Author: C S
The Fifth Estate: The top 10 TFE articles of 2015
The Fifth Estate: The top 10 TFE articles of 2015 (22 December 2015)
2015 has been a huge year for The Fifth Estate. Reader numbers continued to grow; we clocked up our most read, commented upon and shared story in TFE history; and the number of special projects, events and ebooks we took on seemed to grow exponentially.
Following the success of COP21 and a renewed focus on cities from our federal government and indeed the world, we leave the year hopeful for an even bigger 2016 – hopeful that our leaders now finally understand the importance of a sector we’ve been talking about for close to seven years now, and hopeful that they will now implement some concrete actions to improve its sustainability.
As we head off for the Christmas break, we’ll leave you with the top 10 stories of 2015 – there’s some scandal, some hope, some “how-to”s and a little bit of old-fashioned sustainability ingenuity to boot. See you in 2016!
Continue reading “The Fifth Estate: The top 10 TFE articles of 2015” »
NSW Government steals Western Sydney’s future with over-priced light rail
EcoTransit Sydney – Media Release: NSW Government steals Western Sydney’s future with over-priced light rail (8 December 2015)
Ecotransit Sydney today welcomed the government building one quarter of the Parramatta light rail network. However the community is staggered by the massive cost of such a small start. With a massive initial estimate and so little detail, taxpayers are left concerned that this is yet another open ended honey pot for the construction industry.
Continue reading “NSW Government steals Western Sydney’s future with over-priced light rail” »
Sydney Metro: Mysterious flyer pushes for new rail station at Waterloo, not Sydney University
A mystery leaflet spruiking the Waterloo station option.
SMH: Sydney Metro: Mysterious flyer pushes for new rail station at Waterloo, not Sydney University. Jacob Saulwick November 30, 2015
A University of Sydney animation shows a proposed $1.5 billion ‘knowledge hub’ and a new train station for a metro line through the city. Continue reading “Sydney Metro: Mysterious flyer pushes for new rail station at Waterloo, not Sydney University” »
State Government business case reveals increased traffic congestion on roads that are already struggling to cope
There are likely to be an extra 20,000 cars on weekdays on the Anzac Bridge when WestConnex is built.
Inner West Courier: State Government business case reveals increased traffic congestion on roads that are already struggling to cope. Deborah FitzGerald November 24, 2015
There are likely to be an extra 20,000 cars on weekdays on the Anzac Bridge when WestConnex is built. Continue reading “State Government business case reveals increased traffic congestion on roads that are already struggling to cope” »
WestConnex Business Case Just One Big Con
No WestConnex Public Transport: Media Release 20 November 2015
The “Strategic” Business Case for the 35-kilometre series of WestConnex Tollways has finally been released. It has no attributed author. The total cost is now predicted to be $16.8 billion. When it was announced in October 2012, the original cost of WestConnex was $10 billion. How high will these costs go? Continue reading “WestConnex Business Case Just One Big Con” »
WestConnex will worsen traffic problems
Green Left Weekly: WestConnex will worsen traffic problems. Friday, October 23, 2015 By Jim McIlroy
Rather than reducing traffic congestion in Sydney, a report commissioned by the Leichhardt Council has found that the giant WestConnex tollway project will increase traffic problems in the city’s inner west. Continue reading “WestConnex will worsen traffic problems” »
Transport Forum in Alexandria calls for urgent solutions to burdened system
AltMedia: Transport Forum in Alexandria calls for urgent solutions to burdened system By Kenji Sato (October 22, 2015)
Local Alexandria residents have raised concerns that the state government is not doing enough to address the increasing burden on Sydney’s transport networks. Continue reading “Transport Forum in Alexandria calls for urgent solutions to burdened system” »
EcoTransit News: WestConnex – $15 billion down a hole!
EcoTransit News: WestConnex – $15 billion down a hole! (October 2015) If it were ever completed, WestConnex would be the biggest underground motorway system anywhere in the world, and certainly, per kilometre, the most expensive. This gigantic project, which would take at least 10 years to finish, is being forced on the NSW taxpayer at a time when the Read more about EcoTransit News: WestConnex – $15 billion down a hole![…]
Rail shutdowns under question
Closures: Be prepared for another weekend of buses replacing trains.
St George & Sunderland Leader: Rail shutdowns under question By Murray Trembath Sept. 17, 2015
The T4 Illawarra rail line will be closed again this weekend amid continuing questions about the frequency of the shutdowns. Continue reading “Rail shutdowns under question” »
Go slow over Hawkesbury Rail Bridge
ABC NSW: Go slow over Hawkesbury Rail Bridge By Mary-Louise Vince (15 September 2015)
Public transport advocacy group, Ecotransit Sydney says rail travel times between Newcastle and Sydney are already too slow without safety concerns along the Hawkesbury River bridge on the New South Wales Central Coast. Continue reading “Go slow over Hawkesbury Rail Bridge” »
New pedestrian bridge for Moore Park
An artist’s rendering of the Albert Tibby Cotter bridge
AltMedia: New pedestrian bridge for Moore Park by Christopher Harris August 27, 2015
Plans to build another pedestrian bridge just a few hundred metres from the controversial Tibby Cotter Bridge near Moore Park have been slammed by transport lobbyists Ecotransit. Continue reading “New pedestrian bridge for Moore Park” »
Westconnex clearways could turn King Street into Parramatta road: Plibersek
A public meeting at the Newtown Neighbourhood Centre held by the Westconnex Action Group on Monday night. Photo: Lorrie Graham
Inner West Independent: Westconnex clearways could turn King Street into Parramatta road: Plibersek by Alexander Lewis August 13, 2015
Federal deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek has joined an accelerating campaign to put the brakes on WestConnex. Continue reading “Westconnex clearways could turn King Street into Parramatta road: Plibersek” »
Save Newtown from WestCONnex meeting – Mat Hounsell
Save Newtown from WestCONnex meeting – Mat Hounsell (part 4 of 12) Video by Andrew Chuter (10 August 2015) On 10 Aug 2015, Save Newtown from WestCONnex hosted a public meeting in the Newtown Neighbourhood Centre. Speakers: Jenny Leong MP, Celia Morris, Mathew Hounsell, Professor Paul Torzillo, Mark Ely
The dinky little bridge that cost more than a real one
The Albert “Tibby” Cotter Pedestrian Bridge (aka the Albert “Tibby” Cotter Walkway), over Anzac Parade in Moore Park, cost the taxpayer a staggering $38 million. The bridge was a “captain’s pick” by Baird Government Roads Minister Duncan Gay. Like Gay’s tiny pedestrian tunnel in Arncliffe – the one that cost more than a high school Read more about The dinky little bridge that cost more than a real one[…]
Bypassing Erskineville
Friends of Erskineville president Darren Jenkins said locals are often unsure if they will be able to board overcrowded trains at peak periods. Source: Ryan Quinn
Inner West Independent: Bypassing Erskineville July 23, 2015
More than 100 angered Erskineville residents have united at the suburb’s town hall to end uncertainty over the future of trains to Erskineville and St Peters stations. Continue reading “Bypassing Erskineville” »
Rail Against Rail Cuts meeting with Mathew Hounsell
Friends of Erskineville: Rail Against Rail Cuts meeting with Mathew Hounsell (14 July 2015) Mathew explains issues facing Sydney public transport, major land use rezoning via urban activation, Metro faction vs CityRail faction, Rodd Staples, North West Rail Link and behind story the push for driverless trains.
Dr Michelle Zeibots – WestCONnex Independence Day rally at Concord
Dr Michelle Zeibots – WestCONnex Independence Day rally at Concord, video by Andrew Chuter (4 July 2015)
Video: Gavin Gatenby & David Kirby on WestConnex & history repeating
The Fifth Estate: Video: Gavin Gatenby & David Kirby on WestConnex & history repeating (2 July 2015)
In the late 1970s in Sydney it was the South-West freeway, now the M5, that drew heavy opposition.
Today it’s the WestConnex, but as far as EcoTransit Sydney’s Gavin Gatenby is concerned the fundamentals have not changed.
Gatenby, no stranger to agitation on behalf of more equitable and sustainable outcomes, has interviewed former NSW Supreme Court judge David Kirby, who conducted a thorough review of radial freeways on behalf of the NSW government at the time, starting in 1979. Continue reading “Video: Gavin Gatenby & David Kirby on WestConnex & history repeating” »
Unfinished Business – The Kyeemagh–Chullora Road Inquiry and the future of Sydney
Video: Gavin Gatenby & David Kirby, QC, BA, LLB. on WestConnex & history repeating. The Fifth Estate: Unfinished Business – The Kyeemagh-Chullora Road Inquiry and the future of Sydney (2 July 2015) In the late 1970s in Sydney it was the South-West freeway, now the M5, that drew heavy opposition. Today it’s the WestConnex, but Read more about Unfinished Business – The Kyeemagh–Chullora Road Inquiry and the future of Sydney[…]