Hello all
This has been an eventful year for us. We started with the objective of producing our recommendations for the yet-to-be established High Speed Rail Authority. We started with our Implementation Plan For High Speed Rail In The Sydney-Melbourne Corridor, which we thought would be all-encompassing. Then we realised there were other aspects we should cover, and now we have produced four more comprehensive reports plus a number of shorter papers.
We also achieved our objective of being able to present our thoughts to Andrew Hyles, the Acting CEO of HSRA, not long after it was established. We received a positive reception, but the focus on the HSRA was squarely on the Sydney-Newcastle section of the line only. The latest report on the Corridor Through Sydney drew more interest, but Andrew moved back to the Department of Transport, and so we will wait until the CEO is appointed before making further contact.
To finish the year, the Minns' NSW Government has just announced a new Metro station as part of the redevelopment of the Rosehill racecourse. This site has less engineering constraints for an HSR station than either Parrramatta or Olympic Park. Frustratingly, this occurred very soon after the release of our paper. So Garry has quickly produced a short paper with Joe Langley, the President of the Australian High Speed Rail Association, to revise the preferred route to pass through Rosehill as the main HSR station in Sydney. (See Rosehill HSR station)
Next year we plan to be more active in publishing opinion pieces rather than comprehensive reports.
So thanks everyone. We really appreciate the support you have given us this year. It helps make our efforts seem worthwhile knowing that we are not alone in believing that Australia needs high speed rail.
Have a Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays. We wish you all well as we look forward to 2024.
Best wishes and a happy new year
Syd, Garry and Ross