AITPM 2013 National Conference paper - Alex Iljin

2013 AITPM National Traffic & Transport Conference 1
Guidance for Preparing Successful Infrastructure Australia Submissions
Alex Iljin, National Business Manager Infrastructure Planning, MWH
Abstract
This paper draws on a number of studies that involved preparation of submissions to Infrastructure
Australia (IA), or positioning of strategies to support future submissions, under the three transport-
related IA themes. It presents an overview of perceptions of the current IA submission requirements
based on this experience. The case studies discussed in this paper are:
• Perth South West Metropolitan Region Integrated Land Use and Transport Strategy;
• South Road Planning Study, Adelaide
• City to Gungahlin Transit Corridor Study, Canberra
These case studies between them cover freight, public transport and making better use of existing
transport infrastructure, the key elements of the transport-related IA themes. The common
experience across these case studies relevant to a successful IA submission are the importance of
understanding what IA is looking for, defining the problem to be solved and so explaining how the
project fits the theme/s and providing evidence of the problem and how it is addressed by the project.
1. Introduction
Infrastructure Australia (IA) is an agency of the Commonwealth government charged with prioritising
and recommending infrastructure projects for the federal government to contribute funding towards.
IA has defined a number of “themes” that to guide infrastructure investment decisions, three of which
relate directly to transport:
• 3. Competitive international gateways: developing more effective ports and associated land
transport systems to more efficiently cope with imports and exports;
• 4. A national freight network: development of a National Freight Network so that more freight
can be moved by rail and road; and
• 5. Transforming our cities: improve the efficiency and sustainability of our cities by increasing
public transport capacity in our cities and making better use of existing transport infrastructure.
IA has also defined a seven stage framework for assessing infrastructure project submissions:
• Stage 1: Goal definition;
• Stage 2: Problem identification;
• 3: Problem assessment;
• 4: Problem analysis;
• Option generation;
• Option assessment; and
• Solution prioritisation.
Often, however, the state government documentation within which a project sits is quite different:
• land use and/or transport strategy – one solution without options; and
• a list of projects – often unrelated to the land use strategy.
The environmental planning requirements at the state level (eg Environmental Impact Statement) also
generally compare a project to a “base case” to identify the incremental impacts and ameliorative
measures. IA requires this to be a “do minimum” rather than “do nothing” base case – often not
considered in a transport strategy, which presents the “way forward”.

Therefore, there is often a mismatch between context that IA seeks and the project information
provided in submissions, as IA’s model for options covers:
• reform options – regulatory, governance and better use; and
• investment options – capital.
IA states (Better Infrastructure Decision-Making: Guidelines for making submissions to Infrastructure
Australia’s infrastructure planning process, through Infrastructure Australia's Reform and Investment
Framework):
“A key element of Options Generation is the consideration of how individual options can be packaged
together – or better coordinated - for a more efficient and effective outcome.”
Understanding of and engagement with IA is therefore important in achieving support for a project.
This paper presents a number of case studies where these challenges have been present and this
approach was taken. These case studies relate to the competitive international gateways/national
freight network and transforming our cities themes.
Theme 5 necessarily incorporates urban design given its objective of improving cities, through
improving the quality of our public domain. Our Cities, Our Future - A national urban policy for a
productive, sustainable and liveable future, Department of Infrastructure and Transport, 2011,
identifies that:
“The public domain can provide environmental amenities such as shade and greenery, aesthetically
pleasing buildings and infrastructure, quality public art, and a sense of safety and security. Whether
publicly or privately owned, the public domain provides much of the character and amenity of a place
… Continued investment in the public domain in our urban centres and neighbourhoods is needed to
ensure they are enjoyable, encourage social interaction, and provide opportunities for a variety of
activity and exercise.”
In addition, Places for People – An Urban Design Protocol for Australia Cities, states:
“Urban design is concerned with the arrangement, appearance and function of our suburbs, towns
and cities. It is both a process and an outcome of creating localities in which people live, engage with
each other, and the physical place around them … Urban design operates from the macro scale of
the urban structure (planning, zoning, transport and infrastructure networks) to the micro scale of
street furniture and lighting. When fully integrated into policy and planning systems, urban design can
inform land use planning, infrastructure, built form and even the socio-demographic mix of a place.
“Urban design can significantly influence:
• the economic success and socio-economic composition of a locality – whether it encourages
local businesses and entrepreneurship; whether it attracts people to live there; whether the
costs of housing and travel are affordable; and whether access to job opportunities, facilities
and services are equitable;
• the physical scale, space and ambience of a place. As such, it affects the balance between
natural ecosystems and built environments, and their sustainability;
• the social and cultural nature of a locality: how people interact with each other, how they move
around, and how they use a place.
“The Council of Australian Governments has agreed to encourage urban design of the highest
international standard. This should include design, performance, quality, satisfaction and value when
benchmarked against the best developments, products or processes in the world.”

2. Objectives of the Paper
This paper draws on a number of studies that involved preparation of IA submissions or positioning of
strategies to support future submissions under the three transport-related IA themes. It presents an
overview of perceptions of the current IA submission requirements based on this experience. All
opinions expressed in this paper are that of the author.
3. Case Studies
This paper draws on the following three case studies, which relate to the various IA transport-related
themes, as shown in Table 1.
Table 1: Case studies considered in this paper and their relationship to the IA transport-
related themes
Case study included in this paper Relevant IA transport-related theme
3. Competitive
international
gateways
4. A national
freight
network
5. Transforming
our cities
Perth South West Metropolitan Region
South Road, Adelaide
City to Gungahlin Corridor, Canberra
3.1 Perth South West Metropolitan Region
An integrated transport and land use strategy for the region highlighted its relevance to all three IA
transport-related themes (3, 4 and 5).
The strategy identified potential gaps in current plans and key areas of focus required to address
transport issues, including potential land use and transport conflicts, identifying what is driving the
need for a specific regional approach. The recommendations of this work were aimed at informing an
integrated transport and land use plan for the region including:
• a transport vision for the region agreed by all stakeholders/community groups;
• the transport objectives for the region and an associated performance framework comprising
clearly defined outcomes and targets that enable achievement of the objectives to be
measured;
• a Staging Plan for prioritised projects; and
• an action plan for implementation.
3.2 South Road, Adelaide
Comprehensive planning for South Road between Regency to ANZAC Highway
(http://www.infrastructure.sa.gov.au/south_road_upgrade) and associated transport planning
strategies related to the north – south non-stop road crossing the Adelaide metropolitan area that is
being progressively implemented by the SA state government. This planning work demonstrated the
relevance to IA Themes 3, 4 and 5.

The Regency to ANZAC Highway planning investigated the upgrade of this 9 km section of South
Road from a four lane divided arterial road to a free flow six lane freeway. This section of South
Road runs north – south and connects the Port of Adelaide, Adelaide CBD, Adelaide Airport and
various industrial, commercial and residential precincts. The upgrade forms part of the north – south
corridor crossing Adelaide’s urban area and connects the South Road Superway with the Southern
Expressway.
Adelaide's north-south transport corridor runs between Gawler and Old Noarlunga. This stretch of
road provides a series of strategic free-flowing road links to connect the rapidly expanding industrial
and residential growth areas in the north and the south, providing new opportunities for economic
development.
The scope of investigation included integrated transport (traffic, public transport, cycling and
pedestrians), land use and urban design (as well as environmental planning and engineering design)
to develop and evaluate options and prepare a concept and detailed design for the preferred option.
The northern section, from Torrens Road to River Torrens, will address delays currently caused by
Port and Grange Roads and the Outer Harbor rail line and improve safety along the narrow section
between Torrens Road and Port Road. It will include a new lowered road under Port and Grange
roads, allowing the local community, commuters and freight to quickly pass through the area.
South Road and Southern Expressway meet in Darlington, at the northern end of the southern
Adelaide region, adjacent to Flinders Medical Centre and Flinders University. A previous planning
study determined that the appropriate connection linking the upgraded South Road and the widened
Southern Expressway is a grade separation of the intersections of South Road with the Southern
Expressway, Flinders Drive and Sturt Road.
3.3 City to Gungahlin Corridor, Canberra
Two studies prepared for this corridor included an IA submission based around Theme 5.
The first of the studies developed and assessed options for bus priority and cycleway facilities along
Northbourne Avenue and a new bus interchange in Dickson as part of the Transport for Canberra
initiative. The purpose of this study was to determine:
• bus priority options including transit lanes (T2/T3) for short, medium and long term considering
cyclists and pedestrian movements along Northbourne Ave;
• the best location and associated operational requirements for a bus station at Dickson; and
• options for a dedicated cycle way along Northbourne Avenue.
Northbourne Avenue is a designated National Gateway and therefore has a significant ceremonial
role, with ultimate control vested in the Federal government. It is also the prime commercial address
in Canberra and provides the major north – south transport connection to the city for traffic, buses
and cyclists. The follow-up study
(www.transport.act.gov.au/policy_and_projects/transport_planning_studies/gungahlin_to_city_transit_
corridor_study) investigated integrated land use development and modal options for the route,
extending from City to Gungahlin. Specifically, the second study determined what sort of light rail
transit (LRT)/bus rapid transit (BRT) options would be viable for extended corridor, how LRT/BRT can
be delivered with appropriately supportive land use settings, how each integrates into the wider
transport network (including Dickson Station), how it could be funded, and how can it be designed to
transform the city. The study produced a detailed business case for consideration by ACT
Government and a submission to IA. The outcome of this work was the announcement by the ACT
government that it will construct Capital Metro, a new light rail between City and Gungahlin.

3.4 Planning Framework
As discussed above, IA looks to the strategic context for a project and this is defined by state
government strategies for land use and transport. The work on urban design by IA, and the emphasis
for Theme 5, draws in these strategies as well. Relevant transport, land use and urban design
strategies for the case studies are summarised in Table 2.
Table 2: Transport, Land Use and Urban Design Strategies for WA, ACT and SA
Case Study Relevant Strategies
Land Use Transport Urban Design
Perth South West
Metropolitan Region, WA
Directions 2031 and
Beyond –
metropolitan planning
beyond the horizon
Public Transport
Plan for Perth 2031
Perth Metropolitan
Transport Strategy,
1995 - 2029
No specific document
South Road, Adelaide, SA State Strategic Plan
State Infrastructure
Plan
The 30 Year Plan for
Greater Adelaide
State Strategic
Plan
State Infrastructure
Plan
The 30 Year Plan
for Greater
Adelaide
State Strategic Plan
The 30 Year Plan for
Greater Adelaide
SA Urban Design
Charter
Transport Choices
and Urban Design -
Issues Paper
City to Gungahlin Corridor,
Canberra, ACT
ACT Planning
Strategy
Transport for
Canberra
National Capital Plan
Griffin Legacy
National Capital
Authority
Broad themes of these
strategies
Higher density
development in
activity centres/transit
oriented
developments
(TOD’s) and along
public transport
corridors (ie
nominated growth
corridors)
Encourage public
transport and
active transport
Reduce congestion
Facilitate the
movement of
freight
Improving the amenity
and character of
neighbourhoods,
suburbs and
infrastructure
Sustainability
There are common themes across each state’s transport, land use and urban design strategies,
which link to the IA themes:
• Themes 3 (competitive international gateways) and 4 (national freight network): facilitating the
movement of freight; and
• Theme 5 (transforming our cities): higher density development, encouraging public and active
transport and improving amenity and sustainability.

4. Attributes of Each Case Study
As indicated above, projects need to be related to the relevant IA themes. Relevant key attributes
that create this nexus are described below.
4.1 Perth South West Metropolitan Region
Perth’s South West Metropolitan (SWM) Region extends from the Swan River 50 km south to
Singleton (at the southern end of the City of Rockingham municipal area) and from the coast east
generally around 12 km east, as shown in Figure 1. The Region includes the local government areas
of Fremantle, East Fremantle, Melville, Cockburn, Kwinana and Rockingham.
The SWM Region includes the Port of Fremantle and Western Trade Zone, both critical support to the
WA mining industry and therefore of national importance. It is also an urban growth corridor, with the
need to retain and strengthen the buffer between industrial and residential areas. The region has
good road and rail north – south transport corridors but constrained linkages to the industrial areas –
hence there is a need for freight in particular to cross the suburban areas.
Investigations for the region to date establishes the connection to the three transport-related themes
and highlights the land use and transport issues that need to be addressed, without specifying
solutions. These should be subject to further investigation, considering land use, better use of
existing infrastructure, modes and infrastructure improvements. Key issues relating to each of the IA
themes include the following.
3. Competitive international gateways:
• Port of Fremantle is the container port for the west;
• landside access by both road and rail is constrained - trucks need to use roads passing
through the town centre and tourist precinct and freight trains have limited paths, constrained
by the passenger services to the south west (Fremantle and beyond);
• road and rail capacity across Swan River is constrained; and
• further development of the port proposed – increased container throughput, growth in liquid
and other bulk and possible expansion of the naval base – associated growth in demand will
put pressure on the road and rail infrastructure, leading to delays and amenity impacts, which
will increase the cost to industry and potentially limit the level of development.
4. A national freight network:
• important freight connection from Western Trade Zone to other parts of Perth and to the north
(road, rail and coastal shipping) but local connections are lacking.
5. Transforming our cities
• desirable historical coastal destination with significant facilities (eg university) and high
amenity, adversely impacted by freight and dual use of existing local connections;
• urban growth corridor – predominantly low density with some higher density nodes – inland
alongside freeway corridor – good access to rest of Perth, but more limited to local
employment along coast (as per comments above for road network, buses provide any public
transport available); and
• freight impact on town centre, tourist precinct, university, etc from port and associated
industrial development.

Figure 1: Perth South West Metropolitan Region

4.2 South Road, Adelaide
South Road extends from Port Adelaide south past the Adelaide CBD and Airport to Darlington, as
shown in Figure 2. The northern section is currently being upgraded to freeway standard using a
viaduct solution. South of Darlington the Southern Expressway is currently being widened to full
freeway standard. As well as servicing the Port of Adelaide and Adelaide Airport this route links
major industrial estates and therefore is an important freight route and is part of the national freight
network.
The 30 Year Plan for Greater Adelaide proposes higher density infill development at key sites across
the metropolitan area, including a number in the South Road corridor, supporting corridor greenfield
urban growth in the north and south. This is necessitated by Adelaide’s geography, constrained by
the coast to the west and Adelaide Hills to the east.
South Adelaide has constrained transport connections to metropolitan Adelaide at its northern end in
Darlington due to this proximity of the coast and mountains – there is one north – south railway line
and one major road interchange, which is adjacent to a major activity centre comprising Flinders
University and the Flinders Private Hospital and Medical Centre.
Key issues relating to each of the IA themes include the following.
3. Competitive international gateways
• improving land-side access to the Port of Adelaide and Adelaide Airport; and
• better connecting these with the industrial land in Adelaide.
4. A national freight network
• upgrading part of the national freight network.
5. Transforming our cities
• Adelaide’s constrained geography, necessitating urban growth to the north and south, is
mitigated by the continuous north – south non-stop road, which links the city together and
provides a spine for nodes of high density, mixed use development, the CBD, industrial
development, etc.

Figure 2: South Road, Adelaide

4.3 City to Gungahlin Corridor, Canberra
This corridor, comprising Northbourne Avenue, Flemington Road and Hibberson Street, is major
transport and mixed use activity corridor extending from the City to the northern growth area of
Canberra, as shown in Figure 3.
The corridor is described in the ACT transport strategy, Transport for Canberra, as follows:
“Northbourne Avenue serves as the major boulevard-style entrance to Canberra, with its wide, tree-
lined median trip offering an appealing vista as travellers approach the city centre from the north.
Northbourne Avenue is the major north – south arterial road servicing the commercial precinct of the
city and connecting it to the residential suburbs to the north of Canberra. Through planning policy, it
has become a major employment corridor with numerous office buildings along its length, as well as
high density urban housing. This offers significant potential for public transport patronage and cycle
commuting along the corridor, as well as use by longer-distance commuters.
“Combining four modes of transport – general traffic, public transport, cycling and pedestrians – on
Northbourne Avenue and allocating road space between them while also considering the nationally
significant streetscape/urban design elements (including the median planting and view lines) will be
critical part of planning for a new approach to Northbourne Avenue.”
The corridor is already serviced by the Red Rapid, one of the Rapid Frequent routes that run every 15
minutes or better all day, including weekends. The Frequent network will provides highly reliable and
permanent trunk public bus services, allowing for easy travel across the ACT and supported Bike and
Ride and Park and Ride facilities along rapid corridors and making widely-spaced stops for higher
speed connections across the city. Rapid services could be run with bus rapid transit (BRT), light rail
transit (LRT), or another mass rapid transit technology – currently they are serviced by buses
generally using general traffic lanes, but with some sections of dedicated bus lanes.
Capital Metro Stage 1 (City to Gungahlin) will convert the Red Rapid to LRT, providing a light rail
service with vehicles carrying up to 200 passengers at headways between 8 and 10 minutes along
the 12 km route through the corridor. Major stations will be provided at Gungahlin, Dickson and City
(between Alinga and Rudd Streets), with high-quality stops at 750 m to 1.5 km spacing along
Flemington Road and Northbourne Avenue, integrated with adjacent land use.
Currently, the defined objectives for Capital Metro are:
• establish the ACT’s first light rail corridor;
• deliver a frequent and reliable light rail service between Gungahlin and City;

Figure 3: City to Gungahlin Corridor, Canberra

In addition, high density mixed use development will be encouraged in the corridor. Urban design
value of the corridor is very high, as it is a “National Gateway” and therefore under control of the
Federal government (National Capital Authority), who need to approve designs.
The City to Gungahlin corridor has been selected because:
• Northbourne Avenue is an important approach route and main avenue for Canberra. It links to
the Federal Highway, the main approach route from Sydney and Melbourne;
• Flemington Road is a connector road from Northbourne Avenue to Gungahlin and directly
links to Hibberson Street, the main shopping and business strip in Gungahlin Town Centre;
• the corridor includes three main nodes/stations at City, Dickson and Gungahlin, which will be
both an important part of the public transport network, and locations for changing land use that
is already part of current planning policy; and
• the corridor is one of the most congested in Canberra, and a key part of the Rapid public
transport network detailed in Transport for Canberra.
The general arrangement for the light rail is shown in the Figure 4. The footpaths, traffic lanes,
median and traffic signals all exist, with light rail inserted into the wide median.
Figure 4: General arrangement of Capital Metro
Key issues relating to each of the IA themes include the following.
5. Transforming our cities:
• provide greater connectivity and capacity between future growth centres and the City;
• encourage greater use of more sustainable transport modes, such as public transport and
active transport;
• encourage further economic development within the Gungahlin to CBD corridor - facilitate
increases in densities in established town centres and along key transport corridors. This will
support taking a regional approach to urban settlement to promote responsible and
sustainable planning; and
• maintaining and improving the amenity of Northbourne Avenue - reinforcing the linear
alignment of Northbourne Avenue by maintaining the avenue of trees and adding the
permanency of dedicated light rail tracks and retain Northbourne Avenue’s role as the primary
National Gateway.

4.4 Overall Issues
Across the case studies discussed above, a number of common issues emerged:
• importance of a “business as usual” not “do nothing” base case – it is now a common
expectation that some form of on-going investment will be required if a proposal does not
proceed, so this needs to be captured and reflected in the base case (against which options
are compared); and
• strategic options need to be included, considering non-infrastructure responses such as land
use, public transport, better use of existing assets, demand management, etc.
Specific requirements for and material to be provided in submissions to IA are detailed in the Reform
and Investment Framework Templates for Use by Proponents: Summary Template and Templates
included in the References section of this paper.
5. Findings and conclusions
These case studies suggest that the following are relevant to a successful IA submission:
• clear explanation of the need for the proposal and placing it within the IA themes;
• understanding what IA is looking for and have them help shape the submission to minimise
their need for additional information/analysis;
• defining the problem that needs to be solved and developing broad-ranging strategic options
to address this problem, which are then narrowed down to the specific project which will be
the subject of the application;
• having an integrated transport and land use approach, which also incorporates urban design
for projects submitted under IA Theme 5, to describe the overall context of the problem that
needs to be addressed and the broad strategic options that have been developed and
considered;
• providing evidence of the problem, be it a current or emerging problem; and
• clearly articulating how the proposal addresses the relevant IA theme/s and addresses the
current/emerging problem.
References
Department of Infrastructure and Transport, Our Cities, Our Future: A National Urban Policy for a
Productive, Sustainable and Liveable Future, May 2011
Department of Transport WA, A Vision for Western Australia’s Ports, undated
Department of Transport WA, Public Transport for Perth in 2031: Mapping Out the Future for Perth’s
Public Transport Network, Draft, July 2011
Department of Transport WA, The Role of Ports in Western Australia, July 2012
Infrastructure Australia, A Report to the Council of Australian Governments, December 2008
Infrastructure Australia, Better Infrastructure Decision-Making: Guidelines for Making Submissions to
Infrastructure Australia’s Infrastructure Planning Process, Through Infrastructure Australia’s Reform
and Investment Framework, version 3.0, undated
Infrastructure Australia, Creating Places for People: An Urban Design Protocol for Australian Cities,
November 2011
Infrastructure Australia, Reform and Investment Framework Templates for Use by Proponents:
Summary Template and Templates for Stages 1 - 6, October 2010

Infrastructure Australia, Reform and Investment Framework Templates for Use by Proponents:
Templates for Stage 7, October 2010

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