Ms SCRYMGOUR - 2002-08-21
Can the minister tell the House what funding the government has provided for road infrastructure in this year’s budget?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her question. The truth is that, with our budget delivered yesterday, people in the Territory are going to benefit from the money we are going to spend on roads. The road program for the Territory roads national highways and repair and maintenance is $90m - $50m for roads and $40m for repair and maintenance. Not only that, but we put $5m aside in case of floods. That is because we do not want to try and find money here and there to repair flood damage, but we have the money there so we can immediately draw upon that and repair the damage that was done.
Mr Elferink: Which is $6m less than last year.
Mr VATSKALIS: $5m is put away for floods. What I want to say is that we are not only doing the roads in Darwin and the urban areas, but we are spending money outside Darwin. The Finke River bridge is going to be upgraded, $5.5m; the Hugh River bridge, $2.5m; Central Arnhem Road complete seal to Beswick, $1m; and we are also doing Lajamanu/Tennant Creek via Warrego Road, $0.5m. Of course, here in Darwin, $1.25m for Darwin urban arterials; $1m to upgrade a 7 km section of the Cox Peninsula Road; and also upgrading the Fog Bay Road.
I said to you before, we are not looking only at the roads in Darwin, we are also looking at remote roads like the Lasseter Highway, where the slashing was finished yesterday, as I was advised by my department; the Docker River Road, where the grading was finished a week ago. The local manager of Transport and Works advised me he drove on it at an average speed of 100 km/h, and the Town Clerk, Gary Cartwright, advised me he is very pleased with the condition of the road.
On the Plenty Highway, the bus services have started again, but we are expecting more cattle to come from Queensland because of the drought conditions in Queensland and we are going to keep an eye on it. Of course, the Maryvale Deep Well Road, that was never graded in the past - how many years, member for Macdonnell? I had the pastoralists in the area complaining to me that, because of the way the road was maintained, the surface of the road now is below the surface of the land around it. My department is now looking at what is more cost effective - to repair the road or realign it along the old railway line. We are going to consider all options in order to repair it because, for us, the Territory starts from the islands in the north and finishes down in Erldunda.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for her question. The truth is that, with our budget delivered yesterday, people in the Territory are going to benefit from the money we are going to spend on roads. The road program for the Territory roads national highways and repair and maintenance is $90m - $50m for roads and $40m for repair and maintenance. Not only that, but we put $5m aside in case of floods. That is because we do not want to try and find money here and there to repair flood damage, but we have the money there so we can immediately draw upon that and repair the damage that was done.
Mr Elferink: Which is $6m less than last year.
Mr VATSKALIS: $5m is put away for floods. What I want to say is that we are not only doing the roads in Darwin and the urban areas, but we are spending money outside Darwin. The Finke River bridge is going to be upgraded, $5.5m; the Hugh River bridge, $2.5m; Central Arnhem Road complete seal to Beswick, $1m; and we are also doing Lajamanu/Tennant Creek via Warrego Road, $0.5m. Of course, here in Darwin, $1.25m for Darwin urban arterials; $1m to upgrade a 7 km section of the Cox Peninsula Road; and also upgrading the Fog Bay Road.
I said to you before, we are not looking only at the roads in Darwin, we are also looking at remote roads like the Lasseter Highway, where the slashing was finished yesterday, as I was advised by my department; the Docker River Road, where the grading was finished a week ago. The local manager of Transport and Works advised me he drove on it at an average speed of 100 km/h, and the Town Clerk, Gary Cartwright, advised me he is very pleased with the condition of the road.
On the Plenty Highway, the bus services have started again, but we are expecting more cattle to come from Queensland because of the drought conditions in Queensland and we are going to keep an eye on it. Of course, the Maryvale Deep Well Road, that was never graded in the past - how many years, member for Macdonnell? I had the pastoralists in the area complaining to me that, because of the way the road was maintained, the surface of the road now is below the surface of the land around it. My department is now looking at what is more cost effective - to repair the road or realign it along the old railway line. We are going to consider all options in order to repair it because, for us, the Territory starts from the islands in the north and finishes down in Erldunda.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016