Building light rail will result in unavoidable, short-term delays across Canberra's transport and road network, but will mean the city avoids gridlock in the decades ahead as the city grows, Transport Minister Chris Steel has said.
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Mr Steel defended the ACT government's decision to proceed with light rail in a Legislative Assembly debate which defeated an opposition motion calling for the project to be halted to ease congestion on the road network, which has worsened as a result of the raising London Circuit project.
"Unlike the Liberals, we have a policy for the future of Canberra's transport network and how we move people around a city that will be much larger in the decades ahead," Mr Steel said.
"This is about building infrastructure now to support a better connected and sustainable city, where we avoid the congestion problems faced by other cities who haven't invested in mass transit solutions at the right time."
Opposition transport spokesman Jeremy Hanson had moved the motion, which also called on the government to analyse traffic congestion in Canberra's south caused by roadworks in the city.
Building light rail to Woden would result in a decade of traffic delays to people living on the southside, most of whom would not benefit from the project once it was built at a cost of more than $3 billion, Mr Hanson said.
The government has not released its own timeframe or cost estimates for the project.
Mr Steel said the government expected road delays for stage 2B of light rail - which will link Commonwealth Park to Woden - to be less significant, given there will be more space to undertake the work without cutting into road space.
The Transport Minister said the government needed to make "balanced and considered investments" in public transport, roads and active travel.
"We're building the infrastructure that our city needs to support all of these modes of transport, including mass transit," he said.
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"The solution isn't one or the other. We consider them all holistically as part of an integrated transport network, and we're investing in new and renewed infrastructure across all modes."
Mr Hanson had said Canberrans were frustrated and Transport Minister Chris Steel needed to explain how motorists could "find a different way into the city" when all major southside roads were affected.
The motion had called on the government to "end this traffic chaos as soon as possible by not proceeding with Stage 2B" of light rail.
The debate on Wednesday afternoon followed fresh pressure on the government to release the cost estimates and completion date for the light rail link to Woden, with a parliamentary inquiry calling for the detail to be made public "as soon as practicable".
The government should also announce the estimated completion date for the project to raise London Circuit, which will allow light rail tracks to connect to Commonwealth Avenue, a committee report tabled on Tuesday said.
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Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
