Perth residents fight freeway

By Anne Pavy

PERTH -- The City Northern Bypass is a freeway link proposed by the state Liberal government to run across the northern edge of the Perth central area. The government claims that it will help commuters get to and from work more quickly.

Others, such as Ian Alexander, town planner and lecturer at the University of Western Australia, argue that the freeway will only aggravate traffic congestion and pollution problems.

The freeway would go through the heart of Northbridge, as either a surface road or a tunnel, a partial tunnel being the planners' preferred option. This would devastate this thriving inner city cultural area, decreasing employment, recreation and tourism and increasing the number of cars and the greenhouse gases and other pollutants they produce.

A meeting of small business people, residents and environmentalists was held on November 6, organised by the Northbridge Business Association. George Hackett, from the Burswood Bridge and Roads Committee, the committee responsible for putting the 30-year-old proposal forward again, told the meeting there was a need to plan for Perth's growing population. He pointed to predictions that over the next 30 years the population of the city would grow to 2 million people.

Other speakers included Carmen Lawrence, leader of the WA Labor opposition, and Ian Alexander, who spoke of the need for improved public transport, particularly light rail, and the need for real consultation with the community about plans for transport.

Jack Marks, Perth's deputy lord mayor, and Richard Lewis, the state minister for planning, also spoke. Lewis was heckled loudly when he asserted a need to quickly make a decision about this proposal so that “people could get on with their lives”.

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