hhag newsletter 6
Download hhag newsletter 6 as a Word document
In the last Hartley Highway Action Group newsletter I alluded to the debate the committee has been having to define the principles that underpin our defence strategy.
We are still pursuing the Newnes corridor option and await responses, from both local member and original proponents, Bob Debus and Michael Daley the NSW Minister for Roads, on our demand for further consideration of this option. At the same time we have seen an increasing array of calls for the road to be left on its current line, the latest being local state member Gerard Martin’s references at the 18th July meeting at the school house. For our part we have been endeavouring to build an alliance with the Blue Mountains community where there are eighty thousand voters who will have an interest in the increased use of the highway by heavy freight vehicles and the bigger issue of whether freight should be transported by rail or road.
Before we move to the next stage of developments in respect of the highway ‘upgrade’ we felt it important that we should share the defence principles that have been debated and agreed to by the committee. I will outline them below in full.
Whilst HHAG recognises the existence of the present (historic) line of road running through the valley it’s primary defence of the valley is based on the promotion of an alternate route via the Darling Causeway and Newnes plateau and the many benefits that proposal offers.
As its second line of defence the following plan (some items of which have potential for universal support) is being pursued.
Promote investment in rail, to provide sustainable integrated freight systems between the Central West, Sydney and the coast.
Promote the development of better (preferred) road freight routes which avoid
- the Hartley valley and Lithgow (for instance the Newnes plateau)
- the Blue Mountains towns (for instance the Hume and the Golden Highways or long term the Bells Line of Road)
and which minimise changes in elevation to minimise fuel use.
Seek a commitment now to no increase in the size of trucks using the Great Western Highway: No B-doubles greater than 19 metres through the mountains.
Seek a commitment now to no new route through the Hartley valley, Australia’s most historic valley, where Australia’s inland settlement began, and where Wiradjiri, Dharug and Gundungurra traditional custodians met for millennia prior to European settlement.
Promote the management of the existing highway between Lapstone and Lithgow to increase safety and amenity, using local improvements and information technology (eg point to point cameras) and other methods to influence driver behaviour.
If — for reasons of safety — the Great Western Highway has to be upgraded between Mt Victoria and Lithgow, seek priority for immediate safety improvements and promote the following objectives:
- improvement of the grade and alignment of the Victoria Pass
- improvement of the grade and alignment on River Lett Hill
- the reduction of ice hazards under Hassans Walls through the use of road and information technology
- no impairment of the escarpment and valley vistas
- the conservation and interpretation of Mitchell’s Victoria Pass viaduct
- the protection of heritage buildings from vibration and emissions
- the creation of an historic buildings precinct served only by local and tourist traffic
- the retention of excellent visual and vehicular access to the Hartley Historic site.
Explore all measures to protect and support residents and owners who are affected by RTA actions.
I should emphasise that the principles have been developed by the committee endeavouring to establish what the community we represent would want. The RTA will make their decisions after consultation with the whole community, in view of this we need to ensure broad consensus on the principles underpinning our defence strategy. We’d encourage your comment or criticism of these principles. We will also need to have an insight into some of the detail that would be entailed in the implementation of each principle. If you would like to join a small group to discuss the principles or to make suggestions in respect of the underlying detail please let us know by emailing the Secretary of HHAG Lynda Lovegrove or making direct contact with any member of the committee.
Since our last newsletter in early July, the HHAG committee has met on one occasion. In addition, on 4th July a HHAG deputation met with representatives of the Mt Victoria and Blackheath communities to discuss pan Blue Mountain co operation. On the 8th July a deputation met with Andrew Stoner, NSW leader of the Nationals and shadow spokesperson for Roads and Ports, who volunteered an immediate cessation of the valley GWH upgrade to enable a full consideration of a Newnes and Bells Line of Road upgrade. On 16th July a deputation attended the Bathurst NSW Community Cabinet meeting debrief to further promote our cause. On 18th July we hosted local member Gerard Martin’s attendance at a public meeting at the schoolhouse. In that meeting Mr Martin made several references to the retention of the road on its current line or thereabouts. In the next week we will lend our support to a pan Blue Mountains objection to the proposal by Centennial Coal to transport 500,000 tonnes of coal per year across the mountains by road rather than rail. On the same line a meeting has now been firmly scheduled for 13th August where some twenty Blue Mountain community groups will assemble to consider establishing an umbrella organisation to counter the High Productivity Vehicles road freight threat posed by the Mt Victoria Lithgow highway upgrade.
We have recently updated our letter writing kit and “take action” email capacity on the HHAG website to enable email protest re the use of B-doubles greater than 19 metres. Encourage your friends to email at http://www.hartleyhighwayactiongroup.com/
Please take action, your protest counts.
Ramsay Moodie
Chairman 27th July 2009
6355 2259 | 0412 283800 | 9983 0010
