26 February 2009

Auditor paints an ugly picture on Fairbairn Avenue and Horse Park Drive

| johnboy
Join the conversation
14

The ACT Auditor-General’s Office has produced a report titled “Road Projects: Fairbairn Avenue Upgrade and Horse Park Drive.

The accompanying media release does not make for pretty reading:

    — planning for both projects suffered from poor co-ordination with some key stakeholders, and inadequate resourcing;
    — deficiencies in certain aspects of the management of the Horse Park Drive (Gundaroo Drive to Federal Highway) Project reduced the accountability of the consultant, Roads ACT and Procurement Solutions for the project;
    — there was significant delay in resolving project variations; and
    — risk management practices could have been more effective during the projects with improved planning and consultation.
    — Further, responsible agencies have not evaluated the projects against the original objectives to determine whether intended outcomes have been achieved, and did not have a sound process to apply lessons learnt to future projects.

Alistair Coe is “slamming” the ACT Government for this shoddiness (what ever he means by saying he’s “slammed” them in a media release).

The Chief Minister’s office appears to have not yet decided whether to declare the Auditor-General to be wrong, wrong, wrong, or just keep quiet knowing that one more failure on the pile really won’t make much of a difference.

Join the conversation

14
All Comments
  • All Comments
  • Website Comments
LatestOldest

p1 said :

Wait for the Auditors review of GDE!

It should be a beauty…

Surely that won’t come out till after they finish building it. They are only half done at the moment aren’t they?

Well maybe in the next 10 years they will finish it, by then stanhopeless will be long gone.

Someone better send in the submission asking her to review the process at some point…

Someone clearly forgot to set The Chief to ‘receive’ during your meetings with him Al.

Gungahlin Al2:10 pm 26 Feb 09

Backtrack – sorry they are Alistair’s own words – just read his release. Oh well…

Gungahlin Al2:09 pm 26 Feb 09

Growling Ferret said :

Wait for the Auditors review of GDE!

It should be a beauty…

Indeed Ferret. Let me save Phu Tam a stack of time:

The ACT Government received advice from numerous community voices that the road would need to be 4 lanes. The ACT Government rebutted the advice. The ACT Government simultaneously refused to even consider any other surrounding road upgrades on the basis that the GDE would fix everything. Even after the road opened and the failure to cope was manifestly obvious, the ACT Government rebutted all claims of such. The Chief Ministr even went so far as to advise a luncheon of about 10 community representatives on 8 July 2008 that ‘all the advice I’m receiving is that the GDE will not need to be duplicated for at least 5 years’.

History now shows that only a looming election and announcement by their opponents led to enough of a relaxation of this aforesaid butt-headedness to allow the ACT Government to actually observe what was blatantly obvious to – you know – *everyone* else. When challenged on this, the Chief Minister claimed to have never made the above claim, thereby effectively accusing those people who recounted the event (myself included) of lying.

The duplication then proceeded, but at vastly more expense and disruption for drivers than if it had been done up front. The surrounding roads remain clogged and unaddressed.

End of report.

Oh – on Alistair Coe’s “slamming” perhaps it isn’t fair to blame him for a journalist’s editorialising?

This ugly picture painted on Fairbairn Avenue and Horse Park Drive – is it a Pollock?

Fairbairn av, now there’s a road that should have been duplicated when upgraded.

Fairbairn is just bizarre. All that money, all those trees murdered, to build… a one lane road. To “improve” the old one-lane road. It is much prettier now, pity about all those trees. and all that money.

What the hell happened?!

Wait for the Auditors review of GDE!

It should be a beauty…

Surely that won’t come out till after they finish building it. They are only half done at the moment aren’t they?

Growling Ferret12:03 pm 26 Feb 09

Wait for the Auditors review of GDE!

It should be a beauty…

Numpty Jon, Numpty Katie and Numpty John – you’re right Very Busy, we love them all and know that whatever they do, they’ve got it right. It’s all these other bastards just out to get them, including that infernal independent voice, Phu Tam (again, and again, and again…)

Surely the Auditor-General’s Office has got it wrong. Our local Government don’t botch up road projects. Um do they?

Alistair Coe might say he’s “slamming”, but I’m yet to see an actual slam.

Gosh – what a surprise!

The headline even has “ugly picture” in it…
Why is there no accompaniment from Panama on this story?

Daily Digest

Want the best Canberra news delivered daily? Every day we package the most popular Riotact stories and send them straight to your inbox. Sign-up now for trusted local news that will never be behind a paywall.

By submitting your email address you are agreeing to Region Group's terms and conditions and privacy policy.