Australia’s Federal Transport Minister, Anthony Albanese has stepped into a dispute between the rail and telecoms industry over the fate of a block of 1800 MHz radio spectrum.

The block in question is earmarked for use by the railways for their GSM-R network, but the licenses expire between 2013 and 2015.

With the spectrum up for grab, the mobile networks are eying it for potential LTE services in the future, and they are expected to be able to out-bid any offer from the railways for the spectrum if it is offered in an open auction. The move could imperil the GSM-R network which is required for railway safety.

According to a spokesman for Albanese, the federal Transport and Infrastructure Department had asked Communications Minister Stephen Conroy’s office to meet railway representatives to resolve the issue.

The telecoms regulator, ACMA has come under political pressure to reissue the licenses to the railways at a realistic cost rather than letting them go to auction. However, there is also constant pressure on the regulator to get the maximum amount possible from the licenses to help the Federal Government fund its national Broadband Programme.