Smoother and safer journeys through regional roads as well as thousands of jobs are set to be delivered across South Australia as the State Government commits about $790 million for regional road projects.
This new funding commitment from the 2021-22 State Budget brings the South Australian Government’s total investment on road and marine infrastructure to approximately $2.8 billion to date.
The almost $3 billion investment will fix around 4,800-kilometres of roads – which is the equivalent distance of travelling from Adelaide to Brisbane and back and then on to Melbourne – and support over 5,300 jobs.
The $790 million funding injection from the 2021-22 Budget will include:
The recent Budget will be delivering about 550 kilometres of road upgrades across South Australia. This is on top of the approximately 4,300 kilometres to be delivered under the two previous State Budgets.
“Regions form the backbone of our economy and contribute around $28 million into South Australia’s coffers every year.
“We’re investing record amounts in our regions to fix country roads, help save lives and improve business productivity.
“The Marshall Liberal Government is building what matters for South Australia with a record $17.9 billion infrastructure spend where the regions are front and centre,” Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Corey Wingard said.
In addition, the significant funding injection will deliver road maintenance projects on country roads to help increase capacity, reliability and safety. This includes the Hahndorf Traffic Improvements Project and Strzelecki Track.
“Infrastructure investment like the Hahndorf Traffic Improvements Projet will make a huge difference.
“The main street through Hahndorf carries around 11,000 vehicles per day and approximately 600 commercial vehicles while the volume of traffic is increasing by around two per cent annually.
“The 472-kilometre Strzelecki Track is one of the most heavily used unsealed roads in the northern region and provides a vital freight link between South Australia and Queensland.
“We’ve heard from industry how dangerous and frustrating it can be for truck drivers using the Strzelecki Track and it’s fantastic to be delivering these much needed and long-awaited works,” Minister Wingard said.
For more information on the projects covered by the $17.9 billion infrastructure spend, you can visit the State Budget 2021-22 website here.
Source: Premier of South Australia – Media Releases; State Budget 2021-22 (1, 2)