Julie Collins (Franklin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you for the opportunity to make a contribution on this important bill. As people have said before me, the AusLink (National Land Transport) Amendment Bill 2008 is an important piece of reform that is of paramount interest, particularly if we are to address two key issues: driver fatigue and better infrastructure. This bill has two main purposes. The first purpose is to change the definition of a road in the AusLink (National Land Transport) Act 2005 to allow funding of heavy vehicle facilities, such as off-road rest stops, parking bays, decoupling facilities and electronic monitoring systems, to improve heavy vehicle safety. The second purpose is to allow the Roads to Recovery program, which is funded under the act, to be extended for another five years.

We know that driver fatigue is a major concern affecting road users, from the truck drivers who haul freight to the mums and dads who use our nation’s roads to travel to and from work, or to those who use our roads to enjoy a well-earned holiday. We know that one in five road deaths involves heavy vehicles, with speed and fatigue being significant contributing factors. In my home state of Tasmania there have been 31 road deaths already this year and 173 serious injuries. That is far too many people and far too many families that have been affected by tragedy. In 2007 there were some 250 deaths in Australia involving heavy vehicles. I think that both sides of parliament can agree that safety is a primary concern and we must do all we can to improve safety on our roads. Amendments in this bill will provide for a $70 million heavy vehicle safety and productivity program that will help make local roads safer for all motorists, and this program is just one of several measures which are looking to reduce fatigue and make our roads safer.

This bill is also important if we are to continue to build the nation’s infrastructure. This government has put $41 billion into long-term nation-building funds. Around half of this—$20 billion—has been put aside specifically for the Building Australia Fund. This fund is to provide for the nation’s long-term prosperity in rail, ports, broadband and roads. This funding is in addition to the $26 million of AusLink funding that we have already committed to road and rail infrastructure projects, many of which we have brought forward in this budget because we consider them important priorities. We must, as a matter of national interest, continue to build upon the significant infrastructure and investment that this government has made. I was pleased to hear the previous speaker on the other side talk about needs based funding because, certainly in my home state of Tasmania, under the former government 90 per cent of AusLink funding went to the north of Tasmania and none to southern Tasmania, other than that small amount of 10 per cent.

The government will fund roads and infrastructure on the basis of need, and our election commitments most recently in relation to AusLink bear this out, because we are funding projects all over the state. We are funding things like the Brighton bypass, the Bridgewater Bridge refurbishment, the Pontville-Bagdad bypass feasibility study and corridor planning, the Brighton transport hub, maintenance on roads, the Kingston bypass in my own electorate, and numerous other road and rail investment infrastructure projects—all on the basis of need.

Also, our government will be extending the National Highway to include the capital city of the state, its port and its airport—something that we in the Labor Party in Tasmania have been calling for for some time. So I would like to reassure those on the other side of the chamber that certainly from the perspective of Tasmania I will be doing everything I can to make sure that our federal government applies funding on the basis of need, because we need to increase capacity in our economy. Infrastructure is a vital part of this. It is critical for freight movements, for tourism and for regional development in this country.

The AusLink (National Land Transport) Amendment Bill 2008 extends the Roads to Recovery program for a further five years, from 2009 to 2014. Continuing this program will make a significant difference. It will certainly improve the safety and conditions of Australia’s local roads. The program has, to date, delivered much-needed funding directly to local councils so that they can make urgent safety repairs and upgrades to local roads. I know the constituents of my electorate of Franklin have already benefited from the Roads to Recovery program and I would like to think that they will continue to benefit from this funding arrangement well after June 30, 2009.

This bill will provide for the delivery of new money to help make local roads safer for motorists and pedestrians. Annual funding will be increased from $300 million to $350 million a year, providing an extra $250 million for local roads over the five years, in addition to that provided under the previous program. This is a significant funding increase and I congratulate the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government on getting this bill before the parliament and extending the program.

In my electorate of Franklin the local councils will be allocated $1.5 million worth of funding through the Roads to Recovery program in the 2008-09 budget. This money will make a difference to my electorate. It is intended to supplement—not be a substitute for—the councils’ road spending. I welcome this funding. It will help pay for urgent upgrades and repairs to maintain local roads and help make them safer for the thousands of working families, pensioners, carers and people with disabilities—all road users—who travel in their cars, on their bikes and on foot each and every day.

Local roads are also critical for efficient and safe freight movements. In my own electorate we have many industries—such as the fishing industry, the salmon industry, forestry and others—that rely on many local government roads to move their freight. That is why this government is committed to working in partnership with local councils, who are responsible for maintaining more than three-quarters of all Australian roads. Around the country this equates to more than 800,000 kilometres of local roads.

I would like to give members an understanding of why we need to move into phase 3 of the Roads to Recovery program. Tasmanians have benefited greatly from the first two stages. If we look back over the life of the program to date it is easy to see why we need to continue the program beyond 30 June 2009. As I said before, local councils in my electorate have received much-needed funding. Over the life of the program Brighton Council has received $520,000, Clarence City Council has received around $1.4 million, the Huon Valley Council has received $1.8 million and the Kingborough Council has received $1.4 million. These are significant amounts of money in regional areas in my electorate, and I welcome the program continuing.

The AusLink (National Land Transport) Amendment Bill 2008 represents an important commitment—a commitment to repairing and reconstructing roads and footpaths. Without this funding and without this commitment from this government, vital infrastructure would fall into disrepair. I know the residents of the electorate of Franklin expect good local roads and I want to assure them that they will have access to safe roads in years to come.

The Roads to Recovery program has enabled local councils to complete a large number of significant projects that have improved safety for all road users. I would like to give some examples to show exactly how this program has benefited constituents in my electorate. In the Huon Valley, to the south of Hobart, the conditions of roads, footpaths and bridges have all improved. Significant work was recently undertaken on Mary Street to upgrade the poor and unsafe conditions of the kerb and channel. A new footpath has been installed in Thorpe Street. The existing Bakers Creek Bridge had structural damage and was replaced with a new concrete bridge. Roadworks have been carried out on Short Street to reconstruct and seal the substandard road. All this has been under the Roads to Recovery project.

The residents of the city of Clarence have also benefited from this project. Recent pavement reconstruction in Hookey Street along a busy bus route has improved the safety for many local residents who use that footpath to walk from their local bus stop to their homes. There is also a road and roundabout construction at the junction of Winkleigh Place and Bligh Street to provide internal circulation within the CBD of Rosny and to facilitate development of abutting land. The cost of this project was over $600,000.

As you can clearly see, these projects have benefited my electorate. They may just be small improvements but they are making a big difference to the lives of people in my electorate, to the businesses in my electorate and to the tourism operators in my electorate, particularly in the Huon Valley. With safer roads, better accessibility for pedestrians and road users, as well as boosted tourism, it all makes reasonable and logical sense to continue the Roads to Recovery program.

The purposes of this bill work hand in hand. The fundamental nature of the reforms focus on improving the safety and conditions of our roads as well as address issues around driver fatigue. But the amendments in this bill go one step further. The bill is also a step forward in ensuring we continue to build the nation’s infrastructure. It confirms and builds upon Labor’s tradition as a nation-building party. In partnership with the states, territories and local governments the Rudd Labor government will continue to plan and build for the nation’s infrastructure needs. This bill secures the Roads to Recovery program for five years. It will ensure an increase of funding by $250 million over that five years to local councils across Australia. This is why I support this bill. I commend the bill to the House.

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