The Melbourne-based company has a near monopoly on private roads in Australia already, controlling 13 of the 15 toll roads in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Transurban controls 13 of the 15 toll roads in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Credit:Phil Weymouth Analysts Morgan Stanley have described a Transurban-run, user-pays system across all roads as a "meta-monopoly". Such a move would further entrench the company - which owns Citylink in Melbourne, the M2 in Sydney and all of Brisbane's toll roads - as a de-facto private sector planning agency in those major cities. Few, if any, countries in the world have allowed a private operator to control so much of their road network.

Even Jeff Kennett, the man who in effect launched Transurban through its Melbourne CityLink contract in 1996, nowAustralia was "an inevitability," and that, before long, a form of tolling was likely to apply in future across entire road networks. Australia's already inadequate system of road taxes, based on car registrations and fuel excise, is under threat with fuel efficient and electric cars likely to further reduce revenue. Both sides of politics are gradually warming to the idea of introducing road user pricing across all roads.

In February, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said a "better calibrated user pays system" clearly has "some attractions" but would need to be "fair and equitable". The Productivity Commission, the Harper review into competition policy, Infrastructure Australia and the 2009 Henry report have all recommended various forms of road pricing. Transurban has also initiated a study on the impact on the driving