Re: Alice to Darwin Line

Garry R. Ford (NOSPAMgarry"@NOSPAMmerddyn.apana.org.au)
Sat, 09 Aug 1997 18:33:40 +1000

mauried@commslab.gov.au wrote:
>
> >Maurie Daly wrote:
> >>
> >> In article <5r7qnd$818@proxy5.proxy.ozemail.net> telljb@ozemail.com.au
> (Terry Burton) writes:
> >> >From: telljb@ozemail.com.au (Terry Burton)
> >> >Subject: Re: Alice to Darwin Line
> >> >Date: Thu, 24 Jul 1997 15:02:09 GMT
> >
> >
> >> >The Dream is, Darwin will become the Container Port for
> >> >Australia with double stack Trains spearing off West at
> >> >Tarcoola, East at Crystal Brook and South to Adelaide.
> >
> >There is nothing wrong with the dream of Darwin as the chief container
> >port for Australia to the nother, just the routing of the line.
>
> Unfortunately there are heaps of things wrong with it from a State perspective.
> >From a National viewpoint a single Port at Darwin is an excellent idea,close
> to most of our trading neighbours, modern facility
...

> Most , if not all goods will need to travel via the new port and the new
> line in order to make the line a success, nothing wrong with any of this ,
> but it means a few nasties for the states of VICTORIA,NSW and Queensland
> ,who at the moment have the lions share of imports and exports going thru
> their ports.
> In short the existing ports of Brisbane , Sydney & Melb will basically
> become redundant.
>
This statement is totally untrue and very misleading.

The only imports and exports will be those heading to the S.E Asia area.

Brisbane (and Sydney) will still be viable ports for goods to the North
East and East.

(BTW more tonnage goes through Gladstone and ports north I believe
anyway, than Brisbane.)

Melbourne is perhaps the only port to suffer, but it would still have
New Zealand Tasmania and perhaps some western traffic.

> The Hawke Govt found convenient reasons not to build the line.

As have and will all governments: that route is a complete waste of
taxpayers money, nothing else.

The sooner trucks (long distance) are off the road the better. Even the
large trucking companies now realise this and use block trains city to
city.

Cheers
Garry