QW: Flooding and helping our neighbours

The New England and southern downs has yet again copped the flood of trucks and traffic as flood waters rise and engulf the coasts. It’s exposed serious and dangerous flaws in our national highway system and supply chains as we are yet again playing dodge the potholes on the highway. Listening to idle chatter on the CB radio one truck driver refers to his sea sickness as he travels up and down hills and ranges and winds left and right around sharp bends on the narrow new england highway, pushing it all up hill in a wire canoe along the creek without a paddle. The local member Mr Joyce blasted the condition of the highway a few years back and hasn’t been seen since, perhaps he got lost between the cracks. One has to question even with a fresh coat of tar is  this highway even suitable as a high speed highway for trucks to travel, it’s certainly a highway that tests the truck driving men from the boys to see how well you can change gears, with all the hills and ranges this way it dosnt seem to be superhighway material, by passes are desperately needed for the town’s along the way to. So to keep the new England on the long haul freight route, as trucks grow in size and weight is it feasible in the long run? Could there be a better way? Meanwhile we have a steel highway of rails right beside the main line that could cope with the many heavy loads that need hauling. Is it time to bring back the trains? After a weekend of listening to trucks rip, roar and rattle all day long and all through the night, freight trains seems so much quicker easier and cheaper, and unlike roads that get washed away the trains are above the flood lines. We need to keep our lines alive and not destroy them. Time to bring back the trains before the next shower of rain.