State Government to develop business case for $2 billion Gold Coast M1 upgrade

THE $2 BILLION upgrade of the Gold Coast stretch of the M1 is one step closer after a breakthrough between the warring state and federal governments.

THE state and federal governments have started informal talks to resolve the $2 billion M1 upgrade dispute, but don’t expect an agreement this year.

After a week of tough talk, Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey and Federal Infrastructure Minister Paul Fletcher met today to discuss further work on the state’s busiest road.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull last week committed $1 billion to widen the M1 between Varsity and Tugun and at the Gateway merge between Eight Mile Plains and Daisy Hill.

The first sod is turned at the upgrade of the M1. Picture: Andrew Potts

He said he would include the money in next month’s federal budget, but only if the State Government matched it.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten later matched Mr Turnbull’s promise to tip in $1 billion.

However, the State Government wants to contribute only 20 per cent of the total cost.

Both tiers of government last year agreed to $500 million of work to upgrade the M1 between Mudgeeraba and Varsity Lakes and at the Gateway merge.

Work on the former started this morning.

Both Mr Bailey and Mr Fletcher said today’s talk was “constructive”.

Mr Bailey revealed the State was working on a business case to widen the Pacific Motorway between Varsity Lakes and Tugun. It is scheduled to be completed by December.

Mark Bailey. Picture Glenn Hampson

While no funding agreement has been reached for the newly mooted upgrades, confidence is growing that work will begin in mid-late 2020.

“Absolutely (we are much closer to an agreement than we were this time last week),” Mr Bailey said. “The business cease will be done by the end of the year and we are already underway with it.

‘The business case looks in detail at what’s involved in terms of a project, gets into the technics of it and you end up with a much more detailed estimate to provide scope for people to tender.”

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull looking over plans for the M1 upgrade (AAP Image/Glenn Hunt)

Mr Fletcher said he was looking forward to receiving the State’s business case.

“This is a sophisticated piece of modelling — a lot of economic and engineering analysis and this will come to the Commonwealth government for assessment by Infrastructure Australia to give their formal advice,” he said.

“The formal commitment in there, it’s $1 billion across two projects and we need to see the businesses case done.”

McPherson MP Karen Andrews said she hoped the talks would result in future upgrades beginning as soon as the Mudgeeraba-Varsity Lakes work was finished.

Karen Andrews. Picture by Richard Gosling

“I am absolutely committed to sure that Gold Coasters do not spend an additional second more on the M1 than they need to,” she said.

“I am committed to working constructively and positively with the State Government so we have a continuous build south to Tugun to make sure we are relieving the bottlenecks on the southern end of the Gold Coast.”