As at 14th October 2004, the document could also be found on the Liberal Party website.

BUILDING OUR NATIONAL TRANSPORT FUTURE
 

BUILDING OUR NATIONAL TRANSPORT FUTURE
 

TABLE OF CONTENTS
 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY................................................2
 

PART 1 ROADS INFRASTRUCTURE........................5
 

(i) Building the AusLink National
 

Network..................................................5
 

(ii) Roads to Recovery..........................................8
 

(iii) Road Safety...................................................10
 

(iv) National Black Spot Programme....................11
 

(v) Fuel................................................................12
 

PART 2 RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE..........................13
 

(i) The Revitalisation of Rail...............................13
 

(ii) Sydney Intermodal Freight Terminal..............14
 

(iii) Melbourne to Darwin Inland Railway............14
 

PARTS AVIATION..............................................15
 

(i) International Aviation.....................................15
 

(ii) Domestic Aviation..........................................16
 

(iii) Regional Aviation...........................................16
 

(iv) Aviation Regulation........................................16
 

(v) Aviation Infrastructure....................................18
 

PART 4 SHIPPING..............................................19
 

(i) Waterfront Reform.........................................19
 

(ii) Bass Strait Shipping......................................19
 

PART 5 TRANSPORT SECURITY...........................21
 

(i) Strengthening Aviation Security.....................21
 

(ii) Maritime Security...........................................23
 

(iii) Land Transport Security................................24
 

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GOVERNMENT'S ACHIEVEMENTS . 25 LABOR'S ALTERNATIVE............................................27
 

COSTINGS SUMMARY...............................................30
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
 

The transport system is vitally important to the future of Australia, and the Coalition has a visionary plan to make it stronger, safer and more efficient. Building Our National Transport Future extends the measures set out in the AusLink white paper and reflects the Coalition's strong commitment to developing our transport sector.
 

PART 1 ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE
 

Australia faces an enormous increase in the demand for land transport over the next twenty years. The total amount of freight on our roads is forecast to double.
 

Building Our National Transport Future sets out $650 million over five years in extra funding for Australia's roads, in addition to the $11.8 billion in funding for land transport the Coalition Government announced in the AusLink White Paper.
 

Over five years the additional funding comprises:
 

• $290 million to upgrade the AusLink National Network;
 

• $120 million for the Scoresby Freeway, provided the Victorian Government reverses its decision to impose tolls;
 

• $150 million on top of the already announced $1.2 billion for the Roads to Recovery programme to be provided directly to local councils; and
 

• $90 million to extend the Road Safety Black Spot Programme for a further two years.
 

In addition, a re-elected Coalition Government will work with the states and territories to establish a national, compulsory driver education scheme for provisional drivers. The scheme will commence nationally by 2007.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

PART 2 RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE
 

Under a re-elected Coalition Government, there will be a $1.8 billion investment in the rail system over the next five years. The investment will deliver a more effective rail system for exporters and manufacturers, and reduce the growth in the number of heavy trucks on our roads.
 

We will consider reserving land at Moorebank in Sydney for a new intermodal freight terminal, which will eliminate a major bottleneck in the national transport of freight.
 

PART 3 AVIATION
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will press on with negotiating liberalised international aviation agreements including, as a priority, an open skies agreement with the European Union.
 

Under the Coalition, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority will continue to reform the aviation regulations to achieve our objective of safety through clarity. We will not introduce regulations that stifle growth in aviation for no safety benefit.
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will immediately carry out a review of the governance, structure and organisational performance of Airservices Australia.
 

We will not build a second Sydney Airport, and will retain full regulatory control of aircraft noise management. Sydney Airport will continue to be subject to the 80 movements per hour cap, the curfew and the Long Term Operating Plan (LTOP). Regional airlines will continue to have guaranteed access to the airport.
 

PART 4 SHIPPING
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will ensure that Australia's waterfront continues to exceed our productivity target of 25 container movements per hour.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

We will continue the Bass Strait Passenger Vehicle Equalisation Scheme and the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme.
 

PART 5 TRANSPORT SECURITY
 

The Coalition has a plan to strengthen our aviation and port security, which will build on the wide range of measures that we have carried out since 11 September 2001.
 

The Coalition Government has set a target of 100 percent checked bag screening for all international flights by the end of 2004. It has already introduced 100 percent checked bag screening on some international routes; i.e. Indonesia and the United States.
 

We will make all 146 of Australia's regional airports more secure, not just the 17 regional airports announced by Labor.
 

We have committed $102 million over the next four years to strengthen Australia's maritime security. The funding will enable the Australian Customs Service to x-ray more containers, expand its closed circuit surveillance system and scrutinise more vessels.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

PART 1 ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE
 

Australia faces enormous land transport challenges over the next twenty years. The Government's forecasters predict that the total amount of freight on our roads will double while passenger travel will rise by 40 percent.
 

The Coalition has a visionary plan to meet these challenges: AusLink. It is Australia's first national land transport plan since Federation, and is a new framework for planning and developing our roads and railways.
 

The AusLink white paper, released in June 2004, set out $11.8 billion of spending on Australia's roads and railways over the next five years, including $4 billion for local roads.
 

The Coalition is announcing today that we will spend an additional $650 million on Australia's roads. This will bring total spending on Australia's roads and railways to $12.5 billion over the next five years.
 

0) Building the AusLink National Network
 

The new AusLink National Network consists of Australia's most important road and rail links, including the key urban freight routes. It incorporates the former National Highway system and many Roads of National Importance.
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will spend an additional $290 million on the AusLink National Network and has offered an additional $120 million for Victoria's Scoresby Freeway.
 

NEW SOUTH WALES
 

• $35 million in 2005-06 to accelerate work on the Coolac Bypass. The bypass will replace a dangerous black spot on the Hume Highway, and is the most urgent project in the Coalition's plan to duplicate the highway by 2012. The funding is timed to coincide with the start of major construction, and will be brought forward from 2007-08 and 2008-09.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

VICTORIA
 

• A $21 million contribution to the cost of the Pakenham Bypass, east of Melbourne. The Coalition's total commitment to the bypass will now be $121 million. The project will bypass Pakenham and Officer and will reduce accidents, congestion and delays on the Princes Highway. The Victorian Government will have to meet the remainder of the cost of the project.
 

• $120 million for the Scoresby Freeway, provided the Victorian Government reverses its decision to impose tolls. The Coalition's total commitment to the freeway is now $565 million, including $23.5 million that was paid to Victoria for pre-construction works before it decided to impose the tolls.
 

Queensland
 

• A $40 million contribution over four years to the cost of a Townsville ring road, which will connect the current Douglas Arterial Road and Condon Bridge project to the Bruce Highway north of Townsville. It will enable heavy vehicles to bypass the city, reducing traffic and congestion in the suburbs of Vincent, Heatley, Cranbrook, Aitkenvale and Mount Louisa.
 

• $80 million over four years to meet the full cost of flood-proofing the Bruce Highway near Tully, south of Cairns.
 

• $2 million over two years to improve the safety of the Bruce Highway near Miriam Vale, south of Gladstone. This section of the highway has a history of accidents and near-misses, particularly near the turnoff to Agnes Water and Seventeen Seventy.
 

• $3 million for the Callemondah Overpass, which will complete the western leg of Gladstone's southern bypass from the Dawson Highway to Hanson Road. The overpass will replace the existing level crossings of the North Coast Railway Line and the Moura Line, and will enable B-doubles and dangerous goods vehicles to use the bypass.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

• A further $4 million in 2004-05 to continue land purchases along the route of the planned Toowoomba bypass and second range crossing. The funding builds on our ongoing commitment to this project.
 

• In addition, a re-elected Coalition Government will participate in a feasibility study to scope fully the financial, environmental and civil engineering specifications for an integrated road and rail corridor through the Toowoomba range. The feasibility of this corridor to accommodate a water pipeline will also be assessed. The Coalition will be seeking the participation of the Queensland Government and the private sector, including the Australasian Railway Association, in the project.
 

• A $2 million contribution over the next two years to the prefeasibility study for the first stage of the Brisbane TransApex tunnel project. A re-elected Coalition Government will consider further contributions to the project under the AusLink White Paper evaluation arrangements, once the prefeasibility study is complete.
 

South Australia
 

South Australia will receive an additional $118 million, 40.7 percent, of the extra $290 million allocated to AusLink National Network projects in Building Our National Transport Future.
 

• $110 million to accelerate the construction of the Sturt Highway Extension, which will form the new northern road access to Adelaide. The funding builds on the $36 million contribution that we announced in the AusLink white paper.
 

• The Coalition's contribution towards stages two and three of the Port River Expressway has been brought forward to allow its completion over the next three years. The expressway includes new road and rail connections across the Port River and will link Adelaide's industrial areas to its port. $55 million of funding will be brought forward from 2007-08 and 2008-09.
 

• $5 million to upgrade West Avenue, a key transport link between manufacturers located in Elizabeth West, Edinburgh Park and Holden.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

• $3 million in 2005-06 to upgrade the intersection of Hampstead, Mullers and Regency Roads. Hampstead Road is one of Adelaide's key urban corridors. The intersection has a high crash rate and is congested during peak periods.
 

Western Australia
 

• $20 million for the Peel Deviation, a new highway alignment east of Mandurah, on the condition major construction begins in 2006. The Coalition Government has already committed $150 million to the project under AusLink. The additional funding is provided to meet additional costs associated with this important project.
 

(if) Roads to Recovery
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will dramatically increase the guaranteed Roads to Recovery funding that will be paid to local councils between 2005-06 and 2008-09.
 

In addition to the funding announced in AusLink, Building our National Transport Future will provide an additional 50 percent of funding directly to local councils under Roads to Recovery.
 

Roads to Recovery is the Coalition's highly successful programme that helps local councils maintain and upgrade their local roads. It is the largest investment in local roads ever undertaken by an Australian Government.
 

12,000 local road projects throughout Australia will be funded under the first four year Roads to Recovery Programme, and has been particularly important in regional areas where councils maintain large road networks with limited resources.
 

Under the Roads to Recovery programme, we are providing
 

$1.2 billion to local councils on the basis of a funding formula. Every
 

local council in Australia is receiving funding.
 

The existing programme ends in June 2005. The Coalition Government has already announced that the Roads to Recovery programme will be extended for another four years, from 2005-06 to 2008-09, at a total cost of $1.2 billion.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

The AusLink white paper envisaged that the extended programme would be split into two funding streams: $800 million over four years provided directly to councils and $400 million over four years provided for projects of strategic regional importance.
 

Councils have reinforced that the Roads to Recovery programme has made an enormous difference in reducing the backlog on necessary road maintenance and this should continue to be the focus of the programme.
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will increase the funding allocated directly to councils to ensure they receive $300 million a year under the programme, allocated by formula. Under this arrangement every council in Australia will receive about 50 percent more guaranteed funding on top of that announced under AusLink. This will ensure every council receives their fair share.
 

The Coalition will also provide a total of $150 million over five years from 2004-05 to 2008-09 for local road projects of strategic regional importance and to local roads in the unincorporated areas of NSW, Victoria, South Australia and the Northern Territory where there are no local councils.
 

These unincorporated areas will receive $30 million under the Coalition's Building Our National Transport Future policy.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

The table below summarises the new arrangements for the programme:
 

aĞĞ Ğ)
 

The Coalition Government's funding for local roads under Roads to Recovery is in addition to the $2.55 billion over the next five years that will be provided to local councils as untied local roads grants.
 

The Coalition remains committed to providing this road funding directly to local councils as we believe they are in the best position to determine their local road needs.
 

Road Safety
 

Over a quarter of all drivers killed and seriously injured each year are aged between 17 and 25. It is a shocking figure.
 

Building Our National Transport Future
 

10
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will work with the states and territories to introduce a national compulsory driver education scheme for all new provisional licence holders.
 

The scheme will reduce the number of young people killed and maimed on our roads, and will focus on providing young drivers with a better insight into the risks they face and their own limitations.
 

As an initial step, a re-elected Coalition Government will spend $1 million in 2004-05, matched by the motor vehicle industry through the FCAI and the relevant state government, to establish a large scale trial of the scheme in one state.
 

The scheme will be rolled out nationally by 2007.
 

The Coalition will also support the proposed AusRAP system that seeks to assess roads according to the risk of serious crashes and provides a "star" rating. We will pursue this in conjunction with the National Road Safety Strategy.
 

Civ) National Black Spot Programme
 

The Coalition reintroduced the National Black Spot Programme in 1996, after it was abolished by Labor. The programme reduces the risk of accidents at dangerous locations on our roads, by funding measures such as traffic lights and roundabouts.
 

The existing programme ends in June 2006.
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will spend an additional $90 million to extend the Black Spot Programme for a further two years, from 2006-07 to 2007-08. This will fund our ongoing Black Spot commitment to the end of the current forward estimates cycle. The Coalition will consider extending the programme further closer to 2008-09.
 

The funding will enable us to reduce the risk of accidents at about 750 locations across Australia. $45 million will be reserved for projects in rural areas, because 60 percent of fatalities and 50 percent of serious injuries occur on regional roads.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 11
 

Our decision to extend the Black Spots Programme can be expected to prevent more than 1,000 serious crashes across Australia.
 

(v) Fuel
 

The Coalition will retain Australia's low fuel taxation regime and will continue to simplify fuel tax administration for transport and other businesses.
 

We will freeze the excise on petrol and diesel for on-road use at 38.143 cents per litre.
 

We will retain the existing 100 percent excise rebates for business off-road use of diesel, and we will phase in full rebates for all business off-road fuel use (including petrol) from 2008, taking full effect from 2012.
 

The existing urban-regional boundaries for heavy vehicle excise credits will be abolished from 1 July 2006. For heavy transport vehicles, excise credits will be replaced by a road user charge from the same date.
 

A simplified system allowing excise credits to be claimed on Business Activity Statements (BAS) will start on 1 July 2006.
 

Under a re-elected Coalition Government, alternative fuels such as ethanol, biodiesel, and LPG will remain excise free until 1 July 2011. Discounted excise rates will be phased in from that date, taking full effect from 2015.
 

For three years from 1 July 2011, a $1,000 subsidy will be available to consumers who purchase a new dedicated or dual-fuel LPG vehicle.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 12
 

PART 2 RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE
 

0) The Revitalisation of Rail
 

Under a re-elected Coalition Government, $1.8 billion will be invested in Australia's interstate rail infrastructure over the next five years. The investment is only possible because of our strong, responsible management of the Australian economy.
 

Australia faces an enormous challenge managing the forecasted increase in the demand for land transport over the next twenty years.
 

It is estimated that non-bulk road freight will almost double, and interstate road freight will more than double. The land transport system will not be able to cope unless the proportion of freight carried by rail is increased, particularly between Melbourne and Brisbane.
 

The $1.8 billion investment in the rail system will have two components:
 

• An $872 million investment by the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC), the Australian Government corporation that recently concluded negotiations for a 60 year lease of the NSW interstate and Hunter Valley rail networks. As a result of the agreement, one organisation (Australian Rail Track Corporation) is able to sell track access to train operators over the full length of the interstate main line from Perth to the Queensland border. This ends 150 years of confusion and myopia in the management of Australia's railways, and fulfils the Coalition's 2001 election promise to create a seamless interstate freight network with uniform management practices.
 

• The remainder of the investment programme will be funded through AusLink, our national land transport plan.
 

The Coalition's rail investment plan will deliver a more effective rail transport system for exporters and manufacturers, which will link with complementary logistics networks such as roads and ports.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 13
 

It will benefit rail employees and businesses, small and large alike, whose livelihoods depend on an efficient interstate rail network, particularly in regional Australia.
 

(ii) Sydney Intermodal Freight Terminal
 

The lack of an intermodal freight terminal in Sydney is an impediment to the national transport of freight.
 

The Coalition Government has identified defence land at Moorebank as surplus to future needs, which will be considered for an intermodal freight terminal as a critical part of the AusLink land transport plan.
 

Ajointtaskforce will guide the transition of the land and determine the timeframe for the establishment of the hub. The NSW Government will be invited to join the taskforce.
 

Any land made available will be offered to the market by means of a competitive tendering process. It has the potential to create thousands of jobs and act as an incubator for new transport-related industries.
 

(iff) Melbourne-Darwin Inland Railway
 

The Coalition Government acknowledges the Melbourne-Darwin inland railway concept as proposed by a private consortium.
 

To date, we have committed about $1 million to pre-feasibility studies.
 

The lease by the Australian Rail Track Corporation of the NSW interstate and Hunter Valley networks has secured a corridor (Werris Creek to Boggabilla) which will be a private sector venture. Three private sector consortia have expressed interest in the Melbourne-Brisbane corridor.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 14
 

PART 3 AVIATION
 

Australia's airlines carry millions of passengers a year and are a vital link between our country and the rest of the world. A re-elected Coalition Government will continue to pursue aviation reform, and will press on with ensuring our aviation laws are simple, straightforward and internationally harmonised.
 

0) International Aviation
 

The Coalition is firmly committed to the liberalisation of our skies where it is in the national interest. Our approach will ensure that Australia's airlines grow and operate profitably, while at the same time maximising the opportunities for international airlines to serve Australia and help our tourism industry.
 

We will continue to engage other governments to negotiate more liberalised aviation agreements, which will benefit Australia and Australian airlines. The issue of trans-Pacific rights and other beyond rights from Australia will be revisited once there is greater stability in the global aviation environment.
 

One of our priorities will be to remove the barriers that Australian international airlines face when trying to access other markets. To this end, we will continue negotiating with the European Union to establish a full open skies agreement with Europe.
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will continue to pursue mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs) with New Zealand, because they will significantly reduce the administrative burden on airlines. Under the MRAs .airlines will no longer be required to hold duplicate certification issued by both countries - a major step forward in the trans-Tasman aviation market.
 

In line with our 2001 election commitment, we will continue to offer our bilateral aviation partners unrestricted access to Australia's regional international gateways.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 15
 

Qi) Domestic Aviation
 

The Coalition Government has successfully removed the barriers to entry for new domestic airlines - a policy that has seen the establishment of Virgin Blue as a major local carrier. More Australians than ever before are flying and airline load factors are at historic highs. A re-elected Coalition Government will work to ensure that this growth in aviation continues apace.
 

A Coalition Government will maintain our commitment to awarding a minimum of 10 percent of government travel on the Canberra-Sydney route to smaller airlines. We will rigorously apply best fare of the day principles when awarding government travel.
 

These measures are already assisting smaller airlines and will have a growing effect in the months to come.
 

(iff) Regional Aviation
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will spend $7 million in 2004-05 to continue the location specific pricing subsidy, which enables Airservices Australia to provide affordable air traffic control services at 14 regional and general aviation airports.
 

A Coalition Government will also ensure that longer-term pricing decisions by Airservices maintain our commitment to provide affordable aviation services at smaller general aviation and regional airports.
 

We will spend $7.7 million over the next four years to maintain air services to isolated and remote communities under the Remote Air Services Subsidy Scheme (RASS). The RASS operators carry passengers, educational materials, medicines, fresh food and other urgent supplies.
 

(iv) Aviation Regulation
 

The Coalition is committed to maintaining Australia's high aviation safety standards. Our vision is to have a world leading safety regulator, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), that is both firm and fair. We want it to meet its safety obligations but also to permit development and growth in Australian aviation.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 16
 

We have overhauled the Civil Aviation Safety Authority's (CASA) governance arrangements and enforcement powers to deliver greater procedural fairness for aviation industry participants and a more flexible suite of enforcement powers for CASA which will improve aviation safety. For example, a demerit points scheme for more minor breaches of the regulations has been introduced and is being used with great effectiveness by CASA.
 

We will provide CASA with $29.2 million of additional funding over four years ($9.7 million in 2004-05), to enhance further its ability to oversee aviation safety.
 

CASA will continue to reform the sometimes complex and unwieldy system of aviation regulations in a way that will achieve our aim of safety through clarity. Where new regulations have attracted criticism from the industry, a Coalition Government will ensure that those criticisms are heard and that new regulations only become law when they deliver a world's best practice outcome that is a demonstrable improvement over what we have today.
 

A Coalition Government will not introduce regulations that stifle growth in aviation for no safety benefit.
 

Building on our reform of CASA, a re-elected Coalition Government will immediately carry out a review of the governance, structure and organisational performance of Airservices Australia.
 

Airservices is a world leader in air traffic management, but the Coalition believes that reforms can be introduced that will improve the responsiveness of the organisation to the needs of industry and the challenges facing aviation.
 

A Coalition Government will remove all regulatory functions from Airservices so it can concentrate on its primary role: to provide state of the art air traffic services that maintain and improve our first class standards of aviation safety. The regulatory responsibility for airspace regulation will be vested in a separate Airspace Directorate.
 

These initiatives will be carried out before Airservices is made a Government Business Enterprise.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 17
 

The Coalition remains committed to our longer-term goal of introducing greater competition in the services currently provided by Airservices, such as aviation rescue and fire fighting. This will provide greater efficiencies and create the necessary conditions for corporatising the organisation.
 

A Coalition Government will continue to modernise Australia's airspace system through the continued staged implementation of the National Airspace System (MAS).
 

The National Airspace System has already been found by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority to be safer that the system we have today. Furthermore, it will deliver improved air traffic services and greater flexibility for instrument flight rules aircraft, especially in regional Australia, greater freedom of movement for visual flight rule flights, and simpler, standardised procedures that will make flying easier.
 

It will also encourage greater participation in the aviation industry, creating jobs in the aviation industry and in regional communities that depend on it.
 

(v) Aviation Infrastructure
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will not build a second Sydney Airport. Sydney (Kingsford-Smith) Airport will be able to cope with Sydney's air traffic needs for the foreseeable future.
 

We will not support an upgrade of Bankstown Airport to accommodate high frequency, high capacity jet operations for the same reason.
 

A Coalition Government will retain full regulatory control of aircraft noise management. Sydney Airport will continue to be subject to the 80 aircraft movements per hour cap, the curfew from 11 pm to 6am and the noise sharing policy implemented through the Long Term Operating Plan (LTOP).
 

We will continue to guarantee regional airline access to Sydney Airport.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 18
 

PART 4 SHIPPING
 

The Coalition is committed to an ongoing shipping reform agenda, which will maximise the efficiency of this important transport sector and ensure that Australian industries have access to internationally competitive shipping services.
 

0) Waterfront Reform
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will maintain the productivity of Australia's waterfront, and will ensure it continues to exceed our productivity target of 25 container movements per hour.
 

The Australian waterfront handled 27.2 containers per hour in the December quarter 2003.
 

Our 25 movements per hour target is fundamental to the efficiency of Australia's export industries. Today, international shippers consider the Australian waterfront to be reliable, and consider that there is no reason to avoid Australian ports - a dramatic turnaround on Labor's record.
 

Labor's approach to the waterfront would allow militant unions such as the MUA to kill productivity and reintroduce inefficient and costly workplace practices.
 

Australia's economy and businesses cannot afford a return to Labor's waterfront, which was only able to handle 16.9 containers per hour.
 

Qi) Bass Strait Shipping
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will continue to support the Tasmanian tourism industry through the Bass Strait Passenger Vehicle Equalisation Scheme (BSPVES), which provides a rebate for ferry passengers travelling to or from Tasmania with passenger vehicles.
 

The scheme has proved to be an enormous success: the number of eligible vehicles travelling by ferry across Bass Strait is projected, in 2004-05, to be more than triple the figure before the scheme was introduced by the Coalition Government in 1996.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 19
 

A Coalition Government will spend $83.9 million in 2004-05 on the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme, which provides targeted freight assistance to about 1,350 shippers.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 20
 

PART 5 TRANSPORT SECURITY
 

The most fundamental responsibility of any government is national security. The Coalition has a strong plan to further improve our aviation and port security, which will build on the wide range of measures we have carried out since the tragic events of 11 September 2001.
 

(i) Strengthening Aviation Security
 

The Coalition Government has already upgraded Australia's aviation security through a series of measures, including:
 

• The requirement that all airports handling passenger and freight aircraft have a security plan.
 

• Additional Australian Federal Police Protective Service officers at airports around Australia to perform Counter Terrorist First Response functions, with better training and improved equipment.
 

• A three-fold increase in the number of explosive detector dog teams at airports.
 

• Aviation Security Identification Cards and background checks for everyone working in security sensitive areas of airports. Trainee pilots will also receive background checking.
 

• Tighter passenger and carry-on bag screening, with the introduction of new technology to detect traces of explosives.
 

• Setting a target of 100 percent checked bag screening for all international flights by the end of 2004. The Government has already introduced 100 percent checked bag screening on some international routes; i.e. Indonesia and the United States.
 

• Hardened cockpit doors on all regular passenger and charter aircraft with 30 seats or more, with financial assistance for airline operators.
 

• Armed Air Security Officers on a number of domestic and international flights.
 

• Office of Transport Security established to oversee all transport security matters.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 21
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will strengthen our aviation security even further with the target of 100 percent checked bag screening for all international flights by 31 December 2004.
 

We will make all 146 of Australia's regional airports more secure with our $48 million Securing our Regional Skies package. Under the package:
 

• Four Australian Federal Police Protective Service Rapid Deployment Teams will respond to reports of any increased security threat at regional airports, conduct testing of regional airport security plans and participate in security training.
 

• All 146 regional airports will be issued with hand wand screening equipment, and their staff trained so they can begin screening passengers within 12 hours of a change in alert levels.
 

• There will be a two year trial of 24 hours a day, 7 days a week closed circuit television coverage of selected regional airports. The vision will be made available to the nearest police station and other appropriate agencies.
 

• More funding for aviation security training and public awareness, to encourage the reporting of suspicious activity around regional airports to the National Security Hotline and local police.
 

In addition, a Coalition Government is providing $35 million in grants to eligible regional airports, to fund security measures such as fences, lighting and alarm systems. We are also working with airports to assist them in the preparation and implementation of security plans.
 

We have now invested more than $162 million on upgrading Australian aviation security since December 2003. The Securing our Regional Skies package brings our investment in regional aviation security to $83 million.
 

A Coalition Government will continue to monitor the threat faced by our aviation industry, and will introduce further security measures if our security experts advise that they warranted.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 22
 

Qi) Maritime Security
 

A re-elected Coalition Government will continue the high priority we give to a secure maritime industry with our commitment of $102 million over four years to strengthen and enhance maritime security.
 

The enhanced maritime security measures designed to counter terrorist threats include:
 

• Additional funding of $48 million over four years to increase the rate of container examination by 25% at Australian Customs Service x-ray facilities at the ports of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle. This is an increase from 80,000 to 100,000 containers x-rayed per year;
 

• Enabling Customs to board more vessels at their first port of call in Australia, at a cost of a further $9.3 million;
 

• Extending the Customs closed circuit television network to 63 ports at a cost of $17 million over four years;
 

• Posting specialist immigration officers at ports to facilitate border control, at a cost of $12.3 million over four years;
 

• Amending the Migration Act to allow passengers on round trip cruises to be more easily processed, should that be deemed necessary;
 

• A whole of government review of security arrangements for Australia's offshore oil and gas facilities and assets.
 

• Introducing a maritime security identification card for maritime industry employees, following consultation with interested parties;
 

• Providing additional resources to strengthen the intelligence collection capability, and facilitate the provision of intelligence, within key ports;
 

• Undertaking a detailed examination of security arrangements for transporting high-consequence dangerous goods.
 

The Coalition Government required all participants in the Australian maritime industry to put in place security plans by 1 July 2004. The industry met the deadline and 248 plans have been approved.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 23
 

All foreign ships seeking entry to Australian ports are now checked for compliance with the International Maritime Organization's security requirements.
 

(iff) Land Transport Security
 

Land transport security has an extremely high priority for the Coalition.
 

Following the Madrid bombing, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Transport and Regional Services instructed the Secretary of his department to lead a high level mission on international transport security to review world's best practice and to learn from the experience of others.
 

The Australian Transport Council has signed up to a National Transport Security Transport Security Strategy that is progressing priorities for mass urban transit and major inter-modal transport precincts.
 

All Australian governments have agreed to strengthen security policy and planning for land transport through an Intergovernmental Agreement to be finalised by 30 November 2004.
 

Land transport security is managed on a daily basis and arrangements are in place to ensure that, if circumstances change, appropriate measures are in place.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 24
 

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GOVERNMENT'S ACHIEVEMENTS
 

The Coalition Government is developing an integrated transport system to ensure that Australia's land transport, shipping and aviation networks are safe and secure, provide increasingly efficient movement of people and freight around the nation, and continue to be developed to meet the demands of a vibrant and growing economy.
 

Road and rail networks are being developed through AusLink, our new and visionary national transport plan that provides a significant boost in road and rail networks as the foundation of our national transport future.
 

Our $1.2 billion Roads to Recovery Program, which the Labor Party dismissed as a pork barrelling exercise, is the largest investment in Australia's local roads ever undertaken by an Australian government. It is funding 12,000 local road projects throughout Australia and is particularly important in regional areas, where councils have to maintain large local road networks with limited resources.
 

The Coalition Government has already announced an extension of the programme. This policy sets out an important announcement about its future.
 

The Coalition Government's rail reform agenda is, for the first time in Australian history, enabling one organisation to sell track access to train operators over the full length of the interstate main line from Perth to the Queensland border. An investment of $1.8 billion in the rail system is improving the rail track and signalling and reducing transit times. It will greatly improve freight efficiency and provide considerable benefits for the whole nation.
 

The Coalition Government is strengthening aviation security arrangements at Australia's airports, ensuring a safer environment for passengers. This includes $48 million announced this year to improve security measures at Australia's 146 regional airports. Far-reaching reforms to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) will strengthen its accountability and facilitate consultation with the industry.
 

Building Our National Transport Future 25
 

Reforms to the National Airspace System (MAS) are maximising the benefits of technological advances, modernising airspace management to meet Australia's future needs and improving overall safety.
 

The Coalition Government's reform of air safety regulations, and its continued support for regional airlines, are facilitating the movement of people in regional areas and enabling them to take advantage of investment and job opportunities.
 

Waterfront productivity stands as one of the Coalition Government's most important achievements. Despite entrenched scepticism, and in the face of militant union opposition, the Coalition Government has overseen a rise in waterfront productivity to 27.2 container movements per hour. This remarkable achievement, exceeding the Coalition's benchmark of 25 containers per hour, is fundamental to the efficiency of Australian industries and is providing greater investment security for Australian businesses.
 

The Coalition Government's ongoing commitment to maritime security is reflected in its new maritime safety provisions. These will enable the Australian Government to regulate the security arrangements of about 70 Australian ports, 300 port facilities, and 70 Australian ships.
 

In July 2004, the Coalition Government announced a range of new maritime security measures worth $102 million over four years to enhance Australia's port and maritime security.
 

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LABOR'S ALTERNATIVE
 

ROADS
 

During its 13 years in government, Labor neglected transport infrastructure and failed to develop a comprehensive transport plan to build our national transport future.
 

Labor has been a constant critic of the Coalition Government's AusLink initiative, but is yet to produce any alternative policy. Most notably, this policy laziness reflects Labor's indifference to those living in regional and rural Australia.
 

Under Labor, Federal road funding was cut back to $840 million a year. In 1996, spending on roads was actually less, in real terms, than in 1982-83.
 

Labor focused almost exclusively on the National Highway network, directing funding to the roads linking the big cities and abandoning our regional areas. It strangled Australia's economic development by neglecting strategic freight routes.
 

Labor criticised the Roads to Recovery Programme highlighting its indifference to the needs of regional communities.
 

Labor has now indicated that they believe that Urban Public Transport should also be funded under Roads to Recovery meaning less is available for roads.
 

In the 2001 election campaign, Labor pledged to end the Black Spot Program - removing funding that would fix dangerous sections of road and saves the lives of Australian motorists.
 

The Labor states and territories have not taken their transport responsibilities seriously and have shirked their responsibilities by trying to pass them on to the Australian Government.
 

For example the NSW Government announced in April that it would cut $100 million from its Roads Capital Works program.
 

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RAIL
 

Labor neglected Australia's rail system.
 

Its record was one of job losses, huge taxpayer subsidies, ill-conceived investment plans and the continuation of fragmented, state-based operations.
 

Under Labor, more than 7,000 rail jobs were lost.
 

The states pursued incompatible policies, leaving the interstate rail system with 22 different safeworking systems and 18 different train radio systems.
 

AVIATION
 

Labor hopelessly bungled air safety regulation.
 

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Transport, Communications and Infrastructure looked at CASA's predecessor, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), and concluded that: "From its formation in July 1988, the CAA was in a state of almost continual conflict with constant reviews and reorganisations."
 

Labor has been consistently inconsistent on the important issue of Sydney Airport. Mr Latham supported a second airport at Badgery's Creek for many years, but changed his mind when he became Labor Leader.
 

In order to buy votes in Western Sydney, Mr Latham abandoned his previous support for Badgerys Creek.
 

Labor announced that it would build a second Sydney Airport somewhere south of the Nepean River, outside the Sydney Basin. Sydney does not need a second airport. Studies have shown that second airports located so far from the cities they serve do not work.
 

Labor continues to back the union scare campaign about the Coalition's aviation National Air Space (MAS) reforms.
 

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MARITIME
 

Labor's plan to install baggage screening equipment at only 17 regional airports is politically driven and not based on security assessments.
 

Labor has set a random cut off and included two airports which already have screening and missed two that receive over the cut off.
 

Labor is ignoring the security needs of the other 129 regional ports.
 

Labor refuses to cover the cost of operating screening - up to $400,000 a year. This cost could add $8 to the cost of an airline ticket from regional Australia or to the closure of some airports.
 

Labor allowed the powerful maritime unions to dictate maritime transport policy, undermining the productivity of our waterfront and seriously compromising Australia's reputation as a reliable shipping nation.
 

When the Coalition came to government, container movements were stalled at an average of 16.9 containers per hour across our major ports (in contrast to 27.2 under the Coalition). Productivity on Australia's wharves was far below our trading partners, and worse than many third world countries.
 

Waterfront unreliability was at an all-time high. Stevedoring had the second worst strike record of any industry in Australia (after coal mining).
 

When Labor was in government, ships were lined up for days outside Australian ports because of delays and industrial disputes. Strikes and poor waterfront productivity had a devastating flow-on effect on Australian businesses needing to get goods in and out of the country.
 

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COSTINGS SUMMARY
 

Funding for Scoresby Freeway, Pakenham Bypass and a proportion of the South Australian Roads was included in the Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Outlook at a total cost of $186 million over the Forward Estimates period. The full cost of West Avenue was accounted for in PEEFO. The Sturt Highway Extension is funded at a cost of $110 million over five years of which $25 million is in 2008-09. Funding for Port River Expressway comprises a bring forward of $55 million from the previously announced AusLink profile.
 

Coolac Bypass comprises a partial bring forward of $35 million funding from the previously announced AusLink profile from the Hume Highway allocation. $25 million of which is from 2008-09, so that over five years there is no net cost to the budget.
 

' The additional funding extends the Black Spot Programme to the end of the current forward estimates period. The Coalition will consider further extensions to this invaluable programme closer to 2008-09.
 

The Roads to Recovery Strategic fund comprises a total of $150 million over five years to 2008-09.
 

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