OPPOSITION Leader Will Hodgman has signed a memorandum of understanding with Tourism Industry Council Tasmania to show support for the state's tourism sector.
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He has also promised to reduce Spirit of Tasmania fares by 20 per cent.
A good start, Mr Hodgman, but you, all other major parties and the Tourism Council all appear to be blind to the massive opportunity for attracting RV tourists to the state.
There are 474,000 registered RVs in Australia, and sales of new vehicles are about 20,000 per year.
There are anywhere between 80,000 and 150,000 on the road touring Australia at any one time, and Tasmania is not getting anywhere near its fair share of these because the state is not seen as being RV- friendly at this time.
There is an easy fix, though, and the Spirit fare reduction is a good start.
There needs to also be a complete rethink of TT-Line management practices to remove uncertainties with a fixed fare structure, more consistent booking procedures and removing some of the length and height impediments for larger RVs. After all, these impediments do not exist on interstate highways with which we are competing.
There must also be an immediate reversal of the Economic Regulator's ruling that charges must be set for free or low-cost campsites so that they do not compete with commercial caravan parks, making those parks the only such protected industry in the country.
- DON NAPIER, Prospect.
