CHAMPIONING the cause of a Very Fast Train from Melbourne to Brisbane is one of the big ticket items newly elected MidCoast councillor Peter Epov wants to push.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Mr Epov hopes to sell the idea to fellow councillors before then getting further support from other local government areas along the route.
“This is do-able,’’ he said.
He agreed the concept of a Very Fast Train has been floated many times in the past by federal governments but nothing has progressed, he said, because of a lack of will from the proponents.
Mr Epov said the benefits for MidCoast Council would be enormous.
“Imagine someone hopping on a train in Sydney and being at Taree station in an hour,’’ Mr Epov said.
“People could live here, where it’s more affordable and work in Sydney. ‘’
Further afield he said a Very Fast Train would enable Victorians to migrate in winter to beat the cold. He had extensive business interests in China during the 1990s and saw how government will resulted in a Very Fast Train being build from Shanghai to Beijing, a distance of 1300km.
Mr Epov also wants to engage younger people in council activities and will investigate the possibility of forming a committee made up of people aged under 26.
“This would give council an opportunity to discuss with younger people on what concerns them. We could perhaps get a committee made up of all the high school captains – even if they only met once or twice a year – to get their input.’’ Mr Epov added.
Mr Epov was a councillor on the former Greater Taree City Council. He resigned from all council committees in June 2014. Mr Epov explained there were personal reasons behind the decision. His daughter sustained spinal injuries after falling from a horse and this required him being out of the area assisting her while she recovered. Then his only brother was diagnosed with terminal cancer.
"I was in Sydney every week nursing him in the last years of his life,’’ Mr Epov said.
He added that some of the committee appointments were for 12 month terms
“It was getting close to the end of the term,’’ he said.
“And I believe council was over represented on some of the committees.’’
Mr Epov believes the new council has to be transparent in all their actions to restore the faith of the community by engaging with the public. He has not yet decided if he’ll stand for mayor at the September 27 meeting – the first for the new council.
He admits to being disappointed that no other members from his Community First group made it onto council.
“We had good people there who would have been outstanding on council,’’ he said.
He also believes it is a shame that Josh Crowther, who was on the Fresh Connect Team, was unsuccessful.
Mr Epov described the election as ‘a tough campaign’ with the two week pre-poll that required volunteers along with manning the booths on election day.