Transport and Cities
16 May 2021
Megabang for megabucks: driving a harder bargain on megaprojects
Taxpayers pay too much for major road and rail projects in Australia because governments don’t drive a hard bargain on contracts with the big construction firms.
8 November 2020
The rise of megaprojects: counting the costs
Governments are committing to a record number of ‘mega’ transport projects, exposing taxpayers to mega risks of cost blowouts. Megaprojects should be a last, not a first resort.
28 June 2020
The Recovery Book: what Australian governments should do now
To help Australia recover from the COVID-19 recession, the Government should inject $70 billion to $90 billion in extra economic stimulus, including revamping and extending JobKeeper.
24 May 2020
Fast train fever: Why renovated rail might work but bullet trains won’t
Australia should dump the decades-old dream of building an east-coast bullet train, and we should be wary of expensive promises to upgrade regional rail lines.
20 October 2019
Right time, right place, right price: a practical plan for congestion charging in Sydney and Melbourne
Drivers should be charged $5 to enter the Sydney and Melbourne CBDs in the morning peak and another $5 to exit in the afternoon peak, as part of a package of reforms to make our biggest cities work better.
13 October 2019
Why it’s time for congestion charging: better ways to manage busy urban roads
Australia’s capital cities should join many of the great cities of the world by charging drivers who use the busiest roads at the busiest times.
16 April 2019
Commonwealth Orange Book 2019: Policy priorities for the federal government
The winner of the 2019 federal election should defy the national mood of reform fatigue and stare down vested interests to pursue a targeted agenda to improve the lives of Australians. The Orange Book charts the policy priorities.
28 October 2018
State Orange Book 2018: Policy priorities for states and territories
State and territory governments can do more to improve the lives of Australians. In many cases, states are different because their governments adopted better policies. Every state should learn from the others and do better.
1 October 2018
Remarkably adaptive: Australian cities in a time of growth
Australia’s urban commuters have little to fear from population growth, if recent experience is any guide. The average commute distances and times barely increased over the five years to 2016, even as Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane’s populations grew strongly.
25 February 2018
Unfreezing discount rates: transport infrastructure for tomorrow
Australia is taking the wrong approach to valuing roads, railways and other big infrastructure. Change will help governments pick the right projects in the right order.