Railyard money welcome but more transparency needed

RAILYARD MONEY WELCOME BUT MORE TRANSPARENCY NEEDED

Tim Morris MP
Greens Infrastructure Spokesperson
Sunday, 17 June 2012

The Tasmanian Greens today welcomed reports that $50 million would be made available to remediate the Hobart railyards, but expressed concerns about the degree of transparency surrounding the planning process up to now.

Greens Infrastructure spokesperson Tim Morris MP said that whatever the final decision over the future the site, there needed to be a full and genuine public consultation process
“The decision over the future of this site can’t be made by Labor behind the scenes, as is too often the case,” Mr Morris said.

“Our experience with the hospital redevelopment proposal makes us very nervous.”

“This is public land that’s currently owned by Tasrail and zoned as Transport, and the views of residents and businesses need to be fully heard before and during the decision making process.”

“This is first and foremost a working port and freight handling area, and the Greens believe it will be vital for Hobart’s economic future to maintain that function at the site.”

“Whilst the Brighton Hub will almost end the need to have containers at Hobart, there will be an ongoing need for rail, road and shipping uses on the site.”

“The Greens believe that a transit centre catering to Hobart’s long term public transport should also be one option in the mix for the redevelopment.”

“It’s important to take a long term view of public transport in Hobart, especially within a carbon-constrained economy, and a transit centre on the site could be a very good fit given the infrastructure already in place and its location as the meeting point of all roads into the city and the rail, bicycle and shipping to Hobart.”

“One practical way to make sure that all relevant information is collected and disclosed in an accessible location is for a dedicated website to be setup.”

“Ultimately, it should be up to the Tasmanian people and we will work to ensure that their views are heard,” Mr Morris said.