M5 toll extension to be debated in parliament
A PETITION signed by more than 12,000 people to stop the extension of tolls on the M5 Motorway will force the NSW Parliament to debate the issue in May.
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THE NSW Government has confirmed the M5 toll will be extended past 2026, the year it was meant to expire.
A petition signed by more than 12,000 people to stop the toll extension will force the NSW Parliament to debate the issue in May.
A spokeswoman for WestConnex Minister Stuart Ayres confirmed the toll extension would form part of the sale 50.01 per cent sale of the Sydney Motorway Corporation, the company that manages the WestConnex project.
“The Government has confirmed the M5 West motorway would form part of the M5 Concession post-2026 with the continuation of these tolls to support the funding of the WestConnex project,” she said.
“It is being included as part of the sale of Sydney Motorway Corporation and will ensure the rest of the project can be delivered on time and on budget.
“If the M5 South West concession was not included, the much-needed New M5 tunnels could not be delivered under the current funding strategy.
“Importantly as we have already confirmed, cashback remains in place.”
A petition opposing the decision was organised by Campbelltown and Macquarie Fields Labor MPs Greg Warren and Anoulack Chanthivong late last year, who tabled it in parliament yesterday.
Mr Warren said the petition collected more than 12,000 signatures and will now be debated on May 3.
According to parliamentary rules, a petition signed by 10,000 people must be discussed in the chamber.
“The toll issue is one piece, but the broader problem here is privatisation of the motorway,” he said.
“There’s no certainty over what happens to the tolls going forward, once you sell it to the private sector you lose an element of control.
“I want the government to ultimately, move away from any plans to extend tolls on the M5.”
According to data from the 2016 census, 49.8 per cent of the Macarthur region residents travel outside the area to work.
Mr Warren said this meant many people would be forking out thousands of dollars to pay for a project that offered no benefit to them.
“The people of the Macarthur region who will be paying these tolls to travel to work won’t see any benefit from upgrades on the south west part of the motorway,” he said.
Mr Chanthivong said the petition showed the community was against the idea of a toll extension.
“The people of my electorate and southwest Sydney have sent a very strong message to the Berejiklian Liberal Government — the toll extension is unfair and will hurt families in our community who are already struggling to balance the household budget,” he said.
“A recurring theme in the comments on the petitions sent to my office was that people can’t afford to keep paying for a road that is constantly backed up with traffic.”