Chief Minister, the Hon Clare Martin
Speech for the joining of the track
Friday, December 13, Buchanan Camp

It is a privilege to be here this morning as Chief Minister of the Territory, participating in this historic event.

I would first like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land, the Mudburra, who have also been involved in important construction work for this project.

This is currently the largest infrastructure development in Australia, and today's welding ceremony signifies a milestone achievement of more than 50 percent completion of works on the 1420 kilometre railway.

Today's final welding of the track between Katherine and Tennant Creek brings about one third of the new rail into actual operation.

So you can see why we decided we could not let this event go uncelebrated, in spite of the logistical difficulties in getting you all together.

In linking this track today we are helping to fulfil a dream that began in earnest 130 years ago when South Australia introduced the first motion into its Parliament aimed at building the north south transcontinental rail link.

That was 1872 - just nine years after South Australia had gained responsibility for what is now the Northern Territory. It was also the year another great nation-building link, the Overland Telegraph, was completed with its accompanying road track.

As a result Darwin became Australia's communication hub with the rest of the world, and the regional telegraph stations vital links in the communications and transport chain.

Today we stand on the threshold of final completion of the long-awaited Transcontinental Railway, soon to make Darwin a major transport hub with Southeast Asia, with regional centres along the line facing new and exciting opportunities.

It is fitting that we celebrate today's symbolic track-joining at the Buchanan Camp, near the Murinji track, famous for the vital role it has played in the pioneer droving days of the Territory.

In actual fact, the Territory is cross-hatched with such tracks, stretching back into the Dreamtime -- intersections of people trading their goods and stories, their values and ideals.

And this morning we are marking the birth of yet another important track. As we meet formally to link the rail between Katherine and Tennant, I would like to pay tribute to the many people who have had the faith and tenacity over the past 130 years to make sure that the Great Railway Dream finally comes to fruition.

Governments and leaders of all political persuasions have played their part in continually advocating the completion of this great national project - and I mention in particular all my Territory predecessors in making sure the Railway has remained on the national agenda for many decades.

I also acknowledge the vital role that the South Australian and Commonwealth governments have played in this process, ensuring that today's events become an integral part of Australian history.

The establishment in 1997 of the AustralAsia Railway Corporation was the key to launching the practical side of this great project, and I congratulate ADrail and all the contractors who have been engaged in the construction of the line.

This work could not be achieved without the cooperation and participation of the Aboriginal peoples who have inhabited these lands for thousands of years and I thank the land councils and traditional owners who have been an important part of this process.

The valuable liaison between the consortium and the Aboriginal people has resulted in good employment, training and community development results. The Local Industry Aboriginal Participation Program has set a benchmark by which other construction projects will be judged.

And, of course, I want to acknowledge the important role the railway workers themselves have played - those who have endured the heat, humidity, remoteness and extreme conditions of the Territory to meet their deadlines.

On behalf of us all, I would particularly like to thank those workers who have given up their accommodation for us so that we have had a much more comfortable night's sleep than might otherwise have been the case.

Today's linking of the tracks is not only a major step forward in the completion of the line but also provides a direct transport link for the carriage of supplies and materials between Katherine and Tennant Creek.

Two teams of track-laying crews have laid 634 kilometres of track and performed over 3,500 Thermit Welds on this section in the ten months since tracklaying began - an amazing achievement averaging two kilometres of track per team per day.

Now work will begin in earnest to complete the line between Tennant Creek and Alice Springs and between Katherine and Darwin.

The line is providing significant employment opportunities in the Territory - with the construction of some 100 bridges, two million concrete sleepers and 155,000 tonnes of steel rail.

Ladies and Gentlemen

I thank you all for coming here today to share this exciting moment. I welcome the opportunity provided by the Nine Network's Today Show to share the vision of this new project with the whole nation.

As the railway - what I like to call the steel spine running up the middle of the continent - nears completion I think Australians are starting to understand the trade opportunities that will result.

Darwin has long been the Gateway to Asia for this country, and with the railway meeting our new port facilities, many new international trade links beckon.

Today is an important step for what is shaping up to be one of the most interesting chapters in our nation's development.

And I thank all of you who have played such a useful and historic part in the project.

Thank you