The State Government to fund the $4 million business case needed ahead of crucial 3km M1 upgrade

The State Government to fund the $4 million business case needed ahead of crucial 3km M1 upgrade .

Speed cameras over the M1 at Logan near Tanah Merah. Logan has the highest number of fines from fixed speed cameras. Pic Mark Cranitch.

The State Government has moved to fund the $4 million business case needed before any work can be considered for an M1 upgrade from the Eight Mile Plain merge to Rochedale Rd.

“We will get on with the business case,” Minister for Main Roads Mark Bailey said. “

While the cost of a business plan for a larger M1 upgrade was estimated to be $20 million, costing of a business case for the crucial 3km Eight Mile Plains to Rochedale Rd stretch was about $4 million.

The business plan would be lodged with the Federal Government to enable accurate costings. At the moment, the Federal and State governments are locked in funding negotiations over M1 road improvements.

The Federal Government wants to split costings 50-50 to upgrade the entire corridor but the State Government says 80-20 is a fair split.

Mr Bailey said upgrades to the Toowoomba Range second crossing, the Gateway Arterial North and Bruce Highway were 50-50 projects between the governments.

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In a recent interview, Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said the Federal Government was splitting costs 80-20 on southeast Queensland highway projects associated with “the movement of heavy transport’’ such as the Gateway Arterial North, but would otherwise pay 50 per cent.

The M1 was deemed to be an urban road.

“Where the predominant use is heavy transport moving to the ports or interstate, we’re of a mind to pay 80-20,’’ Mr Truss said.

Mr Truss said the Federal Government was open to a 80-20 split on roads such as the Pacific Highway, although “probably not the pieces going through the Gold Coast because they carry such a heavy level of local traffic’’.

But Mr Bailey said the M1 did carry heavy transport and was a non-urban road.

Mr Bailey said more than 12,000 heavy vehicles used the highway daily, many en-route to the Port of Brisbane.