Re: [NSW] Road Knowledge For Dummies Part 3

[neumannc <neumannc@ozemail.com.au>]

Dave Proctor wrote:
> 
> 
> The west of Sydney will become very anti-Labor - Carr promised at the 1995
> election to remove the tolls from the M4 and M5 - after he was elected, he
> found out it would be too costly, and instituted a "CashBack" scheme
> instead, where you have to open an account with the toll companies, give
> them oyur credit card details, they hit your card to open an account with
> them (so you incur interest charges) and every three months you fill out an
> application and the government reimburses you. Most people find it to be too
> much hassle and don't bother.
> 
> BUT - it was announced today that the M4 toll will be going up next week
> from $1.60 to $2.20. I can see the Libs making an issue of this in western
> and south-western electorates, based on the broken promise to lift the tolls
> (despite the fact it was a coalition government which approved the contracts
> which made them tollways in the first place).
> 
> Feelings are running hot out here (in Penrith at least) as the planned
> increase will add $6 per week to the tolls of those travelling to the city
> on a daily basis.

Don't forget that after spending $750M on the Eastern Distributor and
$600M on the Airport Rail Link Carl (I am a westie) Scully is now
setting up to spend $400M on a 2km Cross City Tunnel - all of these in
Eastern Sydney.

And what is Western Sydney getting?  Well all that we can see so far is
a couple of kilometres of unused bus-only roadway in Scully's electorate
and the continuation of private bus services in Western Sydney.  No
other forward thinking government in the world is putting public money
into these poor excuses for rail transport in major corridors.

Chris