‘Ridiculous’: Rocky convoy hits Canberra over $1 billion delay
A convoy of utes, wagons and trucks has travelled more than 1500km to Canberra to demand action over a promised $1 billion road project that has been delayed, with no new start date set.
Regional News
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Rockhampton business owners, furious over the last-minute delay of a vital major road project in the federal budget, have taken inspiration from the “Start Adani” counter protests to launch a “convoy to Canberra”, which arrived in the nation’s capital on Monday morning.
The $1 billion Rockhampton Ring Road was due to start construction this year, but the $800 million federal government commitment was delayed in the budget with no new date set for when work will begin.
A dozen Rockhampton businessman in a convoy of utes, wagons and trucks branded with the phrase; “Start Rockhampton Ring Road, stop the politics” arrived in Canberra on Monday.
They are seeking a meeting with Infrastructure Minister Catherine King and others to push for the project to be funded again.
While there was an $800 million cost blowout after the project went to tender, Ms King has said the government was still committed to the project but that it was being realistic on time frames due to “significant capacity constraints”.
Rockhampton-based engineering, mining and construction company SMW Group boss Jack Trenaman said about 100 small and medium businesses were out of pocket and facing an uncertain future after spending money gearing up for the project before it was delayed with no notice.
Mr Trenaman took part in the Start Adani protest to Clermont, a counter protest to the Stop Adani protest over the Carmichael Mine, and used contacts from the business community to do the same again.
“Kicking this can down the road is actually kicking it backwards. If we defer it another few years it will cost $1-200 million more,” he said.
“We’re here to express our disgust in not getting this ring road across the line.”
He said the road would take up to 3000 truck movements out of the Rockhampton CBD and away from four school zones.
Capricornia MP Michelle Landry said she had never seen a project cancelled so close to its start date before.
“Yes, there was a cost blow out, but there’s been cost blow outs on every project ever known,” she said.
“It’s just ridiculous.”
A spokeswoman for Ms King said Agriculture Minister and Queensland Senator Murray Watt had organised a meeting and Ms King would attend. She has previously said that it was circumstances and not the Albanese Government that caused the delays to many regional projects.
“We haven’t delayed any projects, the projects are delayed and now our funding is flying much more closely aligned with when we think these projects are able to be delivered because we know there are significant capacity constraints in construction in the economy,” she told Sky News.
“The March budget, it was an election budget of the previous government … so I looked at it line by line. There’s a lot that we’ve kept, but a lot that we’ve reprofiled and a lot that we’ve also cut.
“I want to deliver the project, I want to do that in partnership as I need to with the Rockhampton Ring Road. But we’re being realistic about the time frames for delivery.”
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