F6 And Rail Link Top Our Wish List

Illawarra Mercury

Thursday December 13, 2007

By PAUL McINERNEY

WOLLONGONG tourism chief Jim Eddy yesterday called on Premier Morris to play Santa Claus and dispense some extra infrastructure goodies to the region from his bulging $15 billion energy sell-off sack.

The Tourism Wollongong chairman claimed the city and region were lagging behind the rest of Australia because not enough had been invested into infrastructure by the NSW Government.

"In 1976, Wollongong was the eighth largest city in the country, but by 1996 it had dropped to ninth and last year it found itself in 10th spot," Mr Eddy said.

He echoed the calls from Wollongong Lord Mayor Alex Darling and Illawarra Business Chamber CEO Mark Grimson for additional funding for critical infrastructure spending.

"The massive proceeds from Morris Iemma and his government are a unique opportunity to deliver something extra to a region which has stayed loyal to Labor for many decades," Mr Eddy said.

Mr Eddy said he saw a number of infrastructure priorities that were critical for the future development of the city and the region.

He said it was vital for the construction of the F6 extension in southern Sydney to go ahead as quickly as possible and that the scrapped plans for a better, faster passenger rail link between Sydney and Wollongong should be placed back on the drawing board.

"The government must push on with the upgrade of Grand Pacific Drive and which I believe should be treated as part of the development of the Blue Mile development," Mr Eddy said.

The cost of the combined project would be about $60 million, he said.

Mr Eddy said one of the most pressing needs for the city was the construction of a conference and exhibition centre.

"Of the 15 most important cities in Australia only two do not have such a facility and Wollongong is one of them," he said.

Mr Grimson backed his calls, pointing out that the NSW Government's Illawarra Strategy released earlier this year contained no reference to infrastructure.

"If the government is serious about job creation in the magnitude of 30,000 jobs over the next 20 or so years than it must look at building infrastructure that will help cope with that expansion," Mr Grimson said.

"An equitable share of the proceeds from the power industry privatisation will be a good start."

On Monday, Cr Darling wrote to the Premier urging him to give consideration to funding the F6 extensions from the energy asset sale.

YOUR SAY

Tell us what you want from the State Government for Christmas.

illawarramercury.com.au

THE REGION'S CHRISTMAS WISH LIST

1 HIGH-SPEED WOLLONGONG TO SYDNEY RAIL LINK

A rail tunnel between Thirroul and Waterfall was announced with much fanfare by the Carr government as part of its $4 billion Transport 2010 strategy which would reduce travel times between Wollongong and Sydney by up to 25 minutes.

In April 2004, the Government killed off the proposal after baulking at the $1.4 billion price tag.

Two other options were available costing less than $800 million, but which would still reduce travelling times.

2 SOUTHERN SYDNEY F6 FREEWAY EXTENSION

A corridor from the present F6 end point at Waterfall through to the M5 and Southern Cross Drive junction at Sydney Airport has been set aside for 50 years.

This is a project which is seen as critical for the future development of the region.

The NRMA, Wollongong City Council and the Illawarra Business Chamber have intensified lobbying for the extension in light of the Government's $15 billion windfall from the proposed sell-off of state power assets.

3 COMPLETION OF THE MALDON-DOMBARTON RAIL LINE

Mothballed by the Greiner government in the late 1980s, new life was breathed into the $300 million project after Labor gave a federal election pledge to finance a feasibility study into completing the partially built freight line.

If the go-ahead is given for construction, the Federal Government would most likely seek a private investor. Any financial commitment by the Iemma government now rests on the business case to be mounted as part of the study.

4 PRINCES HWY UPGRADE TO BATEMANS BAY

Dubbed the highway from hell, the NSW Government is committed to spending $380 million over four years on the road.

Work on the missing Dunmore to Oak Flats section is under construction and options for the next stage from Kiama to Berry are on public display. The Government claims it needs federal funding to make a dual carriageway from Kiama to Batemans Bay a reality over the next decade.

5 FAST-TRACKING OF WEST DAPTO

Planning of the billion-dollar development appears to have stalled as treasury and planning officials continue to decide just how much developers will be forced to pay in levies.

Delays and uncertainty over levies has raised serious concerns from the Australian Property Council which claims developers cannot make multimillion-dollar decisions without certainty. Low infrastructure charges are critical to making housing affordable in the land release area.

6 UPGRADE OF THE GRAND PACIFIC DRIVE AND BLUE MILE DEVELOPMENTS

The opening of Sea Cliff Bridge and its use as a tourist marketing tool has put the old highway alignment under enormous pressure for increased traffic and visitor numbers.

A major upgrade of Lawrence Hargrave Dr with additional parking and visitor areas has been identified as part of a scoping review of the route containing 203 recommendations. There are calls on the Government to treat the proposed $48 million Blue Mile as part of the road upgrade project.

© 2007 Illawarra Mercury

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