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Questions Without Notice Questions without notice are asked of Ministers and answered during Question Time.
Mr LAWLOR: My question is directed to the minister for transport. As the Gold Coast is one of the
most rapidly growing areas of Australia and a prime tourist destination, can the minister detail what the
government is doing to provide a world-class public transport system for the Gold Coast?
Mr MICKEL: I thank the member for Southport because it gives me an opportunity to outline
again the tremendous efforts that are being made-unfunded, I might say, by the federal government-
with regard to public transport on the Gold Coast. Firstly, we are undoing the wrongs that were done to
the Gold Coast in the sixties. We are extending the rail line to the Gold Coast. In addition to that, we are
putting on 72 new buses to the Gold Coast. An amount of $8.6 million is spent on service improvements
annually. An amount of $85.9 million has been spent on infrastructure to support that. We have
introduced a 24/7 bus route from Southport to Tweed Heads. We have restructured the Gold Coast
Highway routes to improve on-time running. Last week we announced flat fare taxis.
In answer to the question asked by the honourable member for Southport, we are delivering the
infrastructure that was so long neglected, but there has been no funding at all from the federal
government. One thing I want to say to the member for Southport is that the honourable gentleman did
support the Gold Coast rapid transit system. I thank him for that because it was delivered after extensive
consultation. Honourable members can imagine my dilemma last week in this House when the shadow
minister for health, the member for Surfers Paradise, announced in this House that it was okay for
teenagers to drink-drive because there were no public transport options. Where was the leadership from
the Liberal Party on this one? We have had the shadow transport minister say that the road toll should
be addressed while we have the shadow minister for health, no less, condone drink-driving by
teenagers.
He also said on the Gold Coast that there had been no consultation on the Gold Coast rapid
transit scheme. What is this document if it is not consultation? We had it in Southport. This document
went out-no consultation! This document went out-no consultation! This document went out-no
consultation! It is a bit like the Life of Brian, 'What have the Romans ever done for us?' It is the same-
no consultation!
Earlier this week I had a meeting with representatives of the Gold Coast City Council. What did
they say to me? I met with TransLink officials recently. Council's position is shown by the formal
resolutions
(1) to support the financial involvement by council in the project-no consultation;
(2) to support the heads of agreement signed by the mayor and the former minister-no consultation;
(3) to support the detailed MOU between TransLink and Gold Coast City Council;
(4) to support the Southport CBD route. The point is that we are trying to deliver for an international city a first-class public transport system. The person opposed to it who does not talk to his electorate is the member for Surfers
Paradise
Last changed: [PUBLISHED_DATE] at 12:48 PM
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