Fw: Thurs.17.6.21 daily digest
  Roderick Smith


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Roderick


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Thurs.17.6.21
17.6: iev down at 21.30 at BHill, to Lilydale, back 22.30 at BHill
down iev 22.09; up at 23.33


Thurs.17.6.21 Metro Twitter
Aircraft: No ramp access to platforms until late 2021 (pedestrian-underpass works).
Flinders St: still with a lane closed for tunnel works.
Buses replace trains on sections of the Werribee line until the last train of Sun 20 Jun (level-crossing works).
16.57 Buses replace trains Eltham—Hurstbridge (an equipment fault). Buses have been ordered, ETA 1 hour. Consider alternatives.
- 17.30 Buses are in operation, adding ~30 min to journey time.
- 18.36 Trains resume
17.40 Lilydale/Belgrave lines: Major delays for trains in the Ringwood area (police). Trains may be altered or held.
- 17.43 clearing.


Brisbane projects which never eventuated.  Cameron Atfield June 1, 2017
...* BaT Tunnel
The Newman government's controversial decision to scrap the approved Cross River Rail project in favour of its own version, which would have also accommodated buses, ultimately backfired on south-east Queensland commuters.
The LNP insisted its version took Brisbane's bus congestion problems into account, which was something Cross River Rail failed to do.
A naming competition was held and, eventually, the BaT (Bus and Train) Tunnel came out victorious, despite a competition stipulation that ruled out acronyms.
But a change in government came with a change of plans, with the Palaszczuk state Labor government committed to a revised Cross River Rail.
The BaT Tunnel had the support of the LNP Brisbane City Council administration, but deputy mayor Adrian Schrinner has since conceded its demise was a blessing for Brisbane commuters, in light of the council's planned Brisbane Metro.
The Brisbane that never was: major city-shaping projects that did not get off the ground
The scrapped BaT Tunnel would have catered for both buses and trains.
<www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/the-brisbane-that-never-was-major-cityshaping-projects-that-did-not-get-off-the-ground-20170529-gwfthm.html>


Decision ‘imminent’ on future of National Archives Katina Curtis and Shane Wright June 17, 2021
The federal government insists a decision on the future of the National Archives is imminent, but as the institution faces the prospect of important records being lost to degradation, one documentary maker has suggested they hand their audiovisual records to the National Film and Sound Archives.
National Archives faces a battle to digitise and preserve disintegrating records after years of funding and staff cuts, with important film and audio recordings topping the list of items most at-risk.
Senator Amanda Stoker says a decision on the future of the Archives is imminent as its records, like photos of Italian prisoners of war in Australia, are disintegrating before they can be digitised. CREDIT:DOMINIC LORRIMER/SUPPLIED.
However, award-winning documentary maker Haydn Keenan, who has used ASIO surveillance films kept in the Archives, says its expertise in maintaining audiovisual materials is poor and it would be better off handing those records over to the NFSA.
A review of the Archives by former Finance department head David Tune recommended an urgent $67.7 million boost to save the most at-risk records, as well as an overhaul of government record-keeping to keep up with the digital age.
Assistant Minister to the Attorney-General Amanda Stoker said on Thursday the government’s response to the review was “imminent”. Asked if it would be released this week, she said: “Not that imminent.”
The government received the Tune review in January 2020 but only released it publicly last March, after requests under freedom of information from independent senator Rex Patrick.
It is now consulting with myriad Commonwealth departments, who are required by law to keep records and transfer them to the Archives.
Feedback from the departments of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Foreign Affairs, Home Affairs, Treasury, Finance, Defence and Veterans’ Affairs is due by July 2, with a decision on how to respond to the Tune recommendations expected to be made soon afterwards.
Last month, Ms Stoker said dealing with deteriorating records was part of “business as usual” for the Archives because “time marches on and all sources degrade over time”. She said she didn’t believe the government had anything to be embarrassed about over its treatment of the Archives.
Historical ASIO surveillance footage is among the records most at risk because it is on acetate film which suffers from so-called “vinegar syndrome” that leads to it becoming brittle then shattering.
video Communist Party HQ, 40 Market Street, Sydney This film, shot in the early 1960s focuses on the front door of the party HQ at 40 Market Street between York and Clarence Street in Sydney. The building is now the site of a skyscraper. Supplied by Smart Street Films.
Mr Keenan used hundreds of reels from ASIO’s surveillance of dissenters for his 2014 documentary series Persons of Interest.
“As a filmmaker, you can have a great story but what are the pictures?” he said. “With the discovery of those surveillance films, our series exploded and suddenly we knew there was the path home, that was the backbone that we could hang everything off.”
But he says he had to battle the Archives’ bureaucracy for access to the full range of footage and found some of it had been poorly copied from its original 16mm film to VHS tape.
When he started the project, about 200 of the ASIO films in the Archives were catalogued. By the time he was finished, more than 800 were.
The Tune review noted just 37 per cent of the entire Archives collection had been properly catalogued or “described”.
Mr Keenan said he had great respect for the Archives’ “unquestioned” expertise with paper-based records.
“But the expertise in audiovisual preservation, curation and display is at the National Film and Sound Archive. And I believe those Commonwealth records, the AV versions should be transferred to them,” he said.
“The problem they’ve got is that archives are always the first mobs ... to get hit when budget cuts are about because they’re sort of under the radar. And what budget they do get, in the end, their priorities are to paper.”
RELATED ARTICLE Some of the deteriorated negatives, prints and scans of Italian prisoners of war in Australia held by the National Archives.  Donations pour in to Archives as historians decry decay of ‘national memory bank’
RELATED ARTICLE Senator Amanda Stoker says it’s a good thing the Archives is going to the public for donations to save disintegrating records, like this photo of an Italian prisoner of war in Australia. Government has ‘nothing to be embarrassed about’ over disintegrating archives: Stoker
<www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/decision-imminent-on-future-of-national-archives-20210617-p581r3.html>
* For the Liberal party, the National Archive is just another potential source of scrutiny. A risk of future embarrassment. A government which supports only the culture war version of history. One that it can narrate.
* Is this the same National Archives that spent a swag of taxpayer's money trying to block the release of former Governor-General Kerr's correspondence with the palace? Perhaps they could have spent this on preserving their records rather than trying to block public access
* "Last month, Ms Stoker said dealing with deteriorating records was part of “business as usual” for the Archives because “time marches on and all sources degrade over time”. " True but critical data has special treatment to stave off decay and disintegration.
"She said she didn’t believe the government had anything to be embarrassed about over its treatment of the Archives." Where does this politician come from? Oh yes, the Cultural and Fine Arts hub of Australia, Queensland. And she's a lawyer, for whom keeping records is a critical part of their business.
* Stoker has proven to be hopeless unless chasing votes on alt right religious issues. No votes in national archives. Sooner she is voted out the better
* This Federal government just does not want the job, does it? Anything involving actual work, taking responsibility - they run a mile.
* Haydn Keenan suggest that the audiovisual records be handed to the NFSA ... I'm tipping that's what Stoker will do — but the Govt won't give the NFSA a brass razoo extra to archive that material.
* I wonder if Amanda Stoker is part of that "select" group of people that would rather see Australia's (colonial) history disappear off the face of the earth.
* IMMINENT but not before next week? The meaning hasn't changed in almost 100 years. 1925 dictionary: "threatening or about to fall or occur immediately; said especially of misfortune or peril" Macquarie Dictionary: "likely to occur at any moment" Stoke is yet another useless pandering politician.
* In a recent trip to Canberra, I visited the National Film and Sound Archive in it's gorgeous art deco building. It seemed that everything it had to exhibit could be found online. One staff member at the front desk graciously tried to offer some information about what we could see. It just felt that they needed more funding to offer something of real interest to tourists. We have such a wealth of film and TV and music but this just seemed a poor offer. When you travel overseas to see such places, I think of the exciting experience in Berlin where you walk through a 3D set and see displays such as the costumes worn by Marlene Dietrich. Los Angeles also has wonderful places to visit too. This article only makes me think that this institution really needs some funding if it is to take on the preservation of our cultural history. How exciting would this be for tourists if we had something like the War Memorial? I'm sure visitors from overseas would flock to something that showed pride in our achievements in sound and film.
* I guess I'm a bit overly critical, but for some years of late we've been hit with demands for the LNP to have more female representatives.I can't see much difference in the final outcomes of decisions. Maybe the sample is too small so far. "Decision is imminent"? Maybe just make it?
* The Government needs to divert the latest $500 million or so it has given to the Australian War Memorial for further unnecessary extensions & upgrades to the Australian Archives. War memorials should be simple places of quiet dignity & reflection, NOT massive entertainment & amusement centres with press button gadgets, the latest in technology, flashing visuals etc


NSW government understates true cost of WestConnex by billions. Tom Rabe June 17, 2021
<www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/nsw-government-understates-true-cost-of-westconnex-by-billions-20210617-p581yc.html>
... No surprises here . The LNP are hopeless and especially this Government.we forget how badly Gladys got her transport portfolio so wrong. The errors and incompetence continue.
... Could you imagine how good our public transportation would be if we spent it on that instead of tolled roads instead?


Olympics to reheat council push for underground Brisbane Metro station. Matt Dennien June 17, 2021
Lord mayor Adrian Schrinner has raised capacity concerns over the above-ground design for his council’s flagship Brisbane Metro stations south of the CBD, after “settling” on the option with the state government last year.
The site of the Cultural Centre station has been a long-running sore point between the two levels of government, now set to re-emerge should the Queensland capital win hosting rights for the 2032 Olympic Games next month.
Asked on Wednesday whether a 2032 Olympic Games centred in the city would mean a renewed focus on the underground option, Cr Schrinner said: ‘Absolutely’.
Despite council’s Labor opposition warning of further cost blowouts and delays, Cr Schrinner has insisted the $1.2 billion project’s electrified and articulated 24-metre buses would be running by the end of 2023.
Plans for a station under the present high-frequency bus rank area or Convention Centre were put on ice last year after disagreements over the size and location, with the lord mayor saying upgrades to the existing bus station would sustain the city’s travel needs for the next decade.
But asked whether a 2032 Olympic Games centred in the city would mean a renewed focus on the underground option, Cr Schrinner said: “Absolutely”.
“It was always our intention to have the underground Cultural Centre station built as part of Brisbane Metro. We settled on an agreement with the state government that there would be an interim solution reached,” he said.
Initial concept images for the since-shelved underground Brisbane Metro Cultural Centre station at South Brisbane.CREDIT:BRISBANE CITY COUNCIL
“The above-ground station won’t meet the demands of the Olympics [so] we’re now talking to the state government about getting some Olympic funding from the federal and state governments to make sure we can go back to that underground station, which will set us up for the Olympics and well beyond.”
Council has committed $944 million of the project’s cost, with a capped $300 million from the federal government. An Infrastructure Department spokeswoman said new or additional funding proposals would be considered through the usual budget processes.
Advanced modelling on any potential impact of the Olympics is yet to be done.
Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said while the state wanted the best outcome for commuters, the project was a council one and the local government had to take responsibility for any changes to its design or budget.
“That said, all three levels of government are committed to Brisbane’s transport network being ready to host an Olympics in 2032,” he said, noting he had not yet heard from Cr Schrinner about any change.
“I’m confident that if all parties work together, we can ensure key bus and train stations, like the one being built at the Cultural Centre, can meet the 2032 Games task.”
Labor’s council leader Jared Cassidy said the development was an example of the LNP administration announcing big-ticket items before an election “without doing any homework”.
“Redesign after redesign is costing ratepayers big time,” Cr Cassidy said.
Responding to additional questions in the budget lock-up on Wednesday, the lord mayor said the construction phase of Metro was moving ahead with an unchanged budget.
This will include the “gearing-up” of works for the new Adelaide Street tunnel, major construction at South Bank and the Cultural Centre, along with the Rochedale depot.
Cr Schrinner said services were planned to begin by the end of 2023 even while work was continuing on the planned 21-kilometre route – hoped to eventually extent to the airport.
The budget papers show a planned $218.86 million spend across the 2021-22 financial year, ramping up to $424.12 million two years later. A further $114.52 million is budgeted for 2024-25.
RELATED ARTICLE The latest design image for Brisbane Metro. 'Is it a bus, tram or train?': What is Brisbane Metro and do we need it?
RELATED ARTICLE Brisbane lord mayor Adrian Schrinner briefing media on the 2021-22 council budget. Brisbane residents face 3.75 per cent rates hike amid infrastructure push
<www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/olympics-to-reheat-council-push-for-underground-brisbane-metro-station-20210616-p581i1.html
* This is not only about the Olympics. Translink are very rigid when it comes to changes to arrangements with their inefficient and costly routes and timetables which are great for driver hours but lousy for delivering value and service.
* Undergrounding of mass transit CBD terminals is an effective positive step toward achieving net-zero emission targets before 2050 in Australia.

Thurs.17.6.21 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' BACK WHERE OUR BIG JOURNEY BEGAN
Big Issue sellers Teresa and Gamal (right) with editor Amy Hetherington at Flinders St station. Picture: Jason Edwards
THE rich history of The Big Issue has been captured in a special edition of the magazine to mark 25 years since it first hit Melbourne’s streets.
And it was only fitting that the 76-page commemorative edition was launched on the steps of Flinders St railway station on Wednesday — mirroring it’s inaugural launch on June 16, 1996.
This month’s edition has been told through the eyes of its vendors, who are often experiencing homelessness, marginalisation and disadvantage and take the opportunity to sell the magazine to earn an income.
More than 7000 vendors have sold 13 million copies of the magazine in its 25-year history.
Annual readership is now more than 250,000 people, putting $32m in the pockets of those living on the margins.
The Big Issue chief executive Steven Persson said the magazine is an agent for social change.
“At its heart, The Big Issue is a community and together, we are in the business of taking people out of poverty — for 25 years, we have done just that,” Mr Persson said.


Thurs.17.6.21 Melbourne 'Herald Sun' City showdown on boom in bike lanes. JOHN MASANAUSKAS with ATN


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