Category Archives: Transport

Full-employment policy in post-war Australia – Brisbane bus network example from Seven News Flashback

Seven News Brisbane has prepared a Flashblack with an extraordinary example of full employment policy in action in Brisbane in the late sixties/early seventies, when Brisbane adopted diesel buses after the trams were retired by Clem Jones. A distinguished gentleman … Continue reading

Posted in Brisbane, Transport | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Here we go again (without JobKeeper) + Cross River Rail looking like an even worse investment now

Firstly, what more can we say about the latest border restrictions other than here we go again, although this time without JobKeeper. Needless to say, this will bring more economic hardship to tourism businesses who need all the trade they … Continue reading

Posted in Transport | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Electric Vehicle Tax – Qld shouldn’t follow Victoria and SA in imposing one

The Australia Institute ran an excellent webinar (Stop the Electric Vehicles Tax) this morning opposing the Electric Vehicle Tax announced by Victoria and SA. An EV tax may end up being imposed by other state governments, including NSW’s and Queensland’s, … Continue reading

Posted in Budget, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Second GC motorway should have been built decades ago – BODBTN extract

It was good to see in a media statement yesterday the state government’s commitment to a second M1: The Palaszczuk Government’s economic recovery plan will be significantly boosted with a $755 million commitment to build the 16-kilometre stage one of … Continue reading

Posted in Brisbane, Gold Coast, Infrastructure, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Thoughts on the New Normal – latest podcast episode

Regarding a new normal in a post-COVID world, in the June 2020 issue of Monocle magazine, the Editor Tyler Brule wrote: We don’t want a heavy handed ‘new normal.’ We want people to act responsibly but we also want families, … Continue reading

Posted in Health, IR, Labour market, Macroeconomy, Retail trade, Tourism, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dynamic pricing economics & ethics podcast discussion

My latest podcast episode is on the economics and ethics of dynamic pricing, as used by Uber and airlines among other businesses. I spoke yesterday with Ben Scott, Research Officer at my business Adept Economics, and you can listen to … Continue reading

Posted in Energy, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cross River Rail cost blowout means project doesn’t stack up

Based on recent Courier-Mail reports of a huge cost blowout, the Cross River Rail project could deliver a net loss to the community of around $5 billion, or almost $1,000 for every Queenslander.  The latest news about the troubled Cross … Continue reading

Posted in Brisbane, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

How much land value uplift could Trad expect from Cross River Rail?

Queensland Deputy Premier-Treasurer Jackie Trad is facing a serious political crisis, after she delayed in declaring her husband purchased an investment property that could potentially be worth tens of thousands of dollars more as a result of the award of … Continue reading

Posted in Transport, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Trad’s Cross River Rail & state budget plans wrecked by Coalition victory

Queensland Deputy Premier and Treasurer Jackie Trad and her senior Treasury officials will be vexed by the implications of the shock federal Coalition victory yesterday for Cross River Rail funding and the state budget. I expect Trad and state Treasury … Continue reading

Posted in Budget, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Deficient Qld state public administration is a major theme of my new book

Sadly, Queenslanders are getting accustomed to regular stories of failures of state public administration, with two major stories this week. We have learned about the $250 million digital hospitals program cost blow out and the results of the inquiry into … Continue reading

Posted in Health, Transport, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments