State government vows to keep money ready for Mount Barker freeway interchange duplication

Mount Barker’s freeway interchange would be “overwhelmed” immediately by a bushfire threatening the town, an MP says, as the council hits out at funding cuts.

The federal government overlooked huge private sector investment at a Hills town known as an industry hub when it scrapped hundreds of millions in roads funding, Mount Barker Council says.

The council’s CEO Andrew Stuart has urged the federal government to reconsider its funding cuts, which scrapped a desperately-needed freeway interchange duplication at Mount Barker.

The freeway takes Adelaide Road over, and connects Mt Barker to, the freeway, linking Totness and Littlehampton with the town.

Totness is a smaller town heavy with industrial blocks, car yards, hardware retailers and storage facilities.

Mr Stuart said the interchange duplication had been a priority since Jay Weatherill was premier, and even before.

He said scrapping the funding ignored serious safety and security hazards posed by “daily traffic conflicts” - particularly on days of extreme fire risk.

Emergency vehicles can get stuck in traffic congestion on the bridge over the freeway. The local MP, Dan Cregan, said this week in the event of a bushfire, the interchange would be overwhelmed “instantly”.

The federal government's review last week scrapped hundreds of millions in funding for multiple Hills road upgrades, saying they didn’t meet the criteria.

The $250m Hahndorf Township Improvement program – which included the Mt Barker freeway interchange duplication and an upgrade at Verdun – was cut, as was the Truro bypass.

Mr Stuart said “substantial” private investment in the industry-heavy village of Totness, meant safe freeway access was crucial.

“Much more is anticipated in the future, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars,” he said.

Just 20 per cent of Mount Barker has been developed in relation to the 2007 rezoning that opened up farmland surrounding the town for housing, he said, meaning the “orderly development” of the city was completely dependent on building new roads and other infrastructure in a timely manner.

“Improvements to Adelaide Road are vital especially in consideration of the much-needed hospital on Adelaide Road and the increased use by heavy transport from the South Coast.”

Mr Stuart said the state government and developers remained committed to the project, and it had fulfilled all cost/benefit and design process milestones.

State govt keeping funding ready

Earlier in the week, the state government vowed to keep its funding available for duplication, saying the project is “ready to go”.

As Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis had a first-hand look at traffic congestion on the bridge over the freeway on Wednesday, he said all it needed was a new funding partner.

Mr Cregan said he remained “furious” the vital Commonwealth funding had been cut.

“The interchange is massively over capacity … it is failing,” he said.

Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis and Hills MP Dan Cregan in Mount Barker, with Mr Cregan’s black Labrador. Picture: Supplied

“Congestion is building up through the morning and afternoon – and in the event of a bushfire, this infrastructure would be overwhelmed almost instantly.”

The Mount Barker interchange was to cost $45m when it was announced in February 2022, but The Advertiser understands that price has risen substantially.

Mr Cregan said he believed the project met the federal government’s criteria and questioned why it had been cut.

“This is an outrageous funding cut to prop up the North-South Corridor, which will save city commuters only a few minutes of their drive,” he said.

Infrastructure Minister Tom Koutsantonis rode shotgun with Adelaide Hills MP Dan Cregan to see first-hand why the scrapped Mount Barker interchange deserves to be funded. Details in 7NEWS Adelaide at 6pm | https://t.co/8ftPfGh39Y#7NEWSpic.twitter.com/krBT6dcBpF

— 7NEWS Adelaide (@7NewsAdelaide) November 22, 2023

“I don’t accept for a moment the assertion from the Commonwealth this project didn’t meant their eligibility criteria, that is wrong.”

“We need the Commonwealth to change course here – this cannot be left to another election cycle.”

He called on the opposition to make a funding pledge of its own.

“I will be equally harsh on any party that doesn’t bring the investment we need,” he said.

Mr Koutsantonis said the state government was ready to pay its part of the project and needed only a “funding partner”.

“This project has merit, it’s ready to go, the engineering is done,” he said, added he accepted the state government had “unfinished business” in the area.

Cars turning on to the South-Eastern Freeway at Mt Barker. Picture: Brenton Edwards

“Today’s trip proves to me how important Adelaide Rd is – not just for Mt Barker but in an emergency. This is the fastest-growing community in South Australia.”

A spokesman for Mr Koutsantonis said there were no plans to scrap a $40m roundabout upgrade to fix a trouble spot further up Adelaide Rd near Mount Barker High School, and use the money for the interchange.

Mr Koutsantonis maintained the state government wasn’t part of the federal review that scrapped the funding.

“We’ve lost our funding partner, that’s their decision – but we will continue to push,” he said.

Opposition transport spokesman Vincent Tarzia said the Hahndorf Township Improvements and Access Upgrade were an initiative of the former Liberal and Coalition Governments “(They have) become the victim of savage funding cuts under the current Labor governments,” he said.

“If Peter Malinauskas and Tom Koutsantonis care about improving the safety of South Australia’s roads, including those in the Adelaide Hills, they need to fight more strongly for SA and push their Labor mates in Canberra to reinstate this funding.”