Anthony Albanese promises $245m to build new Barron River Bridge
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has revealed his vision for the highly anticipated Barron River Bridge during a visit to Cairns.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has revealed his vision for the highly anticipated Barron River Bridge during a visit to Cairns.
But the LNP’s candidate for Leichhardt labelled the visit as a “non-announcement.”
On Wednesday afternoon the PM confirmed the $245m pledge announced in last month’s federal budget would be used to build a new bridge over the Barron River.
“This is a very significant investment indeed,” Mr Albanese said.
“There’s a recognition that 9000 vehicles travel on this road every day, around about 1100 of those are heavy vehicles.”
It comes as the Prime Minister announced a $7.2b plan to upgrade road infrastructure in the region, including $7.2 billion for upgrades on the Bruce Highway, $70m to seal and upgrade the Kennedy Developmental Road and $210m for the Kuranda Range Road.
“This is a beautiful part of Australia, but we need to make sure that the local residents roads are safe,” he said.
Mr Albanese said the project would create 150 jobs in the region.
“In addition to that, we have $210 million to improve safety on the Kuranda Range Road,” he said.
“I believe that infrastructure is so important for safety, but also for improving the experience of all who live and who come and visit not just this community, but right here at Queensland as well.”
The Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced the $225m allocation for the Barron River Bridge in the federal budget last month.
But Mr Albanese said he expected the state government to contribute 50 per cent of funding to the project.
“It’s a significant project and will make a completely new bridge as a result of the fact that it is now some six decades old and is in a state of disrepair,” he said.
The LNP candidate for Leichhardt Jeremy Neal said the Prime Minister’s announcement was all “smoke and mirrors.”
“Labor has failed to do anything to fix the Barron River Bridge for years under a Labor State Government,” he said.
“It took a Crisafulli-led government to get movement on this project, in less than 150 days of being in government.
“(Wednesday’s) non announcement from Labor is simply smoke and mirrors – it is a rehashed announcement from last month’s federal budget.”
While Mr Neal did not oppose the funding, he said he would support the construction of the bridge.
Mr Albanese also announced $10m in funding for the Great Barrier Reef if re-elected, providing funds to schools and tourism operators to boost education and promote sustainable tourism in Far North Queensland.
Originally published as Anthony Albanese promises $245m to build new Barron River Bridge
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