John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Standing Committee on Infrastructure, Transport and Cities, I present the committee's report entitled Innovating transport across Australia, together with the minutes of proceedings.

Report made a parliamentary paper in accordance with standing order 39(e).

by leave—The automation and electrification of mass transit is a potentially revolutionary development in transport. Done well, it could make our cities and regions more accessible, livable, productive and sustainable. Achieving this outcome will demand vision and leadership from government. The committee's previous report, Building up and moving out, set out a blueprint for the planning of our cities and regions. It identified opportunities for transforming connectivity through integrated multimodal transport networks. This current report is an extension of that work.

Mass transit is the key to creating better mobility. Automation and electrification will make mass transit safer, more efficient, cleaner and quieter. But they will also demand changes in the regulatory environment and transport infrastructure. This will require planning and investment, with policy responses framed around the different requirements of cities and regions—greenfield sites and brownfield sites. Ideally, our transport networks will consist of seamless systems operating across a variety of transport modes. These networks will serve cities and regions that are characterised by densification and decentralisation. Mass transit will provide high-volume trunk routes as the arteries of the transport network, with shared mobility and active transport providing the capillaries of the system. The goal should be the creation of a new transport ecosystem.

The electrification of transport has the potential to lower costs, reduce the environmental impacts of land transport and enhance fuel security. Hydrogen fuel cell technology in particular has the capacity to power mass transit options. It is well suited to buses, trucks, long-haul vehicles and even trains. The key to electrification is ensuring that the relevant infrastructure, especially refuelling stations, is put in place. The synergies between automation and electrification mean that convergent development should be encouraged and that electrification and automation should be implemented and managed together.

The most important thing the Australian government can provide to the future development of automated transport and new energy sources is vision. Within this vision, the Australian government should provide leadership and coordination of policy that focuses on consistency and interoperability between jurisdictions. It should also facilitate the development of national standards based on relevant international standards and coordinate the development of relevant energy and communications infrastructure. Governments need to commit to automation and alternative fuels by designing and building infrastructure around their requirements. It is also important that governments engage in the art of transition in managing the introduction of automated and electric vehicles. Not least of the government's responsibilities in this regard will be ensuring compatibility and interoperability of charging infrastructure, making sure that there is standard charging mechanisms for all vehicles.

In conclusion, I would like to thank all those who have contributed to this inquiry. This was a short inquiry. Nonetheless, the committee received high-quality evidence from a range of people and organisations dedicated to the improvement of our urban environment and transport networks. They provided clear evidence on the benefits of transport automation, mass transit and electrification and the need to clearly define a pathway to an automated and electrified future. I would also like to thank my committee colleagues for their considered and bipartisan work on this inquiry and throughout the 45th Parliament. It has been a pleasure to work with them, and I think we have shown what can be achieved when members of all parties work together in a constructive way. Last but not least, I would like to thank the secretariat for their dedicated and highly professional support of the committee throughout the parliament. On behalf of the committee, I commend this report to the House.

Sharon Bird (Cunningham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I just want to take this opportunity, recognising, as the chair has just outlined, that this may be the last opportunity in this parliament for us to talk about the fabulous work of the committee that we've been chairing and that I've been deputy chair of over this parliament. I would encourage people to look at this report. It's a significant body of work which was turned around in a reasonably short period of time, I have to say.

Transport in our cities, between our cities and between our cities and our regions is something that's such a significant and important issue, and this was an opportunity for us as a committee to look at innovation in that space and the challenges and opportunities it presents. A range of really solid recommendations have been put forward by the committee to look at ways in which, if I can use the analogy of the transport committee, instead of having the future come down the track at us, we as a nation can actually apply some foresight and anticipate where those challenges and opportunities are and respond effectively.

I think the committee's report provides some very good signposts around alternative fuels, infrastructure and communications infrastructure which are so much more closely knitted with transport infrastructure in this modern space. If we get all of those aspects right, we can really improve the connectivity across the nation that the chair talked about. So I would encourage people to have a look at the report. Have a look at the recommendations in particular, but also have a look at the significant discussion, because we had such fantastic contributions by many, many members of the community about the opportunities for automated mass transport and alternative fuel technology availability.

The main reason I wanted to speak today was to have the opportunity to thank very much the member for Bennelong, who chaired the committee. He has been a really inspiring chair. He has been really determined to work through the evidence and get a bipartisan position. Some of the best work that happens in this place happens in that frame and doesn't get enough attention. Sometimes chairs can be quite the opposite, so I wanted to acknowledge that the member for Bennelong wasn't like that. He took a very determined view that we should try to reach a bipartisan outcome.

I thank all the other committee members, who worked really hard. Most importantly, I specifically want to say thank you to the committee secretariat: Lynley Ducker, the committee secretary; Bill Pender, the inquiry secretary; Tegan Scott, the researcher; and Kelly Burt, the office manager. The work we do in this place is world class, and it's world class because of the outstanding calibre of the people who work in the parliament with us. They are too often the unsung heroes of this place. This committee secretariat did a professional and really outstanding job in putting together in this parliament two major reports, which I think have contributed very significantly to the national discussion. I want to put on record my appreciation for their work. Hopefully, we will see this committee, which has a long and very proud history across many parliaments, continue to do that in the next parliament as well.

John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Cunningham. I recognise how pleasant it was to work with her and I look forward to that continuing. I move:

That the House take note of the report.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with standing order 39, the debate is adjourned. The resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next day of sitting.