$1.5 BILLION INFRASTRUCTURE STIMULUS TO DRIVE RECOVERY IN CANNING

Major Upgrade to Thomas Road Funded

A new $1.5 billion Australian Government infrastructure package will provide an injection into the economy and bring jobs back online to help stem the impact of COVID-19.

Federal Member for Canning Andrew Hastie said getting shovels in the ground on local construction projects was important for maintaining jobs and economic growth in the Peel region.

“Every single job that we support makes a huge difference in local communities – now and as we navigate out of the pandemic,” Mr Hastie said.

“Of the projects benefitting WA, the most significant for our region is a major upgrade to Thomas Road, between Nicholson Rd and the Kwinana Freeway.”

“An additional kilometre of Thomas Road will be duplicated near the Kwinana Freeway, along with the construction of a new roundabout. The remaining single carriageway of this section of road will also be upgraded.”

“These new upgrades will cost $8 million; the cost being shared 50:50 by the state and federal governments.”

“All this is in addition to the upgrade we committed to last year at the Nicholson Road intersection, which is also half funded by the federal government.”

“Around 19,000 vehicles travel along Thomas Road every day, including a lot of heavy freight. Anyone who has travelled along this stretch of road knows how dangerous it can be – accidents happen far too frequently.

So this upgrade is a very welcome development for our community.

“Infrastructure projects like this crucial for helping us bounce back after the COVID-19 crisis has ended."

“Construction is expected to begin late 2020 and be completed by late 2021. It will support around 125 direct and indirect jobs during construction.”

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Michael McCormack said the new package would fund shovel-ready infrastructure projects that can support local jobs immediately.

“This funding will deliver critical infrastructure projects right across the country to help keep construction businesses running and people in jobs,” the Deputy Prime Minister said.

“$1 billion of this package will fund projects that can get underway now and over the next six months, to give an immediate boost to the economy and local jobs – right at the time we need it.

“We will work together with the states and territories to deliver these job-creating priority projects, building on our unprecedented cooperation to date through the National Cabinet of States and Territories.”

“The package also includes a $500 million Targeted Road Safety Works initiative for states and territories to deliver smaller but critical projects to improve road safety and bolster the resilience of our local road networks.

“The Government has already announced $500 million for local governments to support projects such as road safety improvements, maintaining community infrastructure and increasing accessibility.

“This is part of our $100 billion, 10-year infrastructure pipeline, which is laying the foundations of a financial bridge to recovery on the other side of the COVID-19 crisis.”

Minister for Population, Cities and Urban Infrastructure Alan Tudge said the $1.5 billion package, combined with the additional funding to local governments, is expected to support up to 12,000 direct and indirect jobs by creating new local opportunities and securing existing positions.

“This package will support thousands of jobs across our national construction sector, which we know is facing many challenges due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis,” Mr Tudge said.

“This includes local governments as well, who will receive funding to deliver targeted projects in their area.

“We will continue to work across governments and in partnership with industry to ensure the safety of all Australians while they deliver our pipeline of critical infrastructure projects.”