$4.3 billion keeps Greater Brisbane moving

A record $4.3 billion will be spent over the next five years to deliver better roads and reduced travel times to keep Greater Brisbane moving and booming.

Minister for Transport and Main Roads, Paul Lucas, has today announced details of Brisbane’s share of the $13.3 billion five-year Roads Implementation Program.

“It includes 2,500 projects, 99 of them new to the program, to be built statewide over the next five years.

“At $13.3 billion the program in itself is a record for Queensland, but it also takes road spending in the greater Brisbane area to new heights.

“It demonstrates the Beattie Government is getting on with the job of delivering better metropolitan roads.

“To put the spending in context, when this government came to office in 1998 the five-year roads program for the entire state was worth $5.2 billion.

“This government is spending more than that - $5.5 billion – on roads and transport infrastructure this financial year alone.

“And it gets even better.

“When you compare the estimated statewide roads expenditure over the next five years with spending over the past five years, the total increase is $5.3 billion – that’s more than the entire program was worth in 1998.

"More significant is the fact this RIP doesn't include the $1.88 billion for the upgrade of the Gateway Motorway – it’s being delivered separately by the State Government owned Queensland Motorways.

“The $4.3 billion being spent on roads in Brisbane over the next five years will benefit the city for decades to come by helping to improving travel times and connections between neighbouring cities,” Mr Lucas said

Key projects funded this financial year and the 2008-09 financial year include:

• $852 million for improvements to the Ipswich Motorway, including $260 million to begin upgrading the motorway to six lanes between Wacol and Darra and reconstructing the Centenary Highway Interchange; $186 million to continue upgrading the Gailes Interchange; and $400 million towards the $2.3 billion six-lane Goodna Bypass from Dinmore to the Logan Motorway at Gailes.
• $233.1 million to continue the extension of the Centenary Highway from Springfield to Yamanto.
• $99.7 million to commence construction of an overpass at Acacia Ridge to take the Mt Lindesay Highway over the main interstate railway line, eliminating a congested level crossing.
• $205 million to progress construction of the Houghton Highway duplication between Brighton and Clontarf.
• $65 million to progress the extension to four lanes of the Mt Lindesay Highway between Green and Rosia roads at Park Ridge in Logan City.
• $42.9 million in subsidies to assist local government upgrade and maintain council roads, under the state government's Transport Infrastructure Development Scheme (TIDS)
• $14.2 million to complete the upgrading to four lanes of Moggill Road west of Kenmore.
• $12.5 million to complete the $43 million Boundary/Keliher roads underpass, removing a notorious traffic bottleneck.
• $5 million for asphalt resurfacing of sections of the Mount Lindesay Arterial at Mortimer Street, Algester Road, Granard Road, and Bradman Street.

Media Contact: Darren Roberts 3237 1947 / 0448 184566