19 October, 2004

The Hon Peter Beattie
Premier & Minister for Trade
PO Box 185
Brisbane Albert Street QLD 4002

Dear Mr Premier

The State Government declared the North South Bypass Tunnel (NSBT) a significant project under the State Development and Public Works Act on 15 April 2004.

There is a perception within the community that because of this the State Government supports the NSBT and we expect that you will soon inform Brisbane City Council of your government’s support. If this is done it is an abrogation of the State Government’s duty of care to the residents of Brisbane and will be made without a complete and thorough understanding of the real costs and benefits and major health implications that will be uncovered through the EIS process currently underway.

Investigations by community members are revealing that the true story is not being told. There are serious long-term public health implications, the congestion on feeder roads will get worse, the safety features are fatally flawed and it is not a commercially viable project.

You are no doubt aware of the issues that are facing the tunnels in Sydney and Melbourne.

In Sydney there has been a significant underestimation of the out-of-tunnel congestion impacts, which resulted in traffic being delayed in the tunnel for significant periods. As a result, occupants of the vehicles experienced considerable distress. In fact the air quality in the Sydney tunnels have been so bad some days that motorcycles and open car cars have been banned.

In Melbourne the Burnley Tunnel has had to be closed over 60 times in a 12 month period due to poor in-tunnel air quality - the same situation could easily be repeated here.

Diesel emissions accounts for the major proportion of vehicle emissions and the health impacts of these emissions are well documented. In Sydney the traffic analysis significantly understated the use of their tunnels by these heavy vehicles.

World wide there is a growing body of research that identifies that ultra fine Particulates (PM 2.5 and below) have serious health implications for particularly the elderly and the very young.

The proposed stacks, to be located at either end of the tunnel, will be large structures - at least 30 metres high. Both stacks are very close to hospitals and the Bowen Bridge stack is more or less next door to a proposed older persons residential facility. At the very least will be the financial implications to nearby businesses and the hospitals when they find they have to retrofit filtrations systems to take the pollutants out of the air conditioning systems?

The pollution plume that will come out of any untreated northern stack, 24 hours a day and 365 days a year will also drift over nearby Downey Park, a number of large schools and busy sport fields. No one has satisfactorily advised us what effect these noxious emissions, coming out of a 4.5 kilometre tunnel, will have on nearby sensitive facilities let alone residents who live in the adjacent communities.

The traffic analysis supplied by the NSBT team is questionable.

At a Brisbane Development Association luncheon in August Councillor Newman admitted that even after the NSBT is constructed there will continue to be traffic congestion in the surrounding roads.

While the latest transport modelling analysis is yet to be made available, the modelling done in 2001 and 2003 indicates there will be an increase in the congestion on the roads leading into and out of the portals, especially Lutwyche Road.

Does this mean that Stages 2 (ICB to Kedron Brook Road) and Stage 3 (Gympie Road to the Gateway Motorway) of the NSBT will need to be brought forward? There is no mention of this in the current EIS process.

If the same ventilation system is used for these subsequent stages the suburbs of Windsor, Wooloowin and Clayfield will have a series of large stacks (30 plus metres). All along this route there will be connections and at each connection there will need to be another exhaust stack. We do not think this is the vision residents have for a ‘liveable’ Brisbane.

The safety features of the tunnels also warrant further investigations. Can people with limited mobility be expected to reach the exit doors located every 120 metres and then through the other tunnel exit out of the portals (a distance of up to 2.2 kilometres)? Your own research will show you that this is not world’s best practise

Construction costs are continuing to increase; at first it was $900 million (end 2003) now it is $1.3 billion (August 2004). If adequate filtration ( in the form of electrostatic precipitators and/or other types of pollution extractors) is added the figure could be around $1.7 billion and if safety features are improved the sum would then exceed $2 billion. Where will it end?

If executives responsible for the continued viability of the tunnel are forced to increase profits within an environment of declining income what will this mean? Will it be like in Sydney where a parliamentary inquiry uncovered the fact that fans had been turned off for long periods of time?

World wide it is recognised that in metropolitan areas congestion cannot be solved by building more infrastructure.

In Australia and overseas there are good examples of how an efficient modern transport systems can be delivered without requiring massive capital and recurrent expenditure.

South east Queensland is an attractive place to live, and more people want to enjoy it. This population growth and our modern lifestyle requires that the ‘can do’ mentality of yesterday be replaced by the smart leaders who can work with the community to develop and deliver a balanced sustainable transport system. These sorts of solutions will enable Brisbane to grow economically as well as allowing residents to live in Brisbane knowing their health is not at risk.

Just because BCC is proposing this tunnel be constructed through a PPP arrangement does not meant it is the right decision. If the Integrated Regional Transport Plan established the principle of sustainable transport system the State needs to ensure that whatever network structure is put in place will deliver the right system performance.

Please acknowledge receipt of our letter and respond with you answers and thoughts on these matters as soon as possible.

Yours sincerely

Barry Wilson
Chairperson