Transport, Infrastructure and Sustainable Cities

For decades Labor and the Coalition have put the profits of big property developers ahead of everyday people living in our cities and suburbs.

The major parties have accepted $34.5 million in donations from the property industry in the last 10 years.  In return, the industry has had planning laws written in their favour and favourable decisions against local neighbourhood plans.

Our cities are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, and rapid work is needed to transition our communities to be sustainable and climate resilient. 

Billions of dollars in federal funding for our cities are not linked to sustainable outcomes, and there is no national coordination between local, state and federal governments.

A federally coordinated approach is needed.

The Greens' plan:

• Establish a new Sustainable Cities Agency to set national standards for sustainable urban development, supported by $40 billion in federal funding over 10 years.
• Transform cities and suburbs by ensuring community infrastructure like parks, schools, libraries, and public transport are accessible, homes meet high sustainability standards, and neighbourhoods are walkable, shaded, and climate-resilient.
• Implement agreements with state governments that tie federal funding to adherence to sustainability standards.
• Mandate local governments to incorporate these national standards into city plans and policies.
• Reallocate existing federal funding for urban infrastructure to align with the new sustainable development standards.

Public transport access is an essential issue in the disabled community, as it provides connections for leisure, employment, education, healthcare, and public services.

No one should be prevented from participating in the community because public transport and infrastructure are inaccessible.

The accessibility of public transport and infrastructure has always been seen as an issue for the states and territories, which often ignore or delay these essential upgrades through claims of budget limitations.

Through federal leadership, significant improvements can be made in delivering accessible transport.

The Greens' plan:

• Improve accessibility in public places, infrastructure, and public transport. This will be achieved by working with states, territories, and local governments through the $40 billion Sustainable Cities Fund.
• Enhance opportunities for people with disabilities by increasing access to nature and tourism activities.
• Ensure best-practice accessibility by establishing a committee of experts, including those with lived experience, to guide funding allocation and project implementation.

High-speed rail represents an incredible opportunity for Australia. Politicians have discussed it for decades, so now is the time to get it moving.

It will open up new economic opportunities across regional centres, add exciting flexibility to travel within Australia and reduce carbon pollution.

The Labor government set up a High Speed Rail Authority in 2022 but has held the project back through a lack of funding. The timeline for the full east coast rail link is now sitting in the 2060s.

Action is needed so the authority can build the network and ensure it remains in public hands.

The Greens' plan:

• Accelerate the delivery of high-speed rail by investing in the High Speed Rail Authority to complete the network from Brisbane to Melbourne by 2040.
• Keep the high-speed rail network in public hands, ensuring construction and service delivery benefit the community, not private profits.
• Build a sustainable rail system by using green technologies like green steel during construction and clean energy throughout the network.
• Revitalise local industries by ensuring all trains and associated infrastructure are manufactured domestically.

Successive Labor and Coalition governments have sold off countless public assets, including well-known companies like Telstra, Qantas, and the Commonwealth Bank, and also nationally significant infrastructure including our shipping ports and airports.

The Greens will plan to bring essential infrastructure back into public hands. Doing so will protect essential services, provide better pay and conditions for workers, and stop price gouging that is ripping off customers.

The Greens' plan:

• Secure public control over essential infrastructure by committing $5 billion towards infrastructure asset investments.
• Reclaim public ownership in the aviation industry by acquiring a 51% controlling share of Brisbane Airport Corporation and taking a stake in slot management.

In a cost of living crisis, the cost of getting from A to B is putting more and more pressure on already struggling households. Households are spending almost $450 per week on average on transport, including more than $100 per week on fuel alone.

Australian cities have some of the most expensive public transport in the world. 

Queensland’s recent shift to 50c fares has been a huge success, reducing traffic and increasing the use of public transport while saving Queenslanders millions. 

Now it’s time to roll it out nationally. Making public transport fares just 50c would mean that someone working full-time using public transport to and from their workplace would spend only $5 on their weekly commute. 

The Greens' plan:

• Deliver 50c public transport fares for all services across the country and maintain existing free services. Just on fares, this would save:
  • Melbourne: up to $48 per week, $4608 per year per household
  • Sydney: up to $45 per week, $4320 per year per household
  • Perth: up to $41.80 per week, $4012.80 per year per household
  • Adelaide: up to $39 per week, $3744 per year per household
• Provide a one-off $250M fund to help states and territories transition to ‘smart ticketing’ – the ability to pay for public transport using a credit or debit card.

Community groups play a critical role in delivering the infrastructure we need to live a good life in the city - whether it’s upgrading community meeting spaces, improving public parkland, or enhancing community sports facilities.

Thriving Suburbs is a grants program that funds “local government entities and incorporated not-for-profit organisations for capital works projects that enhance liveability, strengthen social cohesion and support local amenity in urban, suburban and peri-urban communities”, but is only funded to 2026-27.

The Greens' plan:

• Ensure long-term support for local infrastructure projects by doubling the yearly funding for the Thriving Suburbs Program to $200 million, indexed to the CPI to grow with future needs.

Public transport is a key solution to rising transport costs, long commute times, traffic congestion and decarbonising the transport sector.

However, it is clear that current investment is simply not keeping up with the pace of development: 7 million people in our major cities don’t have access to frequent, convenient public transport.

We can reduce commute times and transport emissions by making rapid investments in high-frequency, high-quality public transport services.

The Greens' plan:

• Reduce commute times and transport emissions by upgrading existing public transport lines and creating new high-frequency services. This will be achieved through the $40B Sustainable Cities Fund, working with states, territories, and local governments to deliver heavy rail, light rail, and bus routes.
• Expand access to reliable public transport by prioritising electrified networks and projects that bring the most residents within walking distance (400m) of high-frequency services.
• Double the number of high-frequency public transport services in major cities by 2030.

The use of active transport is an effective and affordable alternative to sitting in slow-moving traffic, but the perception of safety is a huge barrier for people looking to switch to a bike commute to work or school.

The recent popularity of e-bikes and e-scooters also opens up the possibility of using active transport for those who would otherwise not be able to - due to age, disability or living in a hilly area or hot climate. 

With just a small amount of extra investment, we can build safe and efficient active transport infrastructure that everyone can use.

The Greens' plan:

• Make active transport safer and more accessible by upgrading existing infrastructure to high standards. This includes wider bike lanes, improved road design, reduced collision points, and better access to local roads.
• Expand active transport options by building new, high-standard pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. Priority will go to projects that complete missing network links and connect key destinations like schools, hospitals, retail precincts, public facilities, and transport hubs, with bicycle parking at these locations.
• Deliver these improvements through the $40B Sustainable Cities Fund, working with states, territories, and local governments.