visit raa.com.au
South Australia’s peak motoring body is disappointed with the Federal Government’s decision to cut funding from the Truro Bypass.
While the RAA welcomes the additional funding for the North South Corridor, projects like the Truro Bypass were set to improve freight productivity and road safety, as well as support local jobs.
After an independent strategic review of projects, the Federal Government has withdrawn funding for the Truro Bypass and several other projects including:
RAA Senior Manager Safety and Infrastructure Charles Mountain said although the additional $2.7 billion allocated to the North-South Corridor was good news, it was disappointing it appeared to have come at the expense of five other important local projects.
“It’s disappointing to see hundreds of millions of dollars diverted from SA road projects,” he said.
“RAA welcomes the Federal Government’s investment in the North-South Corridor, but we’d like to see this in addition to – not instead of – the funding already committed for projects like the Truro Bypass.
“The Truro Bypass is a key freight route and the project would have improved freight productivity and made that stretch of road safer.
“Truro is an important part of the national road network and those works will still need to be completed.
“In addition, the Mount Barker interchange upgrade and work at Verdun to provide a heavy traffic alternative, both included in the Hahndorf project, are key opportunities to make important major local thoroughfares safer.
“South Australia’s road maintenance backlog is around $2 billion – we need more investment in our roads to make the network safer and more efficient.”