Over the past two days, Roads Australia has been undertaking its annual Board Strategy Workshop.
The workshop draws members of the RA Board together with senior leadership from transport infrastructure agencies across Australia to review and determine our key areas of focus over the next 12 months, ensuring our priorities and activities are aligned with our industry's needs and continue to adhere to RA's overarching strategic values of being The Leader, The Collaborator, The Facilitator and The Champion.
As 2020 amply demonstrated, we live in unpredictable times. Accordingly, many of the conversations over the past two days centered around the need to ensure our industry is sufficiently agile and resilient, able to withstand and respond to emerging challenges effectively, enabling us to continue delivering a robust integrated transport system for people and freight.
Clearly, the expectations of our industry in supporting economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic through the delivery of new projects are immense. To meet them, we will need to embrace the efficiencies and opportunities presented by new technologies, work to ensure our industry is seen as a career of choice by people from a diverse range of backgrounds, and help the community to better understand the importance of the work we do.
During the RA Board Dinner held as part of the workshop, Victoria's Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Hon. Jacinta Allan, spoke about the way the COVID-19 pandemic has changed demand for transport services and how the Victorian Government's extensive program of transport infrastructure projects - including the Metro Tunnel, Suburban Rail Loop, North East Link and Regional Rail Revival - are ensuring that the state has an integrated transport system that will support population growth and community needs. We also heard from Peter Anderson, CEO, Victorian Transport Association, who discussed opportunities to better integrate freight movement into our transport networks.
It has been a thought-provoking and informative two days of conversations, and the outcomes will now be used by the RA Board to develop an updated iteration of the RA Strategic Plan, which will be released in the coming months. I look forward to keeping you updated as that work progresses.
Michael Kilgariff
CEO
Pictured left to right: Peter Anderson, CEO, Victorian Transport Association; Hon. Jacinta Allan, Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Minister for the Suburban Rail Loop; Michael Bushby, RA President; Jeff Doyle, CEO, Altus Traffic.
Download RA's Events Calendar
The pace of the year is picking up - and so is the frequency of RA events, which provide unrivalled opportunities for you to network with colleagues and hear from leading speakers about the issues, projects and trends that are shaping our industry.
To help you plan your participation, RA has produced an updated calendar of events so that you can lock key dates into your diary today and make sure you don't miss out on opportunities of most interest to you.
Download a PDF version of the RA Events Calendar.
Of course, if you have specific questions about forthcoming events and booking details, please contact RA's team, who will be only too happy to help!
Event Enquiries - Contact RA Director Events Rachael Rooney
Booking Enquiries - Contact RA Event Coordinator Alex Smith
Sponsorship Enquiries - Contact RA National Event & Membership Manager Marlie Curtis
John Shaw Medal Nominations Close in Two Weeks
There's just two weeks left for you to recognise an industry champion by nominating them for Roads Australia's John Shaw Medal.
The full eligibility and assessment criteria, as well as past winners, may be viewed here, and nominations can be made by downloading the nomination form.
Nominations will close at COB on Friday 9 April, and the award will be presented to the winner during the 2021 John Shaw Dinner in Sydney on 17 June. For further information, please contact Simon Morgan, RA Director Corporate Affairs.
Make Your Pitch On Safety
RA is inviting you to pitch your road safety innovation or invention for a chance to present at our flagship policy event - Spotlight on Safety, being held on 6 May 2021 in Brisbane. Nearly 200 representatives from government, industry and the community are expected to attend.
This year's program will incorporate an innovation and invention session - and we want to hear pitches from industry, government, research bodies and the community about innovative or inventive road safety projects, campaigns or initiatives.
Those selected will be invited to present a 3-4 minute PowerPoint presentation at the event, followed by questions from our audience of road safety professionals.
To learn more about this opportunity and details of how to submit your pitch, click here.
It's always exciting to welcome a new member to Roads Australia, and this week we're pleased to announce that Winslow is the newest addition to the ranks of our 150+ members.
Winslow is one of the leading civil construction contractors in Victoria, with more than 30 years in the industry. Among Winslow's areas of expertise are greenfield residential subdivisions, road and bridge construction, industrial and commercial subdivision, bulk earthworks, land remediation and medium density construction. You can learn more about the company's activities at the Winslow website.
The Federal and NSW Governments are jointly seeking a major construction partner to deliver the $187.2 million Parkes Bypass. The projects entails the construction of a new 10.5km road and is intended to remove more than 1200 heavy vehicles and other non-local traffic from central Parkes each day. A mandatory pre-tender meeting and site inspection for all interested tenderers will occur on Tuesday 20 April at the Parkes Golf Club from 9am. It is expected that work on the Parkes Bypass will commence before the end of the year. Further details may be viewed here.
A major effort to improve traffic flows and journey efficiency across Victoria is now underway, with Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll confirming the start of the state's most significant review of traffic light sequencing to date. A significant element of the $340 million package will be analysis and optimisation of 759 traffic signals across 170 intersections in hotspots across Melbourne. VicRoads will also install almost 700 new high-quality cameras on major arterial roads, more than doubling the current network of 600 (which operate mainly on freeways). See more details about the package here.
In Queensland, the State Government has flagged plans to release a new State Infrastructure Strategy to promote continued economic recovery in the wake of COVID-19. Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning Steven Miles said the new Strategy would be released later in 2021, and will be supported by seven regional infrastructure plans that will drill down to support economic recovery and resilience at a regional level. Further details - including the opportunity to register interest in supporting development of the Strategy - are available here.
To Western Australia, where the re-election of the McGowan Government has produced several changes to the ministerial line up. Premier Mark McGowan has also taken on the role of Treasurer, while Rita Saffioti remains as Minister for Transport and Planning, also adding responsibility for Ports. Paul Papalia becomes Minister for Police and Road Safety, taking over those portfolios from Michelle Roberts, who will become Speaker in the new WA Parliament.
In the ACT, Minister for Transport and City Services Chris Steel has announced an expansion of 40 km/h speed limit precincts across the Territory. This includes incorporating larger sections of the Canberra CBD and a significant section of the Braddon commercial precinct into the 40km/h zone, as well as additional sections of the Tuggeranong town centre in Canberra's south, as part of continued efforts to revitalise the precinct and make it more pedestrian-friendly. The ACT Government has also foreshadowed the development of a new 40km/h zone in the Kingston Foreshore precinct in the coming months. Learn more here.
The Australian Road Research Board’s (ARRB) popular annual conference will return for 2021, but in a different form to previous years. While it will be an in-person event, ARRB will hold a three-day symposium - called Integrated Mobility Impacts - from Wednesday, 17 November to Friday, 19 November at the National Transport Research Centre in Port Melbourne, Victoria. Integrated Mobility Impacts will offer world-leading learnings and research findings, with a uniquely Australian perspective. Topics covered will include smart roads, connected and automated vehicles, alternative vehicle power sources, the future of road safety, next generation infrastructure measurement and how Australia can effectively turn its $300 billion road network into the future mobility corridors the nation needs. More details can be found at www.arrbimpact.com and the program will be updated as speakers are confirmed.
After 42 years of industry success, Bitu-Mill has unveiled a new name and brand identity, becoming BildGroup, a name which better reflects the organisation's diversification. BildGroup CEO Stephen Hill said "We are so proud of the growth our team has achieved and the new brand doesn’t pigeonhole our business. Now is time to redefine who we are as a group. Building, Infrastructure, Landscaping and Development – that’s BildGroup. This new name projects us into the future and allows us to enter into new markets and states, with new opportunities to further grow and diversify.” Additional details are available on BildGroup's new website.
EastLink is continuing to support those in the community experiencing disadvantage during the COVID-19 pandemic, donating $100,000 to EACH for Eastern Financial Counselling Services.
EACH is an independent not-for-profit provider of health, disability, counselling and mental health services across Australia. As part of this, EACH provides Eastern Financial Counselling Services - a free, confidential and non-judgemental financial counselling service to people experiencing financial hardship and living in Melbourne's east. Learn more here.
Webuild is celebrating success in two different parts of the country this week. The company has announced it has secured a permanent home in Melbourne's Rialto building, better enabling its Victorian operations to contribute to the development of the state's infrastructure in the years ahead. Meanwhile, Webuild and its partners in the Future Generation joint-venture are celebrating the commissioning of the first of three technologically advanced tunnel-boring machines (TBMs) assigned to Snowy 2.0, Australia's largest renewable energy project. Marco Assorati, Webuild Executive Director Asia Pacific said "This marks the start of an amazing journey together. We are proud to be a part of a project that will provide a sustainable future for our children.” Learn more here.
Symal has appointed Michael Lowrie as its new Chief Operating Officer to oversee construction operations nationally as part of the organisation's executive team. He brings extensive experience, spanning 30 years in the construction sector to the role, having worked on a number of high-profile projects across road, rail, bridges, water, pavements, water and waste water. Michael also brings a significant focus and passion for building high-performing teams and supporting the next generation of industry leaders to the position. With a strong network and trusted partnerships in the industry, Michael further strengthens Symal’s leadership team, ready for the next stage of growth. Further details about the appointment are available here.
The NSW Government has announced the appointment of Rob Sharp as the new Secretary of Transport for NSW (TfNSW). A former CEO (Group Executive) of Virgin Australia Airlines, Mr. Sharp will commence in the role from 7 April. NSW Minister for Transport and Roads Andrew Constance said: "Mr Sharp is the perfect person to lead the agency in a new direction with his experience in performing successful business turnarounds and transformational change. He comes with a unique blend of specialist industry experience across transport, professional services and technology sectors.” Minister Constance has also confirmed that the Board of Sydney Metro has appointed Peter Regan PSM as its new Chief Executive. View the announcement here.
Australia's largest private freight rail operator Pacific National has announced a new leadership team, with Paul Scurrah commencing as Managing Director and CEO from 19 April, and Mike Cory becoming President and Chief Operating Officer later next month. Paul Scurrah has extensive experience across the transport and freight sectors, having previously been CEO of Virgin Australia, DP World and Queensland Rail. Mike Corey brings almost 40 years of experience in the rail sector to his new role, having most recently been Chief Operating Officer of Canadian National. Pacific National's current CEO Dean Dalla-Valle is retiring from full-time executive work. More information here.
Roads Australia has lodged a submission on the draft National Road Safety Strategy 2021 - 2030.
Our submission makes a number of recommendations around opportunities to:
- collect better data and formalise reporting around safety incidents involving road workers, to better understand where and why incidents occur and support more effective policy responses;
- reform procurement processes to enable the inclusion of innovative safety measures in bid documents for road infrastructure projects;
- include actions in the Strategy to improve post-crash response in regional and remote areas to deliver improved survivability; and
- prioritise funding to remove high-risk level crossings in regional areas
You can read RA's submission here.
RA is also continuing work to develop submissions to the following policy consultations:
RA members wishing to provide feedback for consideration in the development of submissions should contact Royce Christie, RA Director - Policy.
The National Association of Women in Operations (NAWO) is seeking expressions of interest for a respectful and inclusive leader who has genuine personal alignment to NAWO’s vision and purpose to join the organisation as its board Chair. NAWO supports all women in their career by providing meaningful connections, inspiring role models and offering development opportunities to really build and capitalise on their strengths. If you feel you would be the right fit for this exciting role, please send an email stating your name and address with an up to date LinkedIn profile or resume to joinus@nawo.org.au before 31 March.
Women & Leadership Australia (WLA) is encouraging women working in the construction, engineering and infrastrucutre space to explore their leadership development program, which currently includes opportunities to access a discounted fee structure. WLA's programs are designed to provide a rapid transition learning experience and are structured to fit into a busy schedule enabling the participant to achieve exceptional results whilst remaining focussed and effective in their roles. There are three programs available, tailored to various stages of the career journey: Leading Edge for emerging leaders/early career candidates, Executive Ready for more experienced intermediate level candidates and an Advanced Leadership Program for senior organisational leaders. For further information and to lodge your Expression of Interest by 31 March 2021 please click here.
Aurecon has announced its exclusive Gold sponsorship of Women in BIM in the Asia Pacific region. Women in BIM is a diverse network of female professionals within the architecture, engineering and construction industries dedicated to supporting women in BIM related roles for skills, education and career progression. Further details about Aurecon's involvement can be seen here.
As always, if you have news, views or innovations in the D&I space to share with the readers of RA Insider, please get in touch with Marlie Curtis at RA.
Another significant milestone in NSW's continued progress towards electrification of the state's bus fleet was achieved recently, with the first electric bus to be built in NSW now moving into testing phase on routes in Sydney's eastern suburbs.
The zero emissions vehicle was built in Western Sydney, and is now operating between Bondi Beach and Bronte. As an added incentive to commuters, trips on this vehicle are fare-free during the trial, with passengers encouraged to use QR codes onboard to complete a COVID-safe check-in. The NSW Government plans to roll out 50 new electric buses across the Sydney network this year.
New RA events are continuing to roll out all the time, so keep an eye on your inbox and on our website www.roads.org.au to make sure you don't miss out on networking opportunities.
Event Enquiries - Contact RA Director Events Rachael Rooney
Booking Enquiries - Contact RA Event Coordinator Alex Smith
Upcoming Industry Events/Training
RA Insider is proudly sponsored by Cardno. If you'd like to add more people in your organisation to our distribution list, or if you have industry news to share, please email Simon Morgan - RA Director Corporate Affairs.
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