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NSW Coalition denies congestion tax plan

The NSW opposition says it is not considering a congestion tax for Sydney's roads, because public transport is not a satisfactory alternative.

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Source: AAP


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Nationals leader and opposition roads spokesman Andrew Stoner reportedly told the Sydney Morning Herald he supported uniform congestion tolling to create a fairer deal for motorists.

"My view is it should be a per-kilometre basis and there should be some time-of-day aspect to it," the Herald reported him saying.

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But Mr Stoner said public transport would need to be improved first.

He later clarified his comments in a statement on Monday.

"The NSW Liberals and Nationals are not considering any changes to the roads and transport network that involves users paying for a road or service they currently get for free," he said.

"We do want to remove the inequities, introduce more consistency for road users and manage the network to reduce congestion, but any rationalisation of Sydney's toll roads would only come after there are proper alternative public transport and public roads in place, which at the moment is simply not the case.

"These ideas would only be considered once there are better public transport and public road options for commuters."

He added that the NSW Liberals and Nationals were committed to building the North West and South West rail links, saying they were "two essential projects that will deliver much-needed public transport options to Sydney's growth areas".


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