Zoe McKenzie (Flinders, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The people of Flinders contact me about many issues, but the most prominent and persistent issue since the election in May has been the state of our local roads. For years, the intersection of Jetty Road and the Mornington Peninsula Freeway in Rosebud has been a treacherous headache to navigate for both locals and visitors alike. The former coalition government committed $75 million as far back as 2019 to build an overpass at this intersection, address the pedestrian safety concerns and address the lack of noise mitigation for properties which abut the freeway. But there has been no progress. In 2021 the Victorian Department of Transport conducted community consultation for the proposed upgrade through a traffic survey which attracted over 1,100 responses.

The feedback showed very strong support for the upgrade, as well as the need to improve safety measures and decrease congestion along the Mornington Peninsula Freeway, between Jetty Road and Boneo Road in Rosebud. Over 65 per cent of respondents reported they had experienced poor or very poor traffic flow along the freeway, over 90 per cent of respondents supported the upgrade, 70 per cent of respondents felt that safety conditions on the freeway were poor or very poor and approximately half of all respondents highlighted the lack of sufficient walking and cycling infrastructure, including paths and safe crossing opportunities. In the lead-up to Saturday's state election in Victoria Liberal candidate for Nepean, Sam Groth, committed a total of $175 million to complete the overpass. But from Labor, we heard crickets, so now this essential project hangs in the balance again.

Another set of troublesome roads and long-fought for upgrades are the intersections of Forrest Drive and Uralla Road with the Nepean Highway. In the 10 years leading up to March 2020 there were 11 reported crashes at the Nepean Highway and Uralla Road intersection, of which five resulted in serious injuries. During the same period there were six reported crashes at the Nepean Highway and Forrest Drive intersection. Tragically, one person lost their life and three people were seriously injured, and these figures do not account for the daily near misses and close calls. The previous coalition government fully funded the $20.5 million for the upgrade of these two intersections back in 2019, initially with a $10 million commitment that was later doubled. The Forrest Drive upgrade is currently expected to commence construction in early 2023. However, the Uralla Road intersection has no start date in sight.

In recent parliamentary sittings I was grateful for the opportunity to meet with the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government to discuss the road and rail projects in Flinders from previous budgets, which have been in part funded, in the case of Jetty Road, and fully funded, in the case of addressing the dangerous intersections of Forrest Drive and Uralla Road where they meet the Nepean Highway. I also raised the Frankston to Baxter rail project, for which $225 million was provided in the 2018-19 budget as a result of the advocacy of former member for Flinders, Greg Hunt, and indeed former member for Dunkley, Chris Crewther, who hopefully will be declared the member for Mornington later this week.

This project would duplicate and electrify the current diesel V/Line service, opening a pathway to future upgrades of the Stony Point Line and offering better connectivity and opportunities for residents across the Mornington Peninsula. This project also has the backing of my neighbouring member of parliament, the member for Dunkley, Peta Murphy, and the Prime Minister himself who passionately endorsed the project back when he was shadow infrastructure minister. Indeed, you can still find his proud press release on his website. Extending the train line requires both federal and state government funding, and the Andrews Labor government is yet to commit to the project. In the last election, the state Labor government showed no sign of putting any priority on the needs of the Mornington Peninsula, and without their support these projects will not go ahead.

The benefits of all three projects are significant. They will improve motorist and pedestrian safety, traffic congestion and connectivity and allow my constituents to get home sooner and safer. As the population of the peninsula increases, somewhere in the middle of December, from around 130,000 to 250,000, these projects are needed more than ever. I will continue to fight for these projects, directly advocating to the minister and the Victorian state government, together with my state counterparts, and hold the Albanese government to account.