Save Our
Sydney Suburbs (NSW) Inc.
News
Release November 2005
City Vision
Hi SOS Members
ON AIR - RADIO NATIONAL
As part of our ongoing war with the overdevelopment lobby we featured yesterday
(Mon 7th Nov 2005) on Michael Duffy's Counterpoint program. The program included
a section on urban consolidation in which Professor Patrick Troy and I were
interviewed live yesterday afternoon. If you missed the program and wish to
hear what was said, it is being rebroadcast at 9.45 pm tonight (Tues 8th Nov
2005) on Radio National 576 - the program starts after the 9 o'clock news. Alternatively
you can listen to it on your computer:
How to listen using your computer?
On your web browser copy in the address: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/counterpoint/
When the resulting webpage pops up on your screen you will see:
Monday 7 November 2005
Listen | Real Media | Windows Media.
Turn on your computer speakers and click "Windows Media" (or "Real
Media" if you have that system on your computer). The program will start
playing. If you want to get to our bit, fast forward to 39 minutes on the progress
bar. It will be beneficial if you can encourage the ABC to give the subject
of overdevelopment more exposure. This is very easy. Send them an email about
the program by copying in the address:
http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/counterpoint/email.htm
and follow the prompts on the screen. This will help keep the subject alive
and in front. We can do it. The quality and quantity of letters that were sent
in response to the "Sydney isn't full, so lets stop the rot" Sydney
Morning Herald article was fabulous.
CITY VISION TALK
Professor Peter Newman has been very active publicising his forthcoming appearance
in the City Vision talk at the Sydney Town Hall this evening, 6.30 pm, Tuesday
8 November . He must have issued press releases - he was mentioned by Alan Jones
this morning. From what was said, it appears Peter Newman will be suggesting
a fast railway from the West into the city as phoney bait for us to accept high-density.
Only 10% of jobs are now in the city and anyway, 80% of journeys are not work
related. The reality is that for most journeys undertaken (such as travelling
to work outside the city centre, recreational activities, visiting friends,
weighty shopping) public transport, if it is available, is just too inconvenient
and time-consuming.
Such a railway will be very nice to have if we can afford it but unfortunately
it will do little to solve Sydney's transport problems. However it must be said
that a comprensive underground rail system that would be sufficiently competitive
with cars in Sydney could theoretically be built. There is a small problem.
The estimate is it would cost some $1,400 billion to build. The New South Wales
State budget is only $40 billion per annum. To operate such a system would cost
$155 billion per year - that is $45,000 for each man, woman and child in Sydney.
Pie in the sky. See what I mean by phoney bait to get us to accept high-density?
You can fool people some of the time but you can't fool them all the time.
Tony Recsei
President, Save Our Suburbs