Arguments Against ARTC Handover

The Howard Government wants to take control of NSW rural and Hunter mainline tracks so it can make the lines more attractive to big business.

Under the plan, the Carr Government would hand control of railway track to the federal government-controlled Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC).

The ARTC would run the lines to make maximum profit, dividing the ownership of the network and contracting out the track maintenance, and forcing maintenance workers to bid for their own jobs.

This would cut standards, safety and wipe out more than 1,500 rural jobs. The flow-on effect to rural Rail Towns would be devastating, particularly in the Hunter.

Bob Carr must reject this madness and keep our tracks under public control with a single line of command and accountability.

What's Wrong with the Proposal?

* The NSW taxpayer ends up with all the financial risk while ARTC makes all the profit

• The ARTC has come under criticism for failing to provide for the long term up-keep of the rail infrastructure currently
under its control in other states

• The proposal will lead to the loss of 1,500 rail jobs, mainly in rural communities like yours

• The ARTC proposal ignores the recommendations of the Glenbrook Rail Disaster inquiry; that a single authority should have responsibility for track safety

• Maintenance contracts would be awarded to the cheapest bidder, compromising safety

• An increase in contractors will result in a decrease in skill levels of maintenance staff

• For every rail job lost in a rural community, it is estimated that dozens of other jobs are affected

The International Experience

Where this has been attempted overseas, the results have been disastrous.

In the UK:

Track maintenance was privatised in the 1990s as part of a broader sell-off of the rail industry. What followed was a spate of deadly derailments, culminating in an inquiry by Lord Cullen into Ladbroke Grove Disaster.

Lord Cullen found that the fragmentation of the industry through divided ownership and outsourcing of maintenance work had a corrosive effect upon the safety of the system.

In New Zealand:

Competitive track maintenance reaped short-term returns for investors. But the tracks have plunged into such disrepair that the private operators want to give them back to the State!

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Get Involved in the Campaign!

Take a stand for your region by getting behind the Combined Union campaign against the splitting of NSW railway tracks.

1. Get involved in your local campaign committee

2. Contact your local MP and demand they oppose the hand over

3. Circulate the petition to be delivered to Premier Bob Carr

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