I was at a Xmas event on Saturday night and in the course of some banter I was rhetorically asking why the hell it takes government projects so damn long to get off the ground. Example A was Badgerys Creek Airport. It been mooted since 1946 and firmly on the agenda since 1986. Now that all the T’s have been crossed and I’s dotted we are told that it will still take 10 years until completion. Meanwhile, only three weeks ago we learnt of the completion of the 747 capable, 2.7 kilometre airstrip, complete with aprons, built at Wellcamp, west of Toowoomba by private enterprise in 19 months. See Here The difference?? The former is a government enterprise and the latter is private enterprise. As Ronald Reagan said, “Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem”
“…The Turnbull government will today approve the $5 billion construction of the nation’s next major airport in a formal step that will intensify talks over whether the facility will be able to carry up to 10 million passengers a year.
Malcolm Turnbull will issue the final plan for the new airport at Sydney’s Badgerys Creek to be up and running within a decade, in the hope of creating thousands of jobs.
The plan, which includes about 40 environmental conditions, clears the way for negotiations with Sydney Airport Corporation over its preferred right to operate the airport — including how much it will invest to help build the terminal.
Speed of construction is now a key issue for the government and the company, shaping how many jobs can be created on the assumption that employers will head to western Sydney to take advantage of the road and rail connections to the terminal….” Sydney’s Badgerys Creek airport will be hub for 9000 new jobs