MEDIA RELEASE The Hon Anthony Albanese MP Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government 17 March 2008 AA0202008

LIBS & NATS CUT $2 BILLION FROM ROADS BUDGET: NEW RESEARCH New statistics confirm that the previous Howard Government slashed Federal funding for the nation's roads and highways, the arteries of a modern, productive economy. According to data compiled by the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE), the Howard Government reduced annual road funding by an average of $244 million - or about 11 per cent. While Federal road funding averaged $2.3 billion a year under the Labor governments of Hawke and Keating, it fell to just $2.05 billion a year during the first eight years of the Howard Government. Source: BITRE, Australian Transport Statistics Yearbook 2007, p51 (Table 5.2a) Over its first eight years in office - the period for which data is currently available - these funding cuts amounted to almost $2 billion: enough money to duplicate the entire Hume Highway for example. To make matters worse, the cuts to Federal funding were made at a time of rapid growth in private car ownership and a 40 per cent increase in the volume of product and produce needing to be trucked around the country. The biggest losers were road users in Victoria and the Northern Territory, with Federal funding to those two states cut by 22 and 16 per cent respectively. In 2005, the BITRE estimated the cost of urban congestion in our major cities at $9.4 billion - and that's even before taking into account the environmental damage being caused by the millions of tonnes of greenhouse gases being pumped into the atmosphere by the thousands of vehicles left idling in worsening traffic snarls. In contrast to the Howard cuts, the combined annual road spending of state, territory and local governments rose by 16 per cent. The figures I've outlined here should be uncomfortable reading for the National Party in particular - after all they had carriage of the transport portfolio for the entire duration of the Howard Government. In fact, its current leader, Warren Truss, clocked up at least 12 months as Transport Minister. While the legacy of the Howard cuts and the National Party's inaction cannot be fixed overnight, the Rudd Labor Government is determined to make a start. During last year's election campaign Labor pledged to invest almost $15.5 billion over five years into the nation's road network. That's almost twice what the previous Howard Government spent over a similar period of time. The facts about the Howard Government's shameful record on road funding are contained in the inaugural edition of the BITRE's new flagship publication - Australian Transport Statistics Yearbook - which I'm releasing today. This new annual publication contains long time series statistics - over 30 years in some cases - for an extensive range of transport measures within a new comprehensive statistical framework. The publication was prepared by the BITRE with contributions from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, the Australian Bureau of Statistics as well as state and territory transport authorities. Australian Transport Statistics Yearbook 2007 is available in hard copy, as well as on the BITRE website: www.bitre.gov.au/statistics/statsindex.aspx. Statistical tables are available in Excel spreadsheet format, also on the BITRE website. Media Contacts Jeff Singleton ( Mr Albanese's Office ) 0410 476 890 AUSTRALIAN TRANSPORT STATISTICS YEARBOOK 2007 - FACT SHEET Air travel increasingly popular with travellers In 2003-04, passenger transport in Australia reached a level of 356.8 billion passenger kilometres. The dominant mode of passenger transport is passenger cars (74.4 per cent of all passenger travel in 2004); however the big mover over the 10 years to 2004 was aviation. Air travel contributed 11.5 per cent of total passenger travel in 2004 (40.9 billion passenger kilometres), up from 8.7 per cent in 1994 despite a brief decrease in air travel in 2001-02. Road fatality rate falls over the last 10 years Road fatalities fell 18 per cent over the 10 years to 2006 despite increases in the population (the fatality rate per 100,000 population fell 28 per cent) and the amount of passenger road travel undertaken (the fatality rate per billion passenger km travelled fell 31 per cent over the 10 years to 2004). Over the same time period, aviation became safer, with the aviation fatality rate falling from 0.23 deaths per 100 000 population to 0.16 and the injury rate falling from 0.56 injuries per 100 000 population to 0.23. Articulated trucks carry heavier loads In 2005, Australia's total domestic freight task was 465.9 billion tonne-kilometres, of which 168.9 billion tonne-kilometres was carried by road. Articulated trucks carried a greater proportion of Australia's road freight than in 1995 (77.2 per cent or 130.4 billion tonne-kilometres, up from 75.2 per cent), however their relative contribution to the total distance travelled by road vehicles each year remained virtually unchanged (2.9 per cent or 6.4 billion vehicle-kilometres compared with 2.8 per cent in 1995). Diesel use on Australian roads up 38 per cent over the 10 years to 2007 Sales of automotive gasoline increased 7.6 per cent in the 10 years to 2007 (automotive gasoline sales were 19 250.7 megalitres in 2006-07), while automotive diesel sales increased 38.3 per cent to 17 027.6 megalitres. The automotive fuel price index rose 78.9 per cent over the 10 years to 2007. The urban transport fares index increased 44.7 per cent, the private motoring index went up 28.6 per cent, but the cost of motor vehicles index decreased 11.7 per cent (the index was last at this level in 1989-90). Containerisation of sea freight more than doubles over the last 10 years Australia's maritime industry predominantly ships bulk goods (649.4 million tonnes of the 696.0 million tonnes of international freight in 2005-06); however the small proportion of freight that is non-bulk is increasing (from 5.1 per cent of international sea freight in 1996 to 6.7 per cent in 2006). In particular, container freight has increased dramatically over the 10 years to 2006 (up 124.8 per cent to 4 786 487 twenty foot equivalent containers). Motor vehicles contribute highest transport-related greenhouse emissions Estimated direct greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 equivalent) from transport rose 30.6 per cent over the 10 years to 2003-04. Of the different modes of transport, motor vehicles contributed the highest emissions, accounting for 87.8 per cent of transport greenhouse emissions in 1993-94, increasing to 88.3 per cent of transport emissions in 2003-04. LABOR'S ROAD COMMITMENTS: HIGHLIGHTS NSW - total $6.1 billion $2.5b Pacific Highway $300m Great Western Highway, inc Mt Victoria Bypass $700m Hume Highway $840m Strathfield to Hornsby dedicated freight rail line and upgrades north to Newcastle $300m for Moorebank intermodal road/rail connections VIC - total $2.65 billion $900m Western Ring Road $600m Western Highway $250m Princess Highway east and west $216m Goulburn Valley Highway, Nagambie Bypass QLD - total $4.5 billion $1.14b Ipswich Motorway upgrade $2.2b Bruce Highway $455m Pacific Motorway $300m Mains and Kessels Road $195 Gateway northern and southern links WA - total $1.7 billion $225m New Perth Bunbury Highway and North Mandurah Bypass $160m Port Hedland road upgrades $350m Perth Urban Transport SA - total $1.1 billion $500m Main South Road $80m Dukes Highway TAS - total $420 million $186m Brighton Bypass, East Derwent Highway and Brighton Transport Hub NT - total $334 million $74m Tiger Brennan Drive $160m Stuart Highway ACT - total $30 million $30m for airport precinct upgrade   URL: http://www.minister.infrastructure.gov.au/aa/releases/2008/March/AA020_2008.htm