PREMIER Mike Baird and Roads Minister Duncan Gay spruiked the state government’s spending on roads in St George and Sutherland Shire during a visit to the area yesterday.
With traffic on President Avenue, Kogarah, almost drowning out his words, Mr Baird said last month’s budget had allocated $84 million for the work, the biggest outlay in a decade.
He said projects ranged from ‘‘pinch-point’’ improvements, safety upgrades, and resurfacing to enable works for the WestConnex motorway, and a study of the F6 extension.
“We are investing in projects that will transform this region,’’ he said.
The ‘‘region’’ was loosely defined, because the spending includes $24 million for a package of works to ease congestion around Sydney Airport.
They include upgrades on General Holmes Drive, Joyce Drive and Mill Pond Road and the freight rail level crossing at Mascot being replaced by an underpass.
Marsh Street, Arncliffe, will be widened and changes will be made to Robey and O’Riordan streets at Mascot.
Mr Gay said communities in southern Sydney would be the big winners from the
WestConnex project because traffic and trucks would be removed from local roads.
“WestConnex will fix the M5 East tunnel and the M4,’’ he said.
‘‘Work is on track to start next year on an upgrade of the King Georges Road/M5 East interchange as part of the acceleration of stage two of WestConnex from Beverly Hills to St Peters,’’ he said.
Mr Gay said $11 million was being spent on planning the F6 extension.
He said he had received great feedback from his revelation in the Leader last month that the study would look at alternative routes, including Heathcote through Menai to Padstow, instead of through the centre of Sutherland Shire and St George.
"People are saying, 'Good on you for being a government that is looking at alternatives, rather than just making up your own mind,' " Mr Gay said.
"It's always nice to know no one is out there saying 'Gay's an idiot!'
"The original route was put down in 1951 and since then a lot of things have changed."
"Provide a business case"
The WestConnex Authority has been asked to provide a business case for the project by November. Then it will depend on the government being re-elected and ‘‘selling off’’ 49 per cent of the electricity ‘‘poles and wires’’ network.
Mr Baird said the proposal looked ‘‘very positive’’, and the cost, route and time frame would be finalised within five months.
‘‘We would, if we win the election and obviously receive a mandate, press the ‘go’ button the day after the election for the [electricity] transaction to be undertaken, and for the the funds to come in as quickly as possibly,’’ he said.
Mr Gay said the business case would determine whether the road should be in a tunnel, on the surface, or a combination.
Do you think the government has cause to ‘‘crow’’ about road funding in the region?
