RACT adds weight to roads cash plea

TASMANIA’S peak motoring body has added its voice to the call for the Federal Government to put up funds in this year’s Budget to replace the ageing Bridgewater Bridge.

The RACT has identified the five large-scale road projects it wants funded in this year’s Federal Budget — four of which are in the state’s south.

In total, the infrastructure wish list would cost Canberra more than $1.37 billion but the RACT says it is critical projects get under way.

The first priority is $600 million to replace the Bridgewater Bridge, which carries an average of 18,500 vehicles a day, to improve traffic flow into the capital.

The State Government has committed $46 million over five years to the bridge project and Brighton Mayor Tony Foster has been calling since last year for the Government to tell Tasmanians when work would begin.

Funding to replace the 70year-old crossing was expected in last year’s Federal Budget, but it did not eventuate.

Replacing the link over the Derwent was one of five Tasmanian projects listed recently by Infrastructure Australia as priority initiatives needed to allow the nation to cope with the forecasted increase in population over the next 15 years.

The RACT also wants Canberra to put up $50 million to upgrade the Domain/ Brooker Highway to improve safety and traffic flow, and $21 million to upgrade line of sight and traffic merging issues at the Sandfly-Huon Highway intersection.

It also hopes to see $400 million in the Budget to bring the Bass Highway up to a minimum Ausrap three-star rating and $300 million to boost capacity and improve traffic flow on the eastern approach to Hobart including the Sorell-Midway Point causeways and the airport roundabout.

RACT executive general manager membership and community Stacey Pennicott said the projects were critical and work needed to get under way soon.

“The Bridgewater Bridge has been added to Infrastructure Australia’s priority list. We now need a plan to fund and implement improvements,” she said.

“Outside the current Midland Highway safety improvements work, Tasmania has not benefited from any large-scale federal road infrastructure investment in recent years.”