Transport Minister hoses down reports rail infrastructure won’t be ready for 2032 Games
Queensland’s Transport Minister has hosed down reports that one of the major pieces of infrastructure ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Games won’t be finished in time.
A new report claims the Sunshine Coast heavy rail extension linking Beerwah to Maroochydore will “come down to the wire” with just 10 years for the major project to get underway, and both levels of governments trading barbs over the project.
Last week, the federal government pledged $1.6 billion to partly fund the extension, a figure the state government has questioned.
The Queensland government is yet to commit to the project, saying it needs to see a business case.
Transport Minister Mark Bailey says the announcement was a cheap bid for votes by the Morrison government.
“This is such an election stunt, doesn’t have a business case, their costing is totally untrustworthy, we don’t know where they got that figure from, we think they simply made it up and threw it into the budget because they are desperate,” he told Peter Fegan.
He says there was “no doubt about it” that everything will be “up and running” before the Olympics.
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He also gave an update on the remains of the Drift restaurant, describing it as a dangerous task.
He says they are hoping to have it off the bikeway by the end of the week.
“It’s a steady as we go job.”