Rockhampton ring road: PM wants it build ASAP despite budget snub

Anthony Albanese says the federal government wants a critical piece of Queensland infrastructure built as soon as possible, despite it being overlooked in the budget.

Funding for Central Queensland’s largest road project will be looked at again in the lead up to next budget, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese saying the government wanted to get it built as soon as possible.

Mr Albanese’s comments, in an exclusive interview with The Courier-Mail, came as protesters prepared to embark on a convoy to Canberra to express anger over the funding delay to the Rockhampton ring road.

The 14.7km project has been in the pipeline for several years, and would reduce congestion through the city of Rockhampton while improving freight times for thousands of Queensland businesses moving goods up and down the coast.

But the funding of $852m promised by the previous Coalition government was nowhere to be seen in the October budget, with Labor choosing to delay the project amid concerns of budget blowouts.

Advance Rockhampton executive manager Greg Bowden said small businesses across Central Queensland had made forward plans for the ring road construction.

“Businesses across Rockhampton have been gearing up for this $1 billion-plus project, buying equipment, employing staff, to ultimately ensure we had a shovel-ready workforce,’’ he said.

A map of the planned Rockhampton ring road. Picture: Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads

“There are no winners with this delay and local industry are the ultimate losers, now out of pocket and wondering what their next big project will be.”

Protesters were told on Friday the federal government’s “handbrake’’ on the Rockhampton ring road would cripple the central Queensland economy.

LNP Queensland senator Matt Canavan, who addressed the rally, said up to 500 people attended the meeting at Parkhurst north of the city centre on Friday morning in one of the biggest protest meetings he had witnessed in Rockhampton.

“Certainly it was the biggest rally I have been to in recent times … it just shows that people have had enough,’’ Senator Canavan said.

“Central Queensland people are just tired of being taken for granted.”

But Mr Albanese said the blame for the delay laid squarely at the feet of the previous Coalition government.

“The Rockhampton Ring Road was part of the planning when I was (Infrastructure) Minister a decade ago and then (progress) stopped under the former government,” he said.

“They didn’t dig a hole for 10 years. And as a result of that, it’s been underfunded.

“So we want to get it done and we want to get it done as soon as possible (and) we’ll work with the state government to make sure that we achieve that.”