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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-06-12 Daily Xml
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CADELL FERRY

The Hon. J.S. LEE (15:16): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Regional Development questions about the closure of the Cadell ferry.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: As reported last week across the newspapers and on the radio, the state government has announced that it will not renew the contract for the Cadell ferry, which expires on 2 July 2012. Danny McGurgan, Chairman of the Cadell Community Tourism Group, stated on ABC rural radio on Friday 8 June, as follows:

It's come as a shock actually...basically the community had no idea until Monday and it seems to be a reasonably rushed type of proposal.

With the closest ferry to Cadell being Morgan, Danny McGurgan confirmed, as follows:

There's so many issues...I don't think they've done their homework...they have no idea of the amount of traffic Morgan gets at different times of the year. This is going to be such an imposition on Morgan residents also...on long weekends, the traffic at Morgan backs up two to three ferry loads now as it is. Tourists and agriculturalists who use the Cadell ferry have already raised their concerns. For example, Grape Growers do 500 trips across a year with their harvest and all their equipment, they're going to have to go through the towns of Morgan and Waikerie with their grape harvest and all their tractors, and they are worried about safety concerns.

My questions are:

1. Can the minister explain why no consultation was done with the Cadell community before announcing the decision not to renew the ferry licence?

2. As the Minister for Regional Development, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries and the Minister for Tourism, can the minister explain the economic and social impact to the Cadell community due to the ferry closure?

3. How will the minister advocate for the industries she represents in the Cadell area?

4. Will the government reconsider its position about the closure?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the Status of Women) (15:18): I thank the honourable member for her important questions. The Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure is responsible for operating the 24/7 ferry service at 11 locations along the River Murray. I am advised that there are currently 12 ferries in operation on the River Murray, and two are located at Mannum. In total, DPTI has a fleet of 14 River Murray ferries (two spare), which comprises nine steel hull ferries and five timber hull ferries. Ferry services are currently provided by the state government free of charge to the public, and the services are provided by contracts awarded by DPTI.

I have been advised that Cadell has the second lowest usage of all the ferry services, with the closer alternative river crossing being within 11 kilometres. Approximately 100 vehicles use the Cadell crossing per day, with zero to three vehicles per day travelling between the hours of 10pm and 6am. Alternative river crossings to Cadell are downstream at the Morgan ferry (11 kilometres) and upstream at the Waikerie ferry (29 kilometres).

The Cadell district has a population of approximately 100 people, I am advised, with the township consisting of a small primary school, a community club, a recreational reserve, a local store and a Country Fire Service station, which are all located on the southern side of the river.

Narrung has the lowest usage of all ferry services, with approximately 78 vehicles using the crossing per day. However, I am advised that there are no other alternative crossings nearby and users would be required to travel in excess of 60 kilometres around Lake Albert to find an alternative ferry crossing. Members may recall a previous attempt in 1991 to close the Cadell ferry service, and concerns from the community were based on the impact to a locally based fruit packing company, River Fresh, which closed in 2008.

Another issue was that an alternative access road to Morgan was via an unsealed council road, and that road I am advised has now been sealed. There is an ever increasing cost associated with operating the existing River Murray ferry services, including increased ferry operator costs and maintenance of the fleet, and it is expected that the closure of the Cadell ferry service from 30 June 2012 will allow the state government to avoid a capital investment of $2.5 million to replace one of the ferries, I am advised.

It is the intention of the state government to cease operating the Cadell ferry service from 30 June 2012, when the current contract expires, and reinvest the $400,000 annual expenditure in other ferry upgrades along the River Murray. I understand that members of the community are invited to attend a meeting, which is planned for Thursday 14 June at the Cadell Institute at 7.30pm.

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