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Insider
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Transport & Infrastructure News
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What’s inside? A quick look at what’s in today’s edition: |
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1. CEO Update
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Shaping the year ahead together |
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2. Policy News
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Our policy agenda |
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3. Program
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Emerging leaders to experience Cross River Rail site tour |
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4. Upcoming Events
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Full June lineup – VIC, SA, QLD and WA |
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5. People Moves
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Latest appointments from across the transport sector |
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6. Industry News
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Latest developments across the transport sector |
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CEO UPDATE |
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In the past few weeks, I have been meeting with Transport Australia members about the year ahead, their priorities, and what the industry needs now. The lived experiences of our members are our greatest asset and will help shape our advocacy agenda and our events in 2026/27.
One of the most encouraging pieces of feedback has been that the industry is changing the way it thinks about itself. The old boundaries between infrastructure and services are breaking down, more leaders are thinking about transport as a connected system rather than a collection of projects. That shift matters because transport delivers its greatest value when the entire system works together for communities. |
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I’m also hearing from members that bringing industry and government together has never been more important. Our members want to share their innovations, exchange their lived experiences and help solve the nation’s most intractable transport policy challenges together. That is where we can make the greatest contribution, and it is where we intend to focus our efforts.
June is one of our busiest months with industry lunches in Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth. We had a sold-out room in Sydney as Transport for NSW Secretary Josh Murray updated industry on his department’s priorities ahead of the NSW Budget on June 23. The focus is on reliability, maintenance, and asset renewal, as well as smarter integration across roads, rail, buses, metro, freight, and active transport.
I look forward to seeing you in the room at one of our events in June. Details on every event are in this edition. |
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Be part of the conversation. Send your news and updates to Insider.
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POLICY NEWS |
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Shaping our policy agenda
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Transport Australia’s policy work sits at the intersection of two things: what government tells us it needs, and what the industry and our members tell us they are experiencing on the ground.
The Road to Reform: Why Australia needs a sustainable funding model policy paper is a good example. It was shaped by government interest in road user charging reform, informed by member input on the technical detail, grounded in public sentiment research, and is now being put in front of Ministers and decision-makers at both state and federal levels.
Since becoming Transport Australia, we have refined our policy priorities. We now focus on productivity, safety, workforce, and network resilience, all through the lens of an integrated transport network.
We are also deepening our focus on network resilience. Kate West, Chief Officer, Business & Markets for Arup’s Asia Pacific region, will chair our new network resilience working group in the coming budget year.
This group builds on our existing sustainability priorities: reducing carbon, building climate resilience, and supporting low-emission modes. It also adds a broader focus on keeping the network moving through floods, fires, cyber threats, supply chain shocks, and tighter budgets, as well as linking transport with housing and land use.
These are decisions with long-term consequences for the network and the communities it serves.
If you are working on issues that connect to any of our policy priorities, or if there is something your organisation is experiencing that you think deserves a stronger policy voice, we want to hear from you. |
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PROGRAM |
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Emerging leaders to experience Cross River Rail site tour
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For the first time, Transport Australia’s Emerging Leaders Forum is to be hosted in Australia’s Olympic city, Brisbane.
As Queensland prepares for a defining decade of transport investment, this one-day forum will show emerging leaders how national priorities are being translated into major project delivery.
The day will begin with a brief introduction to Transport Australia’s national policy priorities, including our focus on productivity, safety, network resilience, and workforce capability.
This will be followed by a site tour of the Cross River Rail project and supporting works, being delivered by a consortium led by CPB Contractors, where young leaders can see how national priorities are being addressed at a project level.
This event is tailored to early career professionals. You will share what you have learned in small group discussions and consider the leadership skills needed to support Australia’s future transport system.
The forum will conclude with a short networking session, giving participants the opportunity to connect, exchange ideas and build relationships across the sector.
The Emerging Leaders forum is sponsored by CPB Contractors. |
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Fellow alumni in the news
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Transport Australia Fellowship alumni continue to shape the sector through leadership, innovation, and practical impact.
Hayden Heta recognised for First Nations leadership
Wamarra, the Aboriginal-owned and operated civil contractor co-founded by Transport Australia Fellowship alumnus Hayden Heta, has won the First Nations Leadership Award at the 2026 CCF Victoria People and Training Awards.
A proud Wiradjuri man, Hayden co-founded Wamarra with a clear purpose: to create meaningful, long-term employment opportunities for Aboriginal people in the civil construction industry. Today, Wamarra is delivering work across major transport infrastructure projects in Victoria and creating pathways into the sector for Aboriginal employees who may not otherwise have had that opportunity.
2023 Fellowship project to become a national productivity tool
A 2023 Fellowship research project is now set to become a national platform.
With support from Before You Dig Australia (BYDA) and public utility authorities, Fellows Ho Yee Ryan (BG&E), Georgia Robazza (Tas Networks), Anita Mumford (AECOM) and Brendan Rutter (Mott MacDonald) identified an opportunity to digitise and centralise utility information.
That work is now ready to go live as the BYDA Digital Utility Portal – a national platform with the potential to replace the cumbersome process of gathering utility plans from multiple providers with a single digital interface. It marks a major step forward in planning and protecting underground networks across the country.
What began as a Fellowship policy pitch is now rolling out as a practical national tool, one that could help reduce utility strikes, cut design time, and lift productivity across the sector.
The pilot is now recruiting testers across Queensland, New South Wales, and Western Australia. For those working in planning, design, or construction, this is a chance to help shape a national solution. |
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UPCOMING EVENTS |
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Gabrielle Williams MP Industry Lunch | Melbourne | 24 June
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Victoria’s transport revolution over the last decade has delivered better travel, through level crossing removals, Metro Tunnel, West Gate Tunnel, Regional Rail Revival, and thousands more V/Line and public transport services.
With North East Link, Sunshine Superhub, SRL, public transport pricing reforms and more bus services to growth suburbs, Victoria continues to align transport infrastructure and services to the future growth of its economy.
On 24 June, Gabrielle Williams MP, Minister for Transport Infrastructure and Minister for Public and Active Transport and Minister for Women and Girls, will join Transport Australia to discuss Victoria’s transport future.
Shortly after the Minister’s keynote, she will be joined on stage by Kinetic Group CEO Michael Sewards for an industry panel discussion about where the network goes from here.
The event runs from 12pm to 2.30pm at W Melbourne.
Event sponsor: Arcadis. |
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Patrick Seares Industry Lunch | WA | 30 June
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What can you learn from the people leading one of the world’s most ambitious freight projects?
On 30 June, three of the key players for the Westport’s planning and delivery program will join Transport Australia in Perth to share lessons on strategy, delivery and what industry needs to be ready for.
Patrick Seares (Westport), Padraic Murphy (Main Roads WA), and David Hanley (Arcadis) will talk about the port-rail connection, the complexity of shifting WA’s container trade to a new Kwinana network, a 100-year project set for 2038.
If your work touches major project delivery, ports, or heavy supply chains, this is an industry lunch not to miss.
The event runs from 12pm to 2.30pm at Optus Stadium.
Event sponsor: Arcadis. |
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Joe Szakacs MP Industry Lunch | Adelaide | 30 June
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South Australia has a once-in-a-generation infrastructure agenda: AUKUS, River Torrens to Darlington Project, and a new port precinct reshaping how the state moves goods.
With a newly appointed Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Hon. Joe Szakacs MP came to the role with a clear view of what he wants to do differently.
Join us on 30 June in Adelaide, as Transport Australia brings you in direct conversation with the Minister about where South Australia’s transport priorities are heading.
This is a rare opportunity to hear from a minister at the start of his term. Bring your questions and walk away with a clear picture of what the government’s agenda means for your work.
The event runs from 12pm to 2.30pm at Adelaide Oval (Ian McLachlan Room).
Event sponsor: SMEC. |
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Sally Stannard Industry Lunch | Brisbane | 26 June
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On 26 June, Sally Stannard, Director General of the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR), will join Transport Australia in Brisbane for discussion about Queensland’s infrastructure pipeline, and what it takes to be part of it.
Shortly after her keynote, Sally will be joined on stage by Allan Uhlmann, Executive Director, TMR Program Management and Delivery, and Trevor Land, Project Director, TMR Significant Projects – North Coast Region.
The panel will discuss how industry can get involved early, and what Queensland is looking for beyond prequalification.
Queensland’s infrastructure pipeline is about to move. The state is shifting from planning to delivery, with a focus on community, safety, and genuine innovation. This is an unmissable industry lunch.
The event runs from 12pm to 2.30pm at the Westin Brisbane.
Event sponsor: Stantec. |
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PEOPLE MOVES |
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Peter Regan, former Chief Executive of Sydney Metro, has been appointed CEO of ACCIONA’s Australia and New Zealand Infrastructure business, effective September 2026. |
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Marika Calfas: The CEO of NSW Ports was prominently recognized in the King’s Birthday 2026 Honours List. She was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for her major personal leadership contributions to national infrastructure, freight efficiency, and supply chain logistics. |
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Transport Australia Board Director Kate West has joined CEDA’s Board of Directors and will chair its WA State Advisory Council. |
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Andrew Newman is appointed to directly head up Freight Victoria, taking over senior operational leadership of the state’s key freight infrastructure corridors, road networks, and rail transport hubs. |
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Mark Davies has joined Gamuda Australia to lead its New Zealand expansion, bringing over 20 years of senior executive experience from Downer, CPB Contractors and SICE. |
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INDUSTRY NEWS |
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M7-M12 Integration project opened to drivers
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The $1.7 billion M7-M12 Integration project is now open, giving drivers direct access to the Western Sydney International Airport precinct ahead of its cargo and passenger flight launches.
The new toll-free M12 Motorway and the M7‑M12 interchange are fully operational. The project also includes a 26 km widening of the Westlink M7, adding a third lane in each direction between Richmond Road and the M5 Motorway.
A shared user path for walking and cycling is also open, providing continuous active transport connectivity. |
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Rethinking port infrastructure: proactive rehabilitation
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Ports keep Australia moving. They handle 31,000 vessels a year in Australia, support close to 700,000 jobs and generate $650 billion in trade. But aging assets, rising seas, extreme weather and growing demand are testing what many were built to handle.
According to Maritime Engineer Ronan Lane and Sustainability Practice Leader Anumitra Mirti from Stantec, the smarter move isn’t always building new. Sometimes the answer is rehabilitating what we already have, extending the life of existing ports without shutting them down.
New technology is making this easier. Drones, underwater robots and laser scanning are replacing costly, high-risk diver inspections. New materials are helping structures last longer in harsh marine conditions.
Projects like Port Kembla, South Wharf and Queens Wharf show it can be done, if planned carefully. |
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Tele-remote tunnelling milestone in NSW
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The Western Harbour Tunnel project has achieved an Australian first: operating a heavy industrial road header remotely from a surface control room.
Contractor ACCIONA, alongside Sandvik and Transport for NSW, removed physical operators from the underground excavation face.
The milestone sets a new safety benchmark for deep urban road tunnels. |
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Get in front of industry. Contribute to the next edition of Insider, out 2 July.
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