“Light rail is once again an election issue,” the Public Transport Association of Canberra has stated, in its survey of candidates’ views published today. “This time, it’s a question of whether or not to proceed with the future extension of light rail from Commonwealth Park through the Parliamentary Zone to Woden.”

The two government parties, ACT Labor and the ACT Greens, both intend to build light rail to Woden, the Greens promising to do so faster (before 2033). Their argument is that environmentally friendly mass-transit is necessary to limit traffic congestion as the city grows, and lower greenhouse gas emissions, and that light rail supports the construction of more housing.

Other parties, such as the Canberra Liberals, however, oppose light rail because they believe it is an expensive and unnecessary vanity project that lacks transparency: the government has not provided costings or a business case, while the original report recommended electric buses, which are cheaper, faster, more flexible, and more environmentally friendly. Light rail was reportedly ACT Greens leader Shane Rattenbury‘s price for supporting Labor at the 2012 election, when the party tied with the Liberals in the polls. A report this year warned that light rail must not proceed, as it is slow, environmentally damaging, and expensive: “It would impose a substantial financial burden on Canberrans for many years to come.” The Canberra Liberals estimate stage 2 will cost more than $5 billion.

Canberra Daily has asked political parties for their views on light rail. Here are the replies we have received.

ACT Labor

Light rail to Woden is a once-in-a-generation asset for Canberra.

Labor built stage 1 from Gungahlin to the City, and we have proven that a truly integrated public transport network is possible for Canberra.

With around 15,000 Canberrans using the stage 1 light rail every weekday, we’re on board with extending this service further south. Labor will continue to extend light rail to Commonwealth Park, the National Triangle and then onto Woden, to establish our North-South mass-transit line. 

Substantial work is already underway on raising London Circuit, the first big step in building the line further south. We’ve also signed contracts for the extension of the line to Commonwealth Park – with operations set to start in 2028. 

Our position on this project remains the same. As the Chief Minister indicated in March this year, the Government is working towards a construction period of 2028-2033 for future stages of the light rail beyond Commonwealth Park.

ACT Labor has committed to work in partnership with the Albanese Labor Government on the planning design for future stages of light rail to Woden. We will continue to work through each milestone necessary to bring light rail to Woden, including environmental, works, parliamentary and planning approvals.

We’ll further develop the design in line with these approvals and consider a business case for stage 2B next term. This is the most complicated infrastructure project ACT Labor has undertaken.

There are several unique steps required to deliver the project. If this work is stopped by the Canberra Liberals, then it will set back any futures stages of light rail by decades, if not generations. 

Labor knows that you don’t build half a network. Canberrans shouldn’t be sold short on a vision for our city’s future.  A city the size of Canberra can and should have a modern, integrated public transport system that is designed for the decades to come.

We understand that delivering this type of infrastructure takes courage, and we are the only party that has a progressive, practical and proven plan to get it done.

Animal Justice Party

The Animal Justice Party will advocate for a comprehensive review including a ‘public opinion’ survey of Canberra’s road transport network, including the light rail project.

Until this review and survey is complete, we will oppose any further funding for light rail.

The Animal Justice Party is aware that back in 2012 the decision to approve light rail was made before the business case was completed.  The business case recommended electric buses as the preferred solution, not only being the cheaper option but providing a better service; instead, the Labor/Greens withdrew hundreds of bus services and started building the infrastructure for light rail. Their choice of light rail over the recommended choice clearly shows the ACT Labor/Greens Government to be arrogant, dismissive and unresponsive to the people it is meant to serve.

Then there is the cost.  According to commentary by a former Chief Minister [Jon Stanhope], every household in Canberra has been saddled with a debt of over $90,000.  Putting this another way, every household in Canberra could afford to purchase a brand-new Tesla electric vehicle with the debt that is steadily increasing and which will require repaying over generations of Canberrans.

Finally, the Animal Justice Party sees no benefit for people living in Belconnen and the south of Canberra – from Kambah to Gordon – in paying for a tram they will never get any benefit from.

In fact, elected AJP members will work with other MLAs to ensure light rail finishes at Commonwealth Park until such time the review is completed.  We would instead support the commissioning of a fleet of electric buses that can cover all suburbs on established bus routes.

Belco Party

The Belco Party is proud to have been the first cab off the rank to commit to not proceeding with stage 2B of light rail (the lake to Woden).

The whole light rail project is a ‘can have’, not a ‘must have’, and has helped put the ACT in dire financial straits.

It has already cost the territory a lot of money for minimum benefit. There has been no independent costing done for stage 2A or B. Indeed, the cost analysis for stage 1 was 49 cents benefit for every dollar sent. That’s an appalling waste of scarce taxpayers’ dollars.

The hospital and public housing have been gutted to get up to where we are now. The ACT’s greatest Labor Chief Minister, Jon Stanhope, would not have a bar of light rail (sorry about the pun), and told the chief Greens proponent, Shane Rattenbury, where to get off when Shane raised it . Unfortunately, Jon’s more malleable successors succumbed to pressure. So, here we are.

The Belco Party will use the estimated $4 to 10 billion saved to help fix our ailing hospital system, find the extra 250 then 300 police we need, build the Chic Henry Canberra International Motor Sport and driver training transport hub, as well as reinstating Parks and Gardens to make our city beautiful again. We will make the buses free. (We only get $25 million per annum in fares at any rate, so this initiative may well be cost neutral if not cost positive when one takes all the other benefits into account.)

There are few details available of exactly where and why we need light rail to Woden, let alone how much it will cost, and a territory wide network of free electric buses will cost a fraction of the light rail and be cleaner, quicker and more flexible. We don’t need light rail, we can’t afford it, let’s can it.

Democratic Labour Party

Labour (DLP) totally opposes the light rail project as a massive waste of taxpayers’ money that could have been spent on far more important projects. The light rail is a metaphor for everything that is wrong with the ACT Labor-Greens government – a grandiose, bourgeois socialist exercise in vanity infrastructure that never had a viable business case and simply duplicates existing bus routes at vast expense.

Instead of building light rail, we would propose that the many billions of dollars instead be spent on building a new public hospital to reduce long waiting times for emergency care and surgery, building a gas-fired ACT power station to provide cheap and reliable energy, building a free state dental clinic to provide free dental treatment to low income earners and age pensioners, and building more public housing and build-to-rent unit development.

Family First

Family First is not opposed to light rail but will not support it in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis.

Should Family First candidates led by a re-elected Elizabeth Kikkert hold the balance of power, they will only support the party of government committed to halving rates in the first term.

Other parties are committed to making families pay for a $4 billion tram to Woden when too many can’t afford their electricity bills or mortgage repayments.

The fact that rates in the ACT have tripled under the Green-Labor Government has only made things harder.

Relieving cost of living pressure is the single most important thing Family First can do to help mums and dads stay together for the sake of their kids.

While trams are a nice idea, the needs of families must come first.

Halving rates will cost $49 million in the first year, and around $52 million in the second.

Cutting the tram at $4 billion, the flashy stadium in Civic at $3 billion and eradicating other waste like $80 million HR plans and $8 million “complexity thinkers” means cost of living relief is possible.

Family First is about the values and priorities of your family.

Independents for Canberra

All Independents for Canberra candidates are committed to creating an integrated public and active transport system that is equitable for people across the ACT and sets us up for a carbon-neutral future. As independents, our views differ with respect to the role of light rail in achieving that outcome.

Vanessa Picker (Brindabella): We deserve investment in better connectivity now, not just empty promises of a light rail that may take decades to reach Tuggeranong. Why should we keep supporting a project that may never benefit us, while our community is neglected and left behind? It is time to prioritise real, immediate solutions for our transport needs, not dreams of distant projects.

Riley Fernandes (Brindabella): The proposed timeline and pathway for light rail, in combination with the lack of transparency around cost and delivery, makes it a dysfunctional investment for the people of Tuggeranong, at least in its current form. Until a comprehensive plan for alternative forms of travel is addressed for those who will not be serviced by the light rail now and in the future, I do not support it.

Thomas Emerson (Kurrajong): I support light rail in principle as I believe Stage 1 has been a good thing for Canberra from both a city-shaping and public-transport perspective. Reflecting the majority view of people in Kurrajong, I will advocate for continuing the planning and design process that is already under way for Stage 2B and, when a decision point is reached regarding construction, I will push for full transparency with respect to the cost, procurement process, plans for the remainder of our public and active transport network, and urban densification along the light rail corridor. I will then make an informed decision about constructing the next stage, and any other stages, on the basis of expert advice and direct input from my community.

Sara Poguet (Kurrajong): I support advancing light rail planning. Any decision to build must be transparent and fact-based, considering its impact on housing and community spaces. This is not just about transport; it is about shaping our city’s future, and we need to ensure the financials are clear and benefits well understood. In the meantime, we need better bus services now to meet current demand.

David Pollard (Yerrabi): I support an efficient, city-wide, fixed-line mass transit network, such as our light rail. Done correctly, we can help improve housing affordability, access to services, walkability, employment choices, and so much more. The question must not be whether we carry on building light rail, but how.

Sneha KC (Yerrabi): Stage 1 of the light rail was a success but Stage 2A, costing nearly the same for just 1.7 km as Stage 1 did for 12.5 km, highlights that cost is driven by complexity, not distance. With Stage 2B needing to cross Lake Burley Griffin and navigate federally managed land, it is uncertain whether the potential benefits will justify the significant taxpayer expense.

Anne-Louise Dawes (Murrumbidgee): I support transport options that build social equity and look more than ten years into the future. If light rail can be delivered as part of a better overall transport system, to reduce congestion in Murrumbidgee and give us better access to the city, I am for it.

Paula McGrady (Murrumbidgee): I support light rail. I would also use it if I wanted to attend events in the city. We do need to consider the costings and transparency for our community along the way of its build.

Mark Richardson (Ginninderra): The light rail project is one example where transparency has been completely lacking. It is being built at a glacial pace, with costs for future stages vague at best. Without far greater accountability, I cannot support the extension to Woden and Tuggeranong.

Leanne Foresti (Ginninderra): A light rail from the city to the airport should have been made a priority before all other stages. It makes sense for the funding the government has already committed for the construction of the next stage to go ahead. However more scrutiny and transparency of future light rail stages must occur. Moving forward in Ginninderra, we need immediate action to address the inefficiencies of the current bus system.

Strong Independents

Give us evidence so we can make a decision on Light Rail.

The Strong Independents know we need all stakeholders in the light rail network to come together and demand that the information needed to make comment be released ASAP. Decisions should not be made on emotions but on facts.

Ann Bray and Peter Strong know that any responsible politician, who is genuinely representing their electorates, will not and should not make decisions about public policy or expenditure of taxpayers’ money without the information needed to make that decision. It shouldn’t be decided by vested interests or those ideologically wedded to a concept without any regard to unintended consequences.

Politicians should make decisions based on evidence and facts. This is why we have called for the appointment of an Independent Infrastructure Commissioner in the ACT to help take the emotions out of decisions by provision of expert comment on business cases, including information on any alternatives to proposed infrastructure projects – if relevant.

We know the transport system in the ACT is in a crisis as citizens complain of poor bus services and very long trips in buses that used to be much shorter. We do need a rapid transport system for the whole territory, and we need experts to provide comment on the various options available. This includes an independent cost benefit analysis which is an essential part of any project development.”

We must have the best rapid transport system for our territory, this can only be achieved by professional responsible government that makes transparent decisions by seeking evidence.