Albanese government’s infrastructure cuts felt in regional Victoria
Over $150 million of federal funding destined for regional Victorian highways has been culled, according to the Coalition.
A federally-funded roads program created to improve the nation’s major freight routes appears to have been culled in the Albanese Labor government’s infrastructure review, according to the Coalition.
The Roads of Strategic Importance program was introduced by the Coalition in 2018 to help agriculture and other regional businesses better connect to local and international markets.
But as part of the government’s review, $166.3 million in road funding has been cut to regional Victoria, the opposition says.
Infrastructure Minister Catherine King, who instigated the review, was contacted for comment by the Weekly Times.
Visitors to the Roads of Strategic Importance website are presently greeted with an “access denied” message.
Opposition infrastructure spokeswoman, Bridget McKenzie, said the biggest casualty was the Goulburn Valley Highway with $64.5 million previously allocated under the program disappearing.
Labor’s infrastructure review separately cut funding for stage one of the Shepparton bypass.
The Goulburn Valley region is held by Nationals MP Sam Birrell, with another $41.4 million ripped for upgrades of the Green Triangle road network that overlaps Nationals’ MP Anne Webster seat of Mallee and Liberal Dan Tehan’s seat of Wannon.
The Green Triangle also includes part of southeast South Australia.
The Calder Highway ($26.2 million), Sunraysia Highway ($25.4 million) and Murray Valley Highway ($8.8 million) have also been casualties of the infrastructure review.
Senator McKenzie said Victoria had been “seriously short-changed in the stripping of money out of these important road networks”.
“The only reason the Victorian government is not jumping up and down like all the other state Labor governments is because of a sweetheart deal between Albanese and the Victorian Labor Government to build the Suburban Rail Loop,” Senator McKenzie said.
“The safe and efficient movement of freight is essential for the economic prosperity of Victoria.”
“Once again, Labor is preferencing pet projects in the cities over vital road projects across regional Victoria.”
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