91��̳ - Public transport

Electric cars won’t solve the climate crisis

Ben Radford — Wed, 13 Nov 2024 12:15:00 +1100

While electric cars are often touted as the future of transport and a crucial part of the effort to reach “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions, in reality they are not a meaningful solution, argues Ben Radford.

Protest calls for better public transport for western suburbs

Gabriel Di Falco — Wed, 17 May 2023 17:30:00 +1000

Campaigners, members of parliament and councillors gathered on the steps of Parliament House to urge the Victorian government to improve public transport in the western suburbs. Gabriel Di Falco reports.

Sydney Road Accessible Tram Stops (SATS) campaign

Darren Saffin — Fri, 12 May 2023 11:30:49 +0000

The Sydney Road Accessible Tram Stops campaign was initiated by Christian Astourian. As a person with disability Christian will be detrimentally impacted by the planned construction of the Sky Rail in Brunswick without real, regular and reliable transport alternatives during the construction period.

We already have electric vehicles

Andrew Chuter — Mon, 29 Aug 2022 11:15:00 +1000

Improving and expanding the existing electric vehicle network must not be overlooked in the discussion about solutions to the climate emergency, argues Andrew Chuter.

Socialist Alliance candidates say solutions exist for housing, health and transport crises

Jacob Andrewartha — Wed, 24 Aug 2022 10:45:00 +1000

Socialist Alliance candidates running in the Victorian elections say that solutions exist for the cost-of-living pressures. Jacob Andrewartha reports.

Andrew Chuter: 'My vision of socialism'

Andrew Chuter — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 19:00:00 +1000

Socialist Alliance candidate for Sydney and respected public housing, transport, resident action and trade union activist Andrew Chuter talks about about his practical vision for a socialist future.

Socialist candidate: ‘We need to take back public assets’

Suzanne James — Mon, 21 Mar 2022 10:30:00 +1100

Suzanne James spoke to Sam Wainwright, Socialist Alliance candidate for Fremantle, about Invasion Day, public transport, privatisation and his hopes for democracy.

Activists campaign against $16 billion toll road expansion

Isaac Nellist — Thu, 18 Mar 2021 16:15:00 +1100

Anti-toll road activists are stepping up their protests against the North East Link. Isaac Nellist reports.

We need distance from the car virus, too

Andrew Chuter — Mon, 27 Apr 2020 16:30:00 +1000

The absence of cars in our car-dominated cities in the COVID-19 pandemic reminds us that we need green space and mass transit, argues Andrew Chuter.

Victoria: Private transport operators seek to cash in on coronavirus pandemic

Chris Slee — Mon, 30 Mar 2020 12:00:00 +1100

As public transport usage collapses, the private operators of Melbourne’s public transport system are seeking a “rescue package”, reports Chris Slee.

Another battle for the Upfield Line

Sue Bolton — Fri, 08 Mar 2019 14:30:00 +1100

Many battles have been fought over the Upfield Line. Here, Socialist councillor Sue Bolton talks about the fight to duplicate the line.

NSW deserves better

Peter Hehir — Fri, 01 Mar 2019 11:30:00 +1100

And so it begins. Premier Gladys Berejiklian has been hitting the airwaves telling us all how successful she has been at raiding the public pantry and flogging off the spoils.

On the other side of the political divide Labor MP Jo Haylen is busy telling her Summer Hill electorate just how much WestConnex is on the nose — but conveniently neglecting to mention that her party is right behind WestConnex.

People, perception and planning

Steve O’Brien — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 13:15:00 +1100

A member of the audience at a recent public meeting in Merewether cheekily referred to Newcastle as being run by the Property Council, not the city council.

Shattering the status quo: Could Victoria be about to elect its first socialist MP?

Jacob Andrewartha — Fri, 17 Aug 2018 12:45:00 +1000

Socialist groups and community activists of different stripes have come together under the banner of Victorian Socialists in one of the most ambitious bids in decades to get a socialist elected to state parliament. 91��̳ Weekly’s Jacob Andrewartha spoke to Stephen Jolly, Victorian Socialists’ lead candidate for the upper house Northern Metropolitan seat, about this initiative.

Going backwards is the new going forward

Steve O'Brien — Wed, 08 Aug 2018 16:00:00 +1000

Sometimes I wonder if New South Wales transport minister Andrew Constance thinks he is a comedian.

Protest: Fix NSW Transport — City Lantern Walk

Pip Hinman — Thu, 19 Jul 2018 05:26:07 +0000

NSW has become a joke when it comes to transport. Gladys is wasting $45 billion on #WestCONnex and other toll roads while public transport is falling to pieces. The cost blowouts and secrecy are frightening.

You might think that transport is a rational issue where decisions are made in the best interests of the public and the problem will be fixed by 'the experts'. It will not. The vested interests have taken control. We the people must become active and fight back.

Fixing NSW transport: the issue that won't go away

Steve O’Brien — Thu, 08 Mar 2018 15:15:00 +1100

New South Wales transport minister Andrew Constance should note the observation by Victor Hugo, the French novelist, that the worst thing a minister can do is have policies that upset people so much that they protest publicly and loudly about them.

Transport groups plan to ramp up campaign

Peter Boyle — Fri, 23 Feb 2018 12:30:00 +1100

On February 17, several thousand people from more than 30 community groups and unions marched through Sydney to demand the NSW state government fix the public transport system.

Andew Chuter, one of the organisers, told 91��̳ Weekly it was a “big achievement” to unite so many groups across NSW around this important issue.

“These sorts of campaigns tend to be quite localised, so getting people to see them as connected is quite significant. Some of those who took an active role in this rally had never been to a protest before.”

Sydney says: ‘Fix NSW Public Transport’

Kerry Smith — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 16:15:00 +1100

Several thousand people from about 30 community groups and trade unions joined forces in the first mass Fix NSW Transport march and rally through Sydney on February 17.

United in anger at the state Coalition government's private tollway frenzy, privatisation of public transport and developer scams parading as infrastructure plans, they called on the government to fix NSW roads and public transport.

International students demand travel concession

Mia Sanders — Sat, 04 Nov 2017 11:00:00 +1100

International students in New South Wales face higher cost of living expenses than their counterparts in other states. This is one of the reasons students at Western Sydney University (WSU) have decided to launch a campaign calling on the state government to grant them public transport concessions.

“New South Wales is the only state where international students do not have the same rights as domestic students and cannot access the same facilities,” Daniele Fulvi told 91��̳ Weekly.

Toll roads expand, but no public transport plan

Jim McIlroy — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 10:00:00 +1000

A toll road spiderweb is spreading across Sydney, with the cost of vehicle journeys set to rise substantially in coming years.

WestConnex — a giant scam for Liberal mates

Peter Boyle — Sat, 03 Jun 2017 10:00:00 +1000

In a recent public discussion, campaigners against WestConnex — the huge motorway and tunnel project in Sydney — were challenged to sum up their case against WestConnex in three sentences. “Start with what the proponents of WestConnex say will be the benefit of the project then say what is wrong with it.”

There were half a dozen seasoned anti-WestConnex activists in the room and each came back with much more than three sentences.

Balmain residents outraged over plans for more motorway tunnels

Peter Boyle — Sat, 03 Jun 2017 10:00:00 +1000

On the evening of May 22, more than 300 residents packed out Balmain Town Hall for a public meeting on the NSW Liberal government's proposed Western Harbour Tunnel toll road. This proposed 6km tunnel will connect to the fiercely contested WestConnex tunnel interchange in Rozelle going under the Balmain peninsula, then under Sydney Harbour before connecting to the Warringah Freeway.

The meeting was called by NSW Greens Balmain MP Jamie Parker who condemned the project as "yet another polluting, destructive, private tollway."

Residents protest WestConnex tree destruction

Jim McIlroy — Sat, 13 May 2017 10:00:00 +1000

Residents and supporters held a protest in Sydney Park on May 6, when contractors for the controversial $17 billion WestConnex tollway moved in to destroy more trees for the St Peters interchange.

The works are part of the project's push to remove more than 800 trees in Sydney Park, St Peters and Alexandria to allow widening of roads around the planned interchange.

Highways to Hell: motorways are past their use-by date

Nicholas James — Sat, 29 Apr 2017 10:00:00 +1000

Burrowing under the metropolis, winding through neighbourhoods and consuming green spaces, kilometres of bleak bitumen motorways provide the superstructure for the outdated combustion engine to travel further.

According to University of Technology Sydney, vehicles are traveling 25% further, which equates to 25% more pollutants and 25% more impact on communities and the environment. “Induced traffic” is the phenomenon that when roads are built people switch from public transport to roads and, in the age of climate change, roads congest, choke and gridlock Australian cities.

Perth Freight Link: How a community beat the freeway

Sam Wainwright — Sat, 01 Apr 2017 11:00:00 +1100

I wandered down to the Roe 8 freeway construction site after the March 11 state election that swept the Colin Barnett Liberal government from power. I'd heard Labor Premier-elect Mark McGowan on the radio calling on Main Roads to wind down construction immediately.

It was deserted. The hundreds of police were gone. The place where 200 of us had been arrested as we slowed the progress of the bulldozers was eerily silent.

Proposed private western Metro slammed

Jim McIlroy — Fri, 09 Sep 2016 10:00:00 +1000

The NSW Greens have slammed reported plans by the state government to build a new privatised western Metro train line from the city centre to Parramatta.

The political advantages of Lucy Turnbull

Wendy Bacon — Fri, 09 Sep 2016 10:00:00 +1000

Early one morning last month, the Chief Commissioner of the Greater Sydney Commission (GSC) Lucy Turnbull — a lifelong resident of the city’s most privileged suburbs along the south-eastern edge of the harbour — quietly slipped across to Sydney’s inner west where she was taken on tour by a WestConnex manager of the M4 East tollway tunnel corridor. There she presumably saw for the first time the gigantic construction sites in Haberfield where scores of heritage homes, businesses, gardens, parks and trees stood until a few weeks ago.

myki's attack on the poor

Rebecca Tucker — Thu, 07 Apr 2016 10:00:00 +1000

A recent study, led by Victoria University and West Justice Youth Office, has revealed that students from low socioeconomic families cannot afford to travel on public transport, or pay the fines they incur for travelling without a valid myki card. West Justice chief executive Denis Nelthorpe said: “Up to 80,000 Victorian students a year were unable to pay fines, resulting in many of them skipping school.”

Public transport: better than motorways, and not just for congestion

Kathy Fairfax — Thu, 23 Jun 2016 10:00:00 +1000

WestConnex is a $17 billion, 33 kilometre toll road proposed by the New South Wales government and backed by the federal government. Its tunnels, multi-layered interchanges and four to six lane highways will cut a swathe through the inner west of Sydney. Pauline Lockie is a spokesperson for the WestConnex Action Group, one of the groups opposing the project. This is an edited version of a speech she gave at the Rally for Fair Fares in Sydney on June 21. * * *

91������̳ - Public transport