INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS
NZ Rail a hit, National Transport Reforms and more from ARA In his monthly column, Australasian Railway Association CEO Danny Broad discusses current activities of the ARA.
A
ARA CEO Danny Broad.
S A TIMELY REMINDER OF WHY WE are the Australasian Railway Association, over 250 delegates from New Zealand and Australia met in Auckland in June for the two–day 2019 New Zealand Rail Conference. New Zealand Government Ministers The Hon Phil Twyford and The Hon Shane Jones outlined the Government’s commitment to restore rail to a key role in transport planning and economic development, with a $1b funding boost in the 2019 Budget. The funding was earmarked to renew a range of rail services after many years of underfunding of rail. It was refreshing to hear such clear and unambiguous support for the rail sector Government Ministers. Senior officials from The Ministry of Transport and KiwiRail then foreshadowed a 10year rail plan that will be launched later this year. The conference discussed the critical role rail plays in supporting New Zealand’s key industries: dairy and forestry, its contribution to realising New Zealand’s zero-emissions target by 2050 and heard updates on significant rail projects- Auckland Metro, Auckland Light Rail and Northland. A great sign for the future of the industry was the strong rollup of about 120 Young Rail Professionals and potential employees at a forum the night before the Conference. The Conference showed the many similarities between our industries in both countries.
Submission on National Transport Reforms Following considerable member engagement, including meetings in four states, the ARA finalised its submission to the Productivity Commissions’ Inquiry on National Transport Regulatory Reform. The submission notes that while national transport reforms have led to some improvements
58
ISSUE 5 2019 | RAIL EXPRESS
in the rail regulatory regime, much more needs to be done to achieve the full benefits of reform. Jurisdictional differences continue to thwart the achievement of the full benefits of national reform. In some states, prescriptive regulations increase compliance costs with no proven safety benefit. Deloitte modelling confirms that NSW and Queensland state-based rules that limit train driver working hours are at odds with the rest of the country. They create significant productivity losses and add unnecessary red tape, with no identified increase in safety. The NSW-specific drug and alcohol requirements also add compliance costs, and negatively affect productivity by limiting an operator’s flexibility to manage drug and alcohol risks. These productivity losses impact the rail freight sector’s ability to compete with heavy vehicles that have much greater flexibility in the hours they can drive, and less stringent drug and alcohol testing requirements. This inhibits our sector’s ability to compete on a level playing field. The Productivity Commission can play an important role in identifying how differences can best be resolved. For the full benefits of the Rail Safety National Law to be achieved, governments must give renewed emphasis to national consistency of approach, through structural reform to devolve appropriate power to the national regulator to enable the regulator to focus its effort on key risks.
Rail Accessibility Forum
The ARA’s Accessibility Working Group (AWG) coordinates the industry’s activities in relation to disability access in rail. Australian passenger rail operators take a holistic approach to improve accessibility, supporting investments with an array of programs. Each operator employs staff dedicated
www.railexpress.com.au
