Repeat buyers are one of the strongest measures of confidence in any apartment development.

At <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/era-newcastle-west-124-126-bull-street-newcastle-west-nsw-2302">ERA</a> in Newcastle West, some purchasers are returning to <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/gwh">GWH</a> after living at the developer's One Apartments. Their decision to purchase again was driven by the quality of life they found after moving into their first GWH home.

Keith Wilton had spent years living in a house in East Maitland before deciding it was time for a change. Apartment living had always been on his radar, but he was selective about what he wanted.

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"I had some boxes I wanted to tick," he says.

Keith points to the open-plan design, generous outdoor areas and considered inclusions as key reasons One Apartments worked for him.

“One of those things was a nice indoor open plan area, but also I wanted a nice outdoor open area that I could entertain on in summer or Christmases or birthdays,” he says.

He also found value in the smaller details, from integrated appliances to shared resident spaces including the pool, cinema and rooftop areas.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135096 project_image_fid=356818]

After comparing several developments, he chose One Apartments because of GWH's longstanding local reputation and his own experience working with the developer on a commercial project more than a decade earlier.

"I knew that they were local, that the quality of the build was going to be up there. I'd looked at other apartment complexes around and close by, and I just knew that here was a better decision location wise."

Today, Keith says the move has completely changed how he experiences Newcastle.

"I enjoy living in this location because it's more of a lifestyle change. That Newcastle city living where you can walk to restaurants and bars and even beaches and parks and even shopping across the road."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135096 project_image_fid=356828]

Beyond the location, he says it's the sense of community that has surprised him most.

"Everyone loves living here because they chose to live here, but everyone looks out for each other. It's a real great community feel here."

For Aimee and Lyle Goodman, the journey started almost by chance.

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The couple happened to be having coffee in Newcastle when they noticed the site where One Apartments was about to begin construction.

"We were aware GWH was planning a development," Aimee says. "We made one phone call and things moved pretty quickly after that."

As busy business owners, they initially thought apartment living would simply reduce the maintenance that came with larger homes. Instead, it fundamentally changed how they spent time together.

"We actually catch up more as a family now," Aimee says.

"We've had homes with big yards and lots of space, but everyone ended up in different rooms. Here we'll have dinner together, the kids can play, and we spend far more quality time together."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135096 project_image_fid=356829]

Lyle says their confidence came from GWH's reputation within Newcastle's building industry.

"I know people who've worked across different apartment projects, and whenever GWH came up the feedback was always the same. They're rock solid. They're quality."

That confidence only grew throughout the buying process.

"One of the things that really impressed us with GWH was the whole process, was the communication," Lyle says. "It was consistent, it was regular, there was no problem if we had some weird questions, there was no problems in getting answers."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135096 project_image_fid=351104]

Aimee says one moment stood out.

"The project actually finished on time. We realised we needed to hurry up and sell our house because everything was happening exactly when they said it would."

The positive experience at One Apartments ultimately gave all three buyers the confidence to purchase again with GWH, this time at ERA.

Their confidence reflects what many buyers are seeking in today's apartment market. Location remains important, but so too does certainty around delivery, quality and long-term liveability.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135096 project_image_fid=356822]

ERA builds on those foundations with 280 one, two and three-bedroom apartments across two landmark towers in <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/newcastle-west-nsw-2302">Newcastle West</a>.&nbsp;

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/fk-australia">Fender Katsalidis</a>, the project will include more than 2,000 square metres of resident amenities, including a resort-style pool, gym, sauna, private cinema and rooftop entertaining spaces overlooking the harbour and coastline.&nbsp;

The development is also within walking distance of the Newcastle Interchange, Honeysuckle, Darby Street, the harbour foreshore, restaurants, retail and the city’s beaches, continuing the walkable lifestyle that existing GWH buyers say has transformed how they live.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135096 project_image_fid=356826]

For Keith, the appeal remains straightforward.

"You feel at home even before you've moved into your home."

For Aimee, the change is measured in time.

“I just felt like I had more time,” she says.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135096 project_image_fid=351102]

Construction at ERA is now underway, with more than half of the residences already sold and limited two and three-bedroom apartments remaining in the East Tower release. Priced from $980,000 for two-bedroom residences and $1.46 million for three-bedroom residences, buyers can secure an apartment with a 10 per cent deposit, with premium homes offering ocean views from Level 8 and harbour views from Level 10.

ERA is also backed by Resilience Insurance's 10-year Latent Defects Insurance policy, providing protection against structural or waterproofing defects for 10 years after completion. The project is anticipated to be completed in early 2028.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=135096]

Joel Robinson

From ONE to ERA: Why buyers are choosing GWH again in Newcastle West

Virgate Property Group is preparing to commence construction of Verdé, its new apartment development in Melbourne's Arts Precinct at Southbank, following a strong run of sales that has seen more than half of the project's 173 apartments secured.

Verdé has attracted a broad mix of first home buyers, owner-occupiers upgrading from nearby inner-city suburbs and investors, with younger owner-occupier couples aged between 28 and 45 accounting for the strongest enquiry. Many are already living in Southbank, South Melbourne, Albert Park, Port Melbourne, South Yarra and the CBD.

"Verdé is located in one of the most desirable pockets of southern Melbourne," Blair Property Group Director Darren Blair, who is managing sales at Verdé, said.

"It's within walking distance of the Arts Centre, Royal Botanic Gardens, Albert Park Lake, and Southbank's restaurants and retail. It's a great lifestyle location with strong amenity and liveability, which made it a very attractive choice for the project."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=4661 project_image_fid=372549]

Virgate was already familiar with the precinct, having previously delivered the successful Domain House development in neighbouring South Melbourne. That experience gave the developer confidence to acquire the Coventry Street site and continue expanding its presence in Melbourne's inner south.

"We had been keeping an eye on the site and the broader precinct for a few months before deciding to move forward with the acquisition," Virgate said.

The project was ultimately secured in 2020 following feasibility studies, planning assessments and due diligence, with the brief centred on delivering "a high-quality, considered design that feels both refined and fit for purpose."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=4661 project_image_fid=314259]

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/bruce-henderson-architects">Bruce Henderson Architects</a>, Verdé comprises 173 one, two and three-bedroom apartments priced from $599,000. The architecture is distinguished by a faceted glass façade that responds to both the site's outlook and Melbourne's changing light conditions.

According to Bruce Henderson Architects, the coloured glazing gives the building a distinctive identity while also providing privacy and solar shading, with residences oriented to capture views across the bay, city skyline and surrounding parklands.

Inside, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/interior-designers/designoffice">DesignOffice</a> has created interiors focused on natural light, efficient planning and enduring materials. Apartments feature engineered oak flooring, natural stone benchtops, floor-to-ceiling glazing and SMEG appliances, while a restrained material palette aims to complement the expansive outlooks rather than compete with them.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=4661 project_image_fid=372550]

Resident amenity has also been designed around everyday functionality rather than occasional use. Facilities include a concierge-serviced lobby, residents' lounge with fireplace, library and co-working space, gym, terrace garden with barbecue facilities, ground-floor café, and package delivery management.

The project's location continues to be one of its strongest drawcards. Positioned on Coventry Street, Verdé sits within walking distance of the National Gallery of Victoria, Arts Centre Melbourne, Royal Botanic Gardens and Albert Park Lake, while Southbank's dining precinct, Sturt Street trams and the new ANZAC Station are all nearby. The surrounding education catchment also includes Melbourne Grammar, Melbourne Girls Grammar, Mac.Robertson Girls' High School and several major university campuses.

The sales team says buyers have responded particularly well to the combination of location, design quality and long-term liveability.

"They're responding really positively to the quality of the design, premium resident amenities and the uninterrupted views. Many also appreciate the location and how connected it is to everything they need."

The ability to secure stamp duty savings before completion has also been a key factor for purchasers, alongside the opportunity to personalise finishes ahead of settlement.

With construction set to commence soon and more than half the apartments already sold, Verdé enters its next phase as one of the Arts Precinct's more established apartment developments, offering remaining buyers an opportunity to secure a residence before construction advances further. Expected completion is scheduled for late 2027.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=4661]

Virgate's Verdé Southbank moves toward construction as sales fly past halfway stage

Downsizer-focused apartment development Kooyongkoot in Hawthorn has been recognised at the 2026 Better Future Melbourne Design Awards, taking home Gold and Silver awards in two categories.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kooyongkoot-hawthorn-1-kooyongkoot-road-hawthorn-vic-3122">Kooyongkoot</a>, currently being delivered by developer PQD and designed by Cera Stribley, received Gold in the Interior Design – Proposed category and Silver in the Architecture – Proposed category.

The dual recognition reflects the design approach behind the boutique development on prestigious Kooyongkoot Road, where the focus has been on creating homes for downsizers seeking the space, quality and functionality of a detached house within a low-rise apartment building.

Rather than maximising apartment numbers, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/pqd">PQD</a> and <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cera-stribley-architects">Cera Stribley</a> limited the development to just 18 residences, allowing for larger floorplans, greater privacy, generous landscaping and expansive communal spaces.&nbsp;The majority of the apartments also benefit from corner aspects, allowing for dual sources of natural light.

Now around 70 per cent complete and on track for completion in November 2026, Kooyongkoot will comprise a mix of garden residences, ter​race apartments, sub-penthouses, and is crowned by two half-floor penthouses with direct lift access and private rooftop terraces.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=102717 project_image_fid=355297]

The Silver Award for Architecture recognised the way the building responds to its prominent corner position at the ent​rance to Hawthorn's Scotch Hill precinct, one of Melbourne's most established residential neighbourhoods.

Rather than competing with the grand homes that line Kooyongkoot Road, the architectural approach focused on restraint and longevity, using curved brickwork, generous landscaping and carefully considered proportions to integrate with the existing streetscape.

"The form feels fluid and timeless, as though shaped by the landscape itself – architecture that belongs, rather than competes," said Chris Stribley, Co-Founder and Managing Principal of Cera Stribley.

The judging submission also highlighted practical innovations throughout the building, including lift cores servicing only nine homes each, a central landscaped lightcourt designed to bring daylight and ventilation into the building, and fully enclosed private storage rooms with lighting, power and shelving to better accommodate residents transitioning from larger family homes.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=102717 project_image_fid=355293]

The Gold Award for Interior Design recognised the project's focus on long-term liveability rather than display-home aesthetics.

According to the awards submission, the interiors were designed from the inside out, prioritising how homes would function over decades of daily use through generous proportions, practical storage, durable natural materials and flexible layouts.

The specification includes natural stone throughout, upgraded acoustic glazing, V-ZUG appliances and fully enclosed storage rooms, alongside an amenity offering focused on wellness, entertainment and everyday convenience.&nbsp;

Residents will have access to a gym and yoga studio, a wellness centre featuring traditional and infrared saunas, a cold therapy shower and treatment room, as well as a residents' lounge and golf simulator/cinema room for entertainment.&nbsp;Kooyongkoot has also considered the everyday convenience of its residents by offering a private carwash and pet wash facilities on site as well as dedicated parcel lockers and oversized fully enclosed storage rooms.&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=102717 project_image_fid=355303]

The project's attention to detail has already resonated with buyers. Earlier this year, Kooyongkoot recorded one of Boroondara's highest apartment sales when an $8 million penthouse was purchased by a Melbourne CEO downsizing from a nearby family home.

"Every detail feels deliberate, from the overall design down to the smallest touches," the purchaser said.

"The level of quality and refinement is exceptional, but what really sold it was how liveable it felt... It felt like a place where everything had been considered, not just a luxury building."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=102717 project_image_fid=355304]

Sustainability also formed a key part of both award submissions. Kooyongkoot is targeting a minimum 7.5-star NatHERS rating across all residences, supported by passive design principles, high-performance glazing, EV charging infrastructure, water reuse systems and a wellness model focused on lower-energy dry facilities rather than pools and large wet areas.

Located within walking distance of Scotch College, Methodist Ladies' College, Koo​yong Lawn Tennis Club, Aubur​n Village and Camberwell Junction, Kooyongkoot continues to target owner-occupiers looking to remain in Melbourne's inner east without compromising on space or quality. A limited selection of two, three and four-bedroom residences remains available, with prices starting from $1.9 million.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=102717]

Kooyongkoot wins Gold and Silver at Better Future Melbourne Design Awards

New apartment supply has become increasingly constrained across <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/parramatta-nsw-2150">Parramatta</a> in recent years, with fewer projects progressing through to completion as development conditions have become more challenging.

It makes <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/novm">NOVM</a>'s 2021-completed <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/the-lennox-parramatta-12-phillip-street-parramatta-nsw-2150">The Lennox</a> one of the most recently completed residential towers on the Parramatta River, and among the newest apartment developments in Sydney's second CBD.

With the project largely completed before the sharp escalation in construction costs and inflation following the pandemic, The Lennox is now offering pricing that would be difficult to replicate in a comparable new development in Parramatta today, or across much of Western Sydney.

The majority of the 413 apartments at The Lennox sold before and shortly after completion. A limited release of the remaining apartments has recently been brought to market by capital partner <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/project-marketer/equitifund-group">Equitifund</a>, with entry-level pricing from $700,000 and two-bedroom apartments available from under $1 million.

Rising above the Parramatta River at 12 Phillip Street, The Lennox comprises one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments, appealing to first home buyers, young professionals, families, downsizers and interstate investors seeking a completed apartment in one of Australia's fastest-growing economic centres.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=5743 project_image_fid=372394]

Rather than positioning Parramatta as an alternative to Sydney's CBD, Equitifund believes the city has reached a point where it stands on its own merits.

"Parramatta is no longer simply an alternative to Sydney CBD, it's becoming a destination in its own right," Equitifund Executive Chairman Greg Huxley said.

"The Lennox captures that evolution with a level of quality and amenity that's difficult to match at its price point."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=5743 project_image_fid=953]

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/marchese-partners">Marchese Partners</a>, the tower responds directly to its riverfront setting through expansive glazing and open-plan layouts that maximise views across the Parramatta River and city skyline. Interiors feature engineered timber flooring, stone benchtops, stainless steel appliances and floor-to-ceiling glazing, while generous balconies extend the living spaces outdoors.

Marchese Partners says the project was conceived to balance high-quality apartment living with practical, long-term functionality, pairing larger, efficient floorplans with amenities more commonly associated with five-star hotels.

That emphasis continues through the resident facilities, which include a 20-metre rooftop swimming pool, fully equipped gym and wellness spaces, full-time concierge, a residents' lounge, function room, private lifts, secure basement parking and rooftop communal areas overlooking the Parramatta River. Ground-floor boardwalk retail and dining further activate the riverfront and integrate the building into the surrounding public realm.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=5743 project_image_fid=925]

Australian housing and finance group Equitifund has secured the remaining apartments, believing there are few completed apartment opportunities in Parramatta that offer the same combination of location, amenity and pricing.

Equitifund National Sales Director Ben Hamblett says buyers are increasingly recognising that premium apartment living no longer needs to come with Sydney CBD pricing.

"The Lennox is where aspirational living becomes attainable," Hamblett said.

"Wake to river and mountain views, step into Sydney's Second CBD, and arrive home to resort-calibre amenities, all without the harbour price tag."

Hamblett says owner-occupiers are also attracted by the convenience of having Westfield Parramatta, Church Street's dining precinct, Parramatta Park, Riverside Theatres, Western Sydney University and major transport connections all within walking distance.

"At The Lennox, lifestyle is not an afterthought, it is the foundation."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=5743 project_image_fid=5374]

The Lennox places residents within walking distance of Parramatta Square, Westfield Parramatta, Church Street Eat Street, Parramatta Station, the ferry wharf, Light Rail, the future Sydney Metro West, Parramatta Park and CommBank Stadium, reinforcing Parramatta's position as one of Australia's most connected metropolitan centres outside Sydney's CBD.

Equitifund says buyers visiting the display suite consistently comment on the quality of the finishes, generous floorplans, river and skyline views, and the walkability of the location. The project has attracted a broad mix of local professionals, upsizers, downsizers, buyers relocating from Sydney's inner suburbs and interstate investors seeking long-term growth opportunities.

That demand aligns with Parramatta's continued evolution as an economic powerhouse. Equitifund Research and Market Insights specialist John Bekiaris says sustained population growth, infrastructure investment and expanding employment opportunities continue to support long-term housing demand across the city.

"Parramatta has evolved from a satellite city into one of Australia's most important economic centres. Population growth, infrastructure investment and employment are all supporting sustained long-term housing demand."

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=5743]

The apartment price gap drawing Sydney buyers west

A luxury beachfront apartment at Rainbow Bay has more than doubled in value since it sold off the plan six years ago, setting a new local apartment record in the process.

The three-bedroom apartment in the Flow development on Petrie Street, the first of four new projects locally by Paul Gedoun's S&amp;S Projects, has sold for $7.4 million, after originally selling for $3.27 million when the project launched in 2020.

The seventh-floor apartment, comprising 187 sqm of internal living space and a 54 sqm balcony overlooking Froggies Beach and Snapper Rocks, was purchased by a local family.

The transaction was negotiated by Pezet Matheson director Kerry Pezet and equates to more than $30,000 per sqm.

Pezet said the sale reflected the limited opportunities to buy into the boutique beachfront development.

"The sale highlights the rarity of opportunities within the boutique beachfront development, where residences seldom become available," Pezet said.

"Flow is one of the Gold Coast's most tightly held buildings. Buyers from our database move quickly when residences become available, and achieving an off-market sale at $7.4 million demonstrates the depth of demand for property of this calibre."

<img alt="Flow" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c585b206-2130-4eee-a50c-3f27c51a7c70" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-07-06%20at%208.33.25%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=m3pHRDV62Y3fvN.XQuQHq.52ilTWpRLf" />

Flow was the first of four luxury apartment developments delivered by Paul Gedoun's S&amp;S Projects at Rainbow Bay and was completed in 2023.

Positioned on the beachfront overlooking Snapper Rocks, the residence includes three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a powder room and views stretching north along the coastline towards Surfers Paradise.

Pezet Matheson Residential principal Mitchell Lambert said buyers continued to prioritise quality beachfront apartments in tightly held locations.

"Flow Residences offers a rare combination of elevated beachfront positioning, architectural excellence, comprehensive resident amenity and premium finishes, which is exactly what discerning purchasers are seeking," Lambert said.

"The transaction further reinforces Rainbow Bay's reputation as one of Australia's premier coastal lifestyle destinations, where limited supply and growing demand continue to support strong market performance."

Pezet Matheson originally marketed and sold out Flow off the plan, making the latest transaction a return to one of the project's original buyers.

Paul Gedoun is selling his third project, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/radia-rainbow-bay-271-boundary-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Radia Rainbow Bay</a>, after recently completing, and selling out, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/esprit-217-227-boundary-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Esprit</a>. He has plans for a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/qld/first-look-s-s-projects-proposes-88-apartment-wellness-tower-at-coolangattas-boundary-street">fourth building</a>, 88 apartments on <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/209-213-boundary-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Boundary Street</a>.

Rainbow Bay apartment doubles in price since off the plan sale during pandemic

Transport

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Sydney Metro is delivering eight new metro stations and 4,000 commuter car parking spacesto Sydney’s growing North West region. 
Trains will run every four minutes in the peak – that’s 15 trains an hour so customers won’t need a timetable, they will just turn up and go. 
The Sydney Metro Northwest project, which opens in the first half of next year, is the first stage of Sydney Metro which will be the first fully-automated railway in Australia. 
Sydney Metro Northwest will deliver a reliable public transport service to a region which has the highest car ownership levels per household in NSW. 
Over the coming decades, an extra 200,000 residents will move into Sydney’s North West, taking its population above 600,000, or twice the size of Canberra.
Savills Australia's Ben Nastasi said there will also be a number of upgrades to current stations.
“The first stage includes eight new railway stations from Cudgegong Road Station, Rouse Hill to Cherrybrook and the upgrade of five existing railway stations (Epping, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, North Ryde and Chatswood) which will open in the first half of 2019.
“Savills NSW Retail Services team will be responsible for sourcing and delivering retail components within and around Sydney Metro Northwest stations which will incorporate a number of retail offerings of varying sizes at each location mentioned below. All retail offerings will be designed to enhance the customer experience and provide convenience for a daily, stress-free commute” he said.
Savills will manage the Expressions of Interest (EOI) campaign for retail opportunities at the following railway station locations which will have between one to four retail opportunities plus vending and ATM facilities:
Cudgegong Road, Rouse Hill, Kellyville, Bella Vista, Norwest, Hills Showground, Castle Hill, Cherrybrook, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park and North Ryde.
“Sydney Metro Northwest are planning to deliver retail offerings that are station specific and complimentary to the broader newly created station precinct and retail already on offer in the immediate area," Nastasi said.
"Local demographics and customer research feedback allows us to provide a more tailored experience for commuters at each station, reflecting the site-specific retail need with usages accommodating their respective catchments.”
An EOI leasing campaign will commence around the first half of April 2018 and will run for eight weeks. 
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jrobinson-rf4aSBido9

Sydney Metro to deliver eight new metro stations

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Australia needs to change the way it assesses potential infrastructure projects, to ensure that governments can better understand which road and rail projects are worth building.
One way would be to make long-overdue changes to how we value the impact of infrastructure on future generations. This is done through the choice of a “<a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/discountrate.asp" target="_blank">discount rate</a>” – the mechanism used to compare costs and benefits of projects that occur at different points in time.
Australian governments have chosen to keep their central discount rate at 7% since at least 1989. This is despite one of the key components of the discount rate, the real borrowing rate, varying from as high as 8% to below 1% in this time.
The <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/unfreezing-discount-rates-transport-infrastructure-for-tomorrow/" target="_blank">latest report</a> released by the Grattan Institute recommends that governments adopt discount rates that change when the world changes, and that reflect the riskiness of a project.
While the concept might seem arcane, using an artificially high discount rate muffles the signal that tells governments what projects are worth building and which ones aren’t. Using the wrong discount rate probably means we build the wrong infrastructure.
<h2>Costs and benefits</h2>
A future benefit or cost needs to be converted into today’s dollars because future dollars have a different value to today’s dollars. This is because, even ignoring the effects of inflation, people value a dollar today more than one at some future date.
When a transport project’s benefits mostly come about in the distant future, a high discount rate treats those benefits more sceptically than a low discount rate would.
The Melbourne Metro rail project provides a good example of the discount rate’s importance. If we use a 7% discount rate, as recommended by Infrastructure Australia, the estimated benefits are only a tiny <a href="http://infrastructureaustralia.gov.au/projects/files/Melbourne_Metro_Project_Evaluation_v2.pdf" target="_blank">10% larger than the costs</a>.
But using a 4% discount rate, the project will deliver benefits that are almost two-and-a-half times greater than the project’s A$9 billion cost.
On one reading, then, the project is expected to be a major economic success. On another its value is marginal. Changing the discount rate has huge implications for the cost-benefit analysis of new projects.
The discount rate is also an important determinant of the mix of projects that governments consider. As you can see in the chart below, changing the discount rate changes the rankings of different projects.
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207620/original/file-20180223-108150-1xh6vfh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip" target="_blank"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/207620/original/file-20180223-108150-1xh6vfh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt=""></a>
<h2>Re-examining the basis for Australia’s discount rates</h2>
Discount rates are part of the appraisal and ranking of potential infrastructure projects. The discount rate is designed to reflect the next-best use of the resources for that project, and with the same level of risk.
The next-best project could be another project in the transport portfolio, in another portfolio, or even a financial investment overseas with the same level of risk.
Our report challenges the way Australian governments apply this framework. Instead of being frozen at 7%, discount rates should vary when there is material variation in the cost of money. In addition, discount rates should differentiate between projects that are more risky and those that are less risky. If we are comparing a low-risk project with a riskier one, then we’re comparing apples with oranges.
The cost of money is usually inferred from government borrowing costs, signalled by the 10-year Commonwealth bond rate. Back in 1989, when the 7% discount rate was established in Australia, the government borrowing rate <a href="https://tradingeconomics.com/australia/government-bond-yield" target="_blank">was 6.8% in real terms</a> (adjusted for inflation); in 2017, it was 0.8%.
Discount rates should reflect such a dramatic change in the cost of money.
The type of risk that matters for discounting is the sensitivity of a project’s expected returns to the economy generally – known as the <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/walkthrough/corporate-finance/4/return-risk/systematic-risk.aspx" target="_blank">systematic risk</a>.
Most government transport infrastructure is still used whether the economy is booming or in the doldrums, because most people keep on travelling to work or school and buying transported goods. But some projects are more sensitive than others to the state of the economy, and the discount rate should be higher for them.
If we incorporate risk and the cost of low-risk borrowing, the discount rate in 2018 should be around 3.5% for projects where systematic risk is low, and around 5% where it is high by the standards of transport infrastructure projects.
Both rates are substantially below today’s 7% standard central rate. Sensitivity testing remains important, of course, because precision is difficult.
<h2>Better evaluations</h2>
Lower discount rates will help to make clear which are the most valuable transport projects available. But they will also make the economics of all transport projects look better.
Our recommendations may therefore seem at odds with previous Grattan Institute analysis, which showed that Australian governments have <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/report/cost-overruns-in-transport-infrastructure/" target="_blank">systematically underestimated the cost of transport projects</a>, making many appear more attractive than they really were.
But our consistent goal is to improve all aspects of project selection and appraisal, so we can know which are the best projects to build and in what order. This accords with past work by both the Productivity Commission and <a href="https://bitre.gov.au/publications/2005/files/report_110.pdf" target="_blank">Bureau of Transport, Infrastructure and Regional Economics</a>, arguing that the discount rate is not the appropriate way to deal with optimism bias.
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/92265/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">Ultimately, using an artificially high discount rate comes at the cost of distorting public policy priorities. We should be aiming to improve every aspect of evaluation wherever better approaches are evident, so we build the right projects in the right order. Better discounting would be a big step in that direction.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/marion-terrill-325786" target="_blank">Marion Terrill</a>, Transport Program Director, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168" target="_blank">Grattan Institute</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/hugh-batrouney-318476" target="_blank">Hugh Batrouney</a>, Fellow, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/grattan-institute-1168" target="_blank">Grattan Institute</a>
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/smart-money-a-better-way-for-australia-to-select-big-transport-infrastructure-projects-92265" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

A better way for Australia to choose big transport projects

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Much of the traffic using Sydney’s Anzac Bridge and, in the distance, Harbour Bridge is travelling through the city centre, not to it or from it. 
People are debating the need for new roads and in particular the need to build <a href="https://www.westconnex.com.au/" target="_blank">WestConnex</a> in Sydney. These discussions are always about more or less cars, relief of congestion or not, and pollution. This article offers a new perspective: if WestConnex is built in full, most cars will no longer need to drive through (or alongside) the city centre.
This could open the way to new uses for current highway corridors. Much less traffic in the city centre would deliver a much better urban environment.
Most drivers along current routes to the city centre aren’t using these to actually reach the centre and stay there. WestConnex connects the destinations of many drivers through the city from the west, the northern beaches and south to the airport and beyond. Once traffic is diverted underground, these drivers will be able to bypass (or travel under) the city centre (see figure 1).
This is similar to the changes the <a href="https://www.linkt.com.au/sydney/using-sydney-toll-roads/cross-city-tunnel" target="_blank">Cross City Tunnel</a> delivered for the inner west and eastern suburbs, but on a much bigger scale.
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202059/original/file-20180116-53292-1msbxxm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Figure 1: Westconnex and its northern and southern underground connections. Rob Roggema
<h2>Making the best of WestConnex</h2>
Hardly any Western country is building highways <a href="https://www.worldfinance.com/infrastructure-investment/project-finance/how-the-construction-of-elevated-highways-came-to-an-end" target="_blank">any more</a>. Many are tearing down the expressways that separate their city centres from the waterfronts, including <a href="http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/highway/TheBigDig.aspx">Boston’s Big Dig</a> project, San Francisco’s <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/06/05/san-franciscos-waterfront-freeway-was-removed-25-years-ago-no-one-misses-it">Embarcadero removal</a>, and <a href="https://landscapeperformance.org/case-study-briefs/cheonggyecheon-stream-restoration" target="_blank">Cheonggyecheon</a> in Seoul.
It is <a href="https://theconversation.com/do-more-roads-really-mean-less-congestion-for-commuters-39508" target="_blank">questionable</a> whether WestConnex is the best solution for congestion problems. However, the project is well under way. What is more important now is to identify its potential benefits for other areas and ensure current decision-making locks these in.
When WestConnex and associated highway links are completed, these will effectively create a bypass two kilometres west of the CBD. This could remove much of the traffic now entering city centre.
Traffic flows southward to the airport will be diverted using the <a href="https://www.westconnex.com.au/projects/m4-m5-link" target="_blank">M4-M5 tunnel link</a>. The <a href="http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/projects/sydney-north/western-harbour-tunnel-beaches-link/index" target="_blank">Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link</a> will eventually connect the M4 to north Sydney. (Click on the blue links in the map below to see how these combine to replace existing routes, in red).
In the city centre itself, more than 90% of people walk to get around. Only <a href="https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/media/documents/2017/sydney-city-centre-access-strategy-final-web.pdf" target="_blank">2% of trips are by car</a>. Still, 25% of trips to the city centre (only 14% during peak hour) are by car, most of which probably require parking.
To sum up:
<ul>
<li>
Traffic on Anzac Bridge would be reduced significantly if cars heading to the north shore (using the traverse towards Harbour Bridge), the eastern suburbs (using the <a href="https://www.linkt.com.au/sydney/using-sydney-toll-roads/cross-city-tunnel" target="_blank">Cross City Tunnel</a>) and the airport (using the Eastern Distributor) were redirected.
</li>
<li>
Drivers coming over the Harbour Bridge from the north, heading to the western suburbs, could be diverted from the Harbour Bridge-Anzac Bridge, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Distributor_(Sydney)" target="_blank">Western Distributor</a> route.
</li>
</ul>
Tolls would influence traffic flows, so a strategic approach should be taken to ensure the best outcome for the whole city, not just maximising toll revenues.
<h2>What parts of the city could benefit?</h2>
While WestConnex may be an outdated way of managing congestion, it can also be seen as an enormous window of opportunity to free up space in the heart of the city. Imagine what relief it could bring to parts of the city now under or along stretches of highway.
Possible benefits include:
1) It makes it possible to minimise the bundle of infrastructure in between Kirribilli, North Sydney and Neutral Bay.
The areas on both sides of the current highway could be reconnected in the longer term. North Sydney would connect to Neutral Bay across a reduced highway corridor. This would create a new north shore focus, accessible for residents, workers, students and visitors (figure 2).
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202048/original/file-20180116-53307-wi0ca4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Figure 2: potential development space in North Sydney. Rob Roggema
This new larger centre would face Sydney city centre, across the harbour, like Brooklyn faces Manhattan. It could easily accommodate 11,500 new residents, 780,000m2 of commercial space and 78,000 jobs (6.5 times the size of <a href="http://www.barangaroo.com/" target="_blank">Barangaroo</a> at half its density).
2) It opens up the possibility of removing the Western Distributor, the elevated highways along the western edge of the CBD, which separates the city from the water.
In Pyrmont, bringing the Anzac Bridge off-ramp down to ground, and possibly linking to the Cross City Tunnel, could bring the city to the waterfront. Pyrmont could be reconnected to the old <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com.au/the-nsw-government-wants-to-move-the-sydney-fish-market-and-sell-the-old-site-off-for-apartments-2016-11" target="_blank">fishmarket</a> and <a href="http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/explore/facilities/parks/major-parks/wentworth-park" target="_blank">Wentworth Park</a> (figure 3).
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202049/original/file-20180116-53292-1tvpphf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Figure 3: potential development space in Pyrmont. Rob Roggema
It would be possible to remove the elevated highway separating Darling Harbour and the International Convention Centre from parkland and current car parks. The development potential of this large, north-facing area is huge – the space that could be freed up is three times Barangaroo’s present land area (figure 4).
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202050/original/file-20180116-53295-n0fmuz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Figure 4: potential development space in Darling Harbour. Rob Roggema
It then becomes possible to reconnect old warehouses with each other and Tumbalong Park with the water to face Cockle Bay.
We could “complete” the renewal of the western edge of the city centre by connecting it with Circular Quay, and improve connectivity between Town Hall and George Street with the Darling Harbour waterfront (figure 5).
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202051/original/file-20180116-53324-1idp0zy.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Figure 5: potential development space in the Harbour Bridge corridor. Rob Roggema
Many heavily trafficked, fast-flowing one-way streets could become slow-moving two-way streets, as happened to Crown Street when the Eastern Distributor was completed.
Freeing up road space allows for the creation of more walkable and enjoyable public spaces. This would also increase the environmental and ecological quality of the urban environment, and reduce flash flooding. A greener city centre emerges that glues the eastern and western CBD together.
If traffic along the Harbour Bridge corridor is reduced, the Cahill Expressway could be repurposed or removed, realising the dream of generations of urban planners and designers (figure 6).
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202052/original/file-20180116-53324-tm4qtf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Figure 6: potential development space in Circular Quay. Rob Roggema
This prime area facing Circular Quay could be redeveloped into a pedestrian-friendly boulevard, so people could easily cross from the CBD to the ferries. Circular Quay stop is the best possible way to arrive in Sydney, so the trains would remain, but the rail system should be redesigned as a lean piece of infrastructure, hardly noticed by people crossing underneath. The redevelopment space is mainly suited for retail and hospitality aimed at tourists.
3) It makes it possible to give the Harbour Bridge back to Sydneysiders.
With much less car traffic, some of the bridge’s eight lanes could be used for public transport (two lanes were added when tram services ceased in 1958), cycling and pedestrians, including a longitudinal park on top of the bridge.
In New York, Times Square was given back to residents of the city. Sydney Harbour Bridge, too, could become a place for people to linger and enjoy the views, rather than just drive across.
As a result of all this, the city centre, both north and south of Sydney Harbour, could be primarily devoted to pedestrians and cyclists. It would remain extremely well connected by public transport and accessible for vehicles delivering goods and people.
A frequent light rail service could connect the city centre to the northern beaches, just as you can travel by subway from Manhattan to Coney Island and by tram from the Melbourne CBD to St Kilda. It would run all the way from Manly, via North Sydney, Harbour Bridge and connecting to Wynyard Station (using the old tunnel).
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90171/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">Many oppose WestConnex, and for some good reasons, but what if it enabled central Sydney’s iconic spaces to be transformed for the better? The investments in WestConnex could be leveraged to create significant urban improvements in Pyrmont, connecting the western corridor of the city centre with Darling Harbour and Barangaroo, and reconnecting the great divide of North Sydney.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rob-roggema-351369" target="_blank">Rob Roggema</a>, Professor of Sustainable Urban Environments, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-technology-sydney-936" target="_blank">University of Technology Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/craig-allchin-440449">Craig Allchin</a>, Adjunct Professor of Architecture, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-technology-sydney-936" target="_blank">University of Technology Sydney</a>
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/this-is-how-westconnex-can-deliver-sydney-a-better-city-centre-90171" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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How WestConnex can deliver a better city centre

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<h1> </h1>
GUEST OBSERVER
 
Trials of autonomous cars and buses have <a href="https://intellibus.rac.com.au/" target="_blank">begun on the streets of Australian cities</a>. Communications companies are moving to <a href="https://themelbourneengineer.eng.unimelb.edu.au/2017/01/melbourne-launches-world-first-connected-living-transport-lab/" target="_blank">deploy</a> the lasers, cameras and centimetre-perfect GPS that will <a href="https://theconversation.com/city-streets-become-a-living-lab-that-could-transform-your-daily-travel-71272" target="_blank">enable a vehicle to navigate the streets</a> of your town or city without a driver.
Most research and commentary is telling us how the new machines will work, but not how they might shape our cities. The talk is of the <a href="https://2015.internationaltransportforum.org/shared-economy" target="_blank">benefits of new shared transport economies</a>, but these new technologies will shape our built environment in ways that are <a href="https://theconversation.com/smart-cities-does-this-mean-more-transport-disruptions-63638" target="_blank">not yet fully understood</a>. There’s every chance that, if mismanaged, driverless technologies will entrench the ills of car dependency.
As with <a href="https://theconversation.com/taxi-driver-compensation-for-uber-is-unfair-and-poorly-implemented-64354" target="_blank">Uber and the taxi industry</a>, public sector planners and regulators will be forced to respond to the anger of those displaced by the new products the IT and automobile industries will bring to the market. But can we afford to wait?
<h2>Three competing interests</h2>
Three distinct groups are giving form to the idea of driverless vehicles. Each has its own corporate proponents and target markets, and its own, often competing, demands on citizens, regulators and planners. Each will make its own demands on our streets and public spaces.
First, the traditional car makers are adding “driverless” features to their existing products. They have no compelling interest in changing the current individual ownership model. Their target consumer is someone who values private vehicle ownership and enjoys driving.
These carmakers’ challenge is to win over drivers sceptical about “their” car doing things they can’t control, whether that is behaving differently in traffic or performing unescorted journeys. But, if successful, these new cars will make driving easier and so encourage more travel and ever-expanding suburbs.
Second, cashed-up IT disruptors like Google and Uber see new types of vehicles and new patterns of ownership as the basis for new transport economies. They want lightweight, utilitarian “robo-taxis” owned by a corporation and rented by the trip. Travellers will use phone apps or their next-generation successors to do this. This, in the jargon, is “<a href="https://dupress.deloitte.com/dup-us-en/deloitte-review/issue-20/smart-transportation-technology-mobility-as-a-service" target="_blank">mobility as a service</a>”.
These companies’ ambition is to carve out a large niche in competition with private cars, taxis, conventional public transport and even non-motorised transport. Fleets of shared vehicles in constant circulation can reduce the number of individually owned cars and, in particular, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/disruption-ahead-personal-mobility-is-breaking-down-old-transport-divides-70338" target="_blank">need for parking</a>.
In some circumstances, this may support more compact urban forms. But while sustainability or social objectives might be part of the pitch, the profit motive remains dominant.
Third, public transport operators can see opportunities and challenges in driverless technologies. Already, Vancouver reaps the benefits of lower operating costs for its driverless elevated-rail system.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XtCyiSleO1g?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0" frameborder="0" width="440" height="260"></iframe> In Vancouver, the train pulls into a station with no driver on board.
Savvy operators understand that new vehicle technology is only valuable if it is integrated with traditional public transport services and with cycling and walking. This means central coordination. Vitally, it also requires control of the information platforms needed to provide multimodal mobility.
Such levels of planning and regulation conflict with Google’s “disruptive” free-market ambitions. European operators, who are in a more powerful position in economic and social life than their Australian counterparts, are already <a href="https://www.uitp.org/autonomous-vehicles" target="_blank">mobilising for this contest</a>.
<h2>Whatever the technology, transport needs space</h2>
Many claims for the benefits of driverless technologies rely on the complete transformation of the existing vehicle fleet. But the transition will not be smooth or uniform. Autonomous vehicles will face a significant period of mixed operation with traditional vehicles.
Freeways are likely to be the first roads on which the new vehicles will be able to operate. Promoters of these vehicles might join forces with the conventional car lobby to demand extra lanes. This would dash the hopes of many that driverless cars will <a href="https://www.inverse.com/article/12082-the-future-of-driverless-cars-where-we-re-going-we-ll-need-more-roads" target="_blank">lead to reduced space</a> for mass movement of cars.
After the freeways, the next objective will be to bring driverless cars, trucks and buses onto city streets. This will require complex systems of sensors and cameras.
The ambition is to allow all users to share road space much more safely than they do today. But, if a driverless vehicle will never hit a jaywalker, what will stop every pedestrian and cyclist from simply using the street as they please? Some analysts <a href="https://news.ucsc.edu/2016/10/pedestrians-self-driving-cars" target="_blank">are predicting</a> that the new vehicles will be slower than conventional driving, partly because the current balance of fear will be upset.
Already active travellers are struggling to assert their <a href="https://theconversation.com/contested-spaces-virtuous-drivers-malicious-cyclists-mindset-gets-us-nowhere-73371" target="_blank">right to the streets</a> of Australian cities. Just imagine how much worse it would be if a dominant autonomous-vehicle fleet operator demanded widespread fencing of roadways to keep bikes and pedestrians out of the way.
The presence of driverless cars cannot alter the fact that space for urban transport is severely constrained. For travel within and between compact urban centres, we will need more and better high-capacity mass transit as well as first-class conditions for walking and cycling.
The integration of conventional public transport networks with shared autonomous vehicles, large and small, offers many opportunities for a much improved service. But that will happen only if this objective is the major focus of investment, innovation, planning and regulation.
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/75531/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">Researchers and policymakers need to move rapidly to gain a holistic and systematic understanding of the multiplicity of driverless-vehicle scenarios and the potential harm that some might contain. The technologies are not an unalloyed good, and governments will need to do more than just be “<a href="https://www.premier.sa.gov.au/stephen-mullighan-news-releases/337-sa-becomes-first-australian-jurisdiction-to-allow-on-road-driverless-car-trials" target="_blank">open for business</a>”.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/john-stone-226753" target="_blank">John Stone</a>, Senior Lecturer in Transport Planning, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722" target="_blank">University of Melbourne</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/carey-curtis-96861" target="_blank">Carey Curtis</a>, Professor of City Planning and Transport, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/curtin-university-873" target="_blank">Curtin University</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/crystal-legacy-18412" target="_blank">Crystal Legacy</a>, Australian Research Council (DECRA) Fellow and Vice Chancellor's Research Fellow, Centre for Urban Research, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rmit-university-1063" target="_blank">RMIT University</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jan-scheurer-342188" target="_blank">Jan Scheurer</a>, Senior Research Fellow, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/curtin-university-873" target="_blank">Curtin University</a>
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-must-plan-the-driverless-city-to-avoid-being-hostage-to-the-technology-revolution-75531" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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rt-jypKJrGt6b

Planning the driverless city to avoid being hostage to the technology revolution

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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/71272/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
Integrated transport has long been the holy grail of transport engineering. Now, a project set up north of Melbourne’s CBD aims to make it a reality. 
Led by the School of Engineering at the University of Melbourne, the project will create a living laboratory for developing a highly integrated, smart, multimodal transport system. The goals are to make travel more efficient, safer, cleaner and more sustainable. 
Integrated transport aims to combine various modes of travel to provide seamless door-to-door services. Reduced delays, increased safety and better health can all be achieved by sharing information between users, operators and network managers. This will optimise mobility and minimise costs for travellers.
The National Connected Multimodal Transport Test Bed includes arterial roads and local streets in an area of 4.5 square kilometres in Carlton, Fitzroy and Collingwood.
Bounded by Alexandra Parade and Victoria, Hoddle and Lygon streets, this busy inner-suburban area is a perfect location to test a new generation of connected transport systems. Our growing cities will need these systems to manage their increasing traffic. 
<h2>How will the test bed work?</h2>
The test bed covers all modes of transport. From April, it is due to collect data on vehicles, cyclists, public transport, pedestrians and traffic infrastructure, such as signals and parking. The area will be equipped with advanced sensors (for measuring emissions and noise levels) and communications infrastructure (such as wireless devices on vehicles and signals). 
<div class="enlarge_hint"><a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2017/02/23/Screen%20Shot%202017-02-23%20at%209.26.59%20AM.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a></div>
<div class="enlarge_hint"> </div>
<div class="enlarge_hint"><img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2017/02/23/Screen%20Shot%202017-02-23%20at%209.26.59%20AM.png" alt=""></div>
The test bed will collect data on all aspects of transport in the inner-suburban area covered by the project. Author provided
The aim is to use all this data to allow the transport system to be more responsive to disruption and more user-focused. 
This is a unique opportunity for key stakeholders to work together to build a range of core technologies for collecting, integrating and processing data. This data will be used to develop advanced information-based transport services.
The project has attracted strong support from government, industry and operators. 
Government will benefit by having access to information on how an integrated transport system works. This can be used to develop policies and create business models, systems and technologies for integrated mobility options. 
The test bed allows industry to create and test globally relevant solutions and products. Academics and research students at the University of Melbourne are working on cutting-edge experimental studies in collaboration with leading multinationals.
This will accelerate the deployment of this technology in the real world. It also creates enormous opportunities for participation in industry up-skilling, training and education. 
<h2>What are the likely benefits?</h2>
Urban transport systems need to become more adaptable and better integrated to enhance mobility. Current systems have long suffered from being disjointed and mode-centric. They are also highly vulnerable to disruption. Public transport terminals can fail to provide seamless transfers and co-ordination between modes. 
This project can help transport to break out of the traditional barriers between services. The knowledge gained can be used to provide users with an integrated and intelligent transport system.
It has been difficult, however, to trial new technologies in urban transport without strong involvement from key stakeholders. An environment and platform where travellers can experience the benefits in a real-world setting is needed. The test bed enables technologies to be adapted so vehicles and infrastructure can be more responsive to real-time demand and operational conditions. 
Rapid advancements in sensing and communication technologies allow for a new generation of solutions to be developed. However, artificial environments and computer simulation models lack the realism to ensure new transport technologies can be properly designed and evaluated. The living lab provides this. 
The test bed will allow governments and transport operators to share data using a common information platform. People and vehicles will be able to communicate with each other and the transport infrastructure to allow the whole system to operate more intelligently. The new active transport systems will lead to safety and health benefits.
The test bed allows impacts on safety in a connected environment to be investigated. Interactions between active transport modes such as walking and cycling with connected or autonomous vehicles can be examined to ensure safety is enhanced in complex urban environments. Researchers will study the effects of warning systems such as red light violation, pedestrian movements near crossings, and bus stops. 
Low-carbon mobility solutions will also be evaluated to improve sustainability and cut transport emissions. 
Environmental sensors combined with traffic-measurement devices will help researchers understand the effects of various types of vehicles and congestion levels. This includes the impacts of emerging disruptive technologies such as autonomous, on-demand, shared mobility systems. 
A range of indoor and outdoor sensor networks, such as Wi-Fi, will be used to trial integrated public transport services at stations and terminals. The goal is to ensure seamless transfers between modes and optimised transit operations.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/majid-sarvi-334262" target="_blank">Majid Sarvi</a> is chair in Transport Engineering and the Professor in Transport for Smart Cities, University of Melbourne.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gary-liddle-334267" target="_blank">Gary Liddle</a> is enterprise professor, Transport, University of Melbourne.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/russell-g-thompson-330541" target="_blank">Russell G. Thompson</a> is associate Professor in Transport Engineering, University of Melbourne.
All are authors for The Conversation.
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

City streets become a living lab that could transform your daily travel

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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/63638/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
A plethora of new and personalised ways of getting around cities are emerging – electric bikes, motorised scooters, electric vehicles, car sharing and re-interpretations of the taxi by Uber.
How might we realise the potential of these transport disruptions? How does the combination of culture, regulation and technology shape sustainable transport futures? The extent to which technologies align with social, political and policy norms is a critical factor in their uptake and success.
Technology is politically, socially and culturally mediated. Its success relies on how it relates to existing lifestyles and aspirations. Technologies need to be accommodated in the ways we want to move around cities. The most amazing technological intervention will quickly atrophy if it is disconnected from daily needs and desires.
Regulatory settings can impede or foster new technologies. We can make space for different ways of moving around – such as cycleways, footpaths and roads. We can prohibit or encourage disruptive forces, as so starkly evident with Uber. We can set tax and other pricing mechanisms, as incentives or disincentives for modes of transport.
Some argue that new technologies are so disruptive because they have no predecessor to show us the way. But examples are emerging that show us where society, regulation and technology have or have not aligned, underpinning their success or failure.
<h2>Car sharing – an obedient disruption</h2>
Car sharing in Australia’s inner cities has been phenomenally successful. There are an estimated 50,000 car sharers across the country.
The disruptions of car sharing are mild: it draws on technologies and skills shared with other aspects of social life. The concept of sharing is disruptive but easily accommodated; regulation adapted quickly to the subtle shifts required. It is an obedient disruption, and this obedience is one of the pillars of its success.
Car sharing is technologically disruptive as it relies on smart technologies to function. It is booked online, unlocked by a smart card, automatically paid by credit card and invisibly monitored via GPS.
It is socially disruptive. Car sharing relies on people deferring or giving up car ownership. Importantly, it asks us to give up the emotional and cultural attachments we have to cars. Evidence is mounting that millennials are swapping out the car for the phone as a status symbol.
Car sharing does not significantly challenge regulatory frameworks or political interests. It does rely on parking space, though, and local governments have quickly developed car-sharing policies to balance the needs of sustainable transport with access to on-street and off-street parking. While providing dedicated parking space to car-share organisations has been politically controversial, the regulatory supports were easily identified and mobilised.
Car sharing is a case where the lifestyles, values, technologies and regulation are aligned – a sustainability success story.
<h2>Personal mobility devices – a disruption in limbo</h2>
Personal mobility devices, known as PMDs, are more disruptive and a less successful sustainable transport option thus far in Australia. These are personal, battery-powered or motorised modes of transport designed for an individual to use on footpaths or shared paths. They include Segway, YikeBike or two-wheel motorised “Razor” scooters.
These devices allow the rider to travel short distances quickly without physical effort. Their small size makes them easily transferable between transport. This means they can bridge the “first and last mile” – between home and transit and work.
Despite their popularity, which is visible on city streets, PMDs are unable to be legally ridden on roads, footpaths, shared paths or cycleways in most Australian states. They do not meet vehicle standards and cannot be registered or legally used on roads.
Most of these devices are too dissimilar from bicycles, even electric bikes, to be classed as bicycles. Motorisation and wheels also rule out their classification as a pedestrian.
With the exception of some devices for tourism, PMDs remain in limbo in most Australian states. There was a move in Queensland in 2013 when a policy framework to regulate the use of PMDs was implemented. These regulations specified what a PMD is and how/where it can be used.
PMDs were defined as pedestrians to be used in pedestrian environments. Strict rules applied. Riders must:
<ul>
<li>
not exceed 12 kilometres per hour;
</li>
<li>
be 12 years or over; and
</li>
<li>
wear a helmet.
</li>
</ul>
In short, regulatory settings were modified to allow these new forms of technology, though not without debate.
How might these means of moving about the city be accommodated or become part of ordinary transport? For these devices to be used as transport, they need to get people travelling faster than walking without compromising safety.
<h2>Driverless cars – are we ready?</h2>
The stuff of science fiction 50 years ago, some technological optimists today predict driverless cars will be in our cities within five years. Indeed, autonomous cars are already here. New cars have adaptive cruise control, lane departure warnings, collision avoidance and parking assist.
Robotic vehicles are increasingly common in agriculture and mining. With researchers turning their attention to the realities of life with driverless cars, regulation and social impact are once again emerging as key issues.
A recent assessment by the National Transport Commission of Australia found that 716 provisions from two conventions, 32 acts and 21 regulations need to be addressed before autonomous vehicles become commonplace. Fundamentally, legal and insurance frameworks need to rethink a driver, and who is responsible when there is no driver.
There are also considerable privacy implications of tracking and the ubiquitous sensing and data collection that these vehicles require. While the technology is almost there, our policy frameworks are not quite there.
Research also shows that people are not quite ready for autonomous cars. Car makers are working in more sophisticated ways to ensure that autonomous cars talk to passengers, telling them when they are and are not in control and what is around them.
Businesses, on the other hand, are increasingly ready for autonomous cars, especially through shared transport. In the US, General Motors has invested significantly in ride-sharing business Lyft. General Motors expects autonomous cars to be operating within ten years.
Uber is conducting its own trials of autonomous vehicles. Increasingly, it appears that economic and social conditions are more likely to support driverless buses, at least short term.
Evidence is mounting that our cities, citizens, businesses and policymakers are getting ready for a future where transport technologies that are neither car nor public transport are commonplace. Mismatches remain between technology, social life and regulation, but their alignments, especially around shared transport, are proving successful.
Robyn Dowling is professor and associate dean Research, University of Sydney and author for The Conversation. She can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/robyn-dowling-90213" target="_blank">here</a>.
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Smart cities: does this mean more transport disruptions?

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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/57114/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
As an urban rail activist, academic and commentator, including a spell on Infrastructure Australia, I can say from the start I was delighted that we have a consortium prepared to have a go at high-speed rail using value capture.
Consolidated Land and Rail Australia (CLARA) is the first group in Australia to suggest that a major rail option can be funded without government capital. This fits with what we have been saying for a number of years (for example, the entrepreneur rail model).
It is not just a way of bringing financing groups like superannuation funds into such major infrastructure projects where governments have no hope of finding the cash, but it is also a better way: it inherently integrates with land development opportunities to make less car-dependent cities.
High-speed rail is needed. We are the last major developed area without it.
It is now a well-established technology that can simultaneously reduce car use and plane use. It is a way to reduce our oil dependence and to help us meet our greenhouse emissions, as have Japan, China and Europe in recent decades.
<h2>Key issues to be overcome</h2>
However, some issues need to be resolved for this proposal and, indeed, the other three consortia that I have heard are also keen to build high-speed rail in Australia.
First, it’s not a project that should be an unsolicited bid with all its high commercial-in-confidence process. Such a project will have huge public significance and demands that we address the full implications – A$200 billion over 40 years is a lot of money for infrastructure and land development.
If this project goes ahead, many other infrastructure projects and land developments will not happen in the competitive marketplace of our cities and rural areas. This project will need to show great public benefit as well as enabling the private sector to take the risk and do the investing.
Second, what are we looking for from infrastructure like this? Surely we want it to build up our cities and the regional towns in between to have a more sustainable, productive and liveable future.
This project is very light on detail, understandably, about how it would come into the cities (it seems to just go from airport to airport on the urban fringes). It completely misses all the major regional centres like Canberra, Wagga Wagga and Albury-Wodonga in order to go much faster and cheaper through farmland.
The Canberra Times reported a CLARA spokesperson saying:
"The project would be privately funded on a value-uplift model. This needs new city development where maximum uplift in land values is available, which is not available in existing cities like Canberra, with elevated real estate prices. ‘They must be greenfield.’"
Value capture worldwide and in our model is done to facilitate urban regeneration, not to create new car-dependent greenfield suburbs. CLARA’s model is seeking cheap, easily obtainable land on the urban fringe and in rural areas rather than helping our cities and country towns. Not only is the value of this to Australia very debatable, it is not likely to be as successful in raising land values to achieve their goals.
There is a limit to how many wealthy, long-commute exurbs or retirement villages could be induced to invest in such places in the countryside. The strong economic demand is for urban regeneration inside the old parts of our cities and towns. This has been an important part of the rationale for high-speed rail in other places.
The CLARA model is an extension of the failed idea of building new towns in greenfield areas. It has failed in Australia and in the UK and US because urban development needs to be more organic, building on the historic processes, local communities and multiple services of the cities and towns built up over hundreds of years. The modernist new towns have all struggled as they are designed from the top down.
It may be appealing to take a fresh sheet and drop it from on high, and very messy to have to deal with so many land owners and local governments in the old cities and towns, but it should not be beyond us.
<h2>Principles to guide a successful project</h2>
To make high-speed rail and urban development happen in a way that benefits Australian cities and towns, I suggest we should try to follow the principles below.
<ol>
<li>
It is important to attract private capital for combined land development and transport, but this should be led by locational strategies where redevelopment is most needed, not by transport engineering simplicity.
</li>
<li>
Benefit-cost assessments should include long-term urban and sustainability goals.
</li>
<li>
Public-private partnerships (PPPs) should include core commitments to community engagement, integrated public transport delivery, equitable and time-of-travel-dependent fare structures, safety, consumer and environmental protection, and urban design quality.
</li>
<li>
The projects should not just be innovative in financing and PPP delivery but be agile enough to include disruptive innovations such as solar PV-based electric rail, new carbon fibre and other materials, very smart systems for control at high speed, and effective noise management.
</li>
</ol>
High-speed rail has been a long time coming for Australia. It’s a very big and beautiful opportunity, so let’s get it right.
Peter Newman is professor of sustainability, Curtin University and author for The Conversation. He can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/peter-newman-1858" target="_blank">here</a>.
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High-speed rail? At $200 billion we’d better get it right

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GUEST OBSERVER
Governments should open up their transport project funding decisions to greater scrutiny, including tabling an independent cost-benefit analysis in Parliament, recommends a new report from think-tank the Grattan Institute.
The report’s author, Marion Terrill, argues poor project selection is undermining economic growth in Australia. The report shows of the projects receiving Commonwealth funding since June 2012, 58 percent of that funding, or $3.7 billion, was spent on projects without a published project evaluation. This includes the controversial East-West Link, which was ultimately canned by the Victorian government.
The report argues governments should not only build transport infrastructure where the benefits outweigh the costs – they should build all such infrastructure, regardless of where it is based in Australia. This could help address the bias identified in the report towards projects in states with more swinging seats.
“I think we have the right to expect that these decisions are made in the best interests of the community at large,” said Terrill, who is the Grattan Institute’s Transport Program Director.
In the current environment state transport funding decisions are skewed by roads and rail listed on the National Land Transport Network<a href="https://investment.infrastructure.gov.au/whatis/network/">.</a>
“It’s very advantageous for the states to put forward proposals for Commonwealth funding that that are on the National Land Transport Network because 50% of the value of any funding they get for such projects from the Commonwealth is quarantined from affecting their GST share,” Terrill said.
For example, she said, the Melbourne Metro is not on that network, meaning if the Commonwealth provides funding for the project, Victoria would lose a commensurate amount of GST over the next three years. This contrasts with the East-West Link project which was on the network. This means 50% of the funding would have been quarantined and only 50% would have affected the GST the state received.
Terrill said that in the current environment there was little to stop politicians committing to projects before they were properly evaluated, particularly during election campaigns. More scrutiny, including through the public release of cost-benefit analyses undertaken by independent bodies, would help ensure funds were spent more wisely.
“Publishing business cases would be a very helpful step, so interested parties, including the general public, have the opportunity to scrutinise these projects before they’re agreed.”
With more scrutiny, the report suggests less money would be spent on highways that are not especially important to the economy, and the focus could shift back to cities, the engines of economic growth.
“When a city doubles in size it more than doubles in productivity and GDP per capita, and in innovation per capita.”
So there’s nothing bad about people increasingly choosing to live in cities, provided we don’t let congestion and overcrowding swamp the benefits."
 
Charis Palmer is deputy business editor, The Conversation sand can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/team#charis-palmer" target="_blank">here</a>.
Marion Terrill is Transport Program Director, Grattan Institute and can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/marion-terrill-169480" target="_blank">here</a>.
Both are authors for The Conversation.
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/57114/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
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