise," he said.

"This is an important matter for a large part of Regional Australia – for the
many primary
producers, businesses and communities who might eventually access such a
railway."

"ATEC, as proponents of the inland railway, have made a significant step forward
through
this pre-feasibility study. What we now need to do is understand what it means
for the
various interested parties – including the Commonwealth and State Governments –
and what
steps may be involved in moving the proposal forward," Mr Anderson said.