Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that the:

(a) deterioration of country roads due to the reduction in funding for maintenance has created millions of potholes leading to accidents and serious damage to vehicles;

(b) Government has been cutting and delaying road projects since it was elected;

(c) Victorian State Government has drastically reduced funding for maintenance of the state road network;

(d) reduction in funding for maintenance has led to an increase in Victorian motorists having tyres shredded, wheels misaligned, and accidents including fatal accidents over the past two years; and

(e) state of the road network in regional Victoria has led to an increase in serious accidents and an increase in fatal accidents; and

(2) calls on the Government to:

(a) undertake an audit on the condition of Victoria's local and state road network and make that information public;

(b) double the amount of funding available to repair Victoria's road network over the next four years; and

(c) abandon support for the Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) and invest the $2.2 billion of funding allocated to the SRL in Victorian country roads.

The Albanese Labor government has its priorities all wrong. What we need to see from them today and over the next months and years ahead is investment in our crumbling road network in Victoria. If they don't do that it will be another example as to how they have their priorities wrong. Sadly, what he have seen from the Albanese Labor government so far is them cutting maintenance funding to our regional and rural roads in Victoria—as a matter of fact, to roads right across Victoria. We need to see that reversed, and we need to see that reversed immediately. If we don't then the sad reality is that the cost-of-living crisis people are facing at the moment and especially what they have been facing over the last two years will only get worse. Everywhere I go people are now saying to me that they are starting to see their tyres get punctured, they're starting to see their rims get damaged and they're starting to see a greater cost to actually driving on our road network. Not only that but, sadly, in regional and rural Victoria in particular we are starting to see road accidents and road deaths begin to increase again. That is why the Albanese Labor government has to change its priorities and change them right here and now.

If we take the Princes Highway in my electorate, what have we seen the Albanese Labor government do since they came into power? They've not said to the Victorian state government, 'We'll provide 80 per cent of the funding for the road maintenance if you will provide 20 per cent.' They have said, 'We will only provide 50 per cent.' The Allan Labor government has cut maintenance funding to Victorian roads by 95 per cent, and the Albanese Labor government have dramatically cut their road funding to Victoria as well. This is simply not good enough. I can tell you: the feedback I get from my electorate on a daily basis—and I know other members get exactly the same—is that we need the federal government to immediately take action and start investing in our local road network again. They cannot waste time, effort and money on business cases; they need to make sure they deliver that money right here and now.

This isn't against investing in rail. As my constituents know, I advocated strongly for an upgrade to the rail link between Melbourne and Warrnambool, and we got serious Commonwealth investment into that rail network, so this is nothing against rail. This is about the dire emergency facing Victoria's road network. And it's not just me or the member for Casey complaining about this. Even the government's own members of parliament are doing that. If you go and have a look at the member for Corangamite's social media, there is the member for Corangamite complaining about the state of the roads in Corangamite. This is an issue across the board. Everyone in Victoria knows that we're not getting the investment that we need in our roads. Everyone knows that the Albanese Labor government has its priorities wrong in cutting maintenance funding. Everyone knows that the Allan Labor government have their priorities wrong in cutting funding to Victoria's road network.

That is why this motion calls on Anthony Albanese to immediately invest money in improving our road network in Victoria—both maintenance and building. If he doesn't do this, then, sadly, the phone call that I received a couple of weeks ago is likely to become all too common. A lady rang me and said that she lost her brother years ago in a road accident and, given the state of the roads, she is worried that it will happen again.

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

Is the motion seconded.

Aaron Violi (Casey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I reckon that the member for Wannon has probably been asleep for the last two years, or at least on budget night, and must have missed this government's increase in the budget for Roads to Recovery. This government has doubled the funding for Roads to Recovery to $1 billion annually, which we will reach. In my own electorate, that is an increase of up to $20 million for the City of Greater Bendigo alone. That's an increase of $8.5 million dollars to do exactly what the member for Wannon is ranting about: give money to local government to improve our local road network. That is what this government is doing.

It is also the history of this Prime Minister. For a long time, as Prime Minister and also as the minister for infrastructure and the shadow minister for infrastructure, Mr Albanese has been a champion of the Roads to Recovery Program. When we were in opposition and the then government decided to index the fuel excise, it was his idea to put that extra money into the Roads to Recovery budget, and that is what he has done. This government, under Anthony Albanese, has a track record in investing in our local roads, because we listen to community, we work with local government and we care. That is why in our budget we've committed to change.

But it's not just the Roads to Recovery budget where we have increased funding. We've also increased funding to the Black Spot program, another program that is delivering in Victoria—and in every state. That is where local government nominate to state government which roads are in need of repair. I know, because I chaired the Black Spot group in Victoria, that 25 per cent of the funding is allocated to roads classed as 'at risk', where locals are concerned that there could be a collision, and 75 per cent goes towards projects where there have been incidents already. Funding has gone to my electorate and funding has gone to the electorate of the member for Hawke, who I know will speak on this motion, in relation to this issue.

We take road safety and road repair very seriously and, under this government, we are acting. From $110 million to $150 million per year—that is the extra money that this government is putting in. We're also putting more money into the Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program, money which, again, is going to regional electorates. I stood with the local member for Bendigo West, who was allocated money from the federal government to the state government joint funding to improve roads in our electorate, another program that came from this government.

What the opposition are suggesting in this motion is that, if they were in government, they could not do both. In this motion, they have made it clear that it is either urban rail, through the Suburban Rail Loop, or country roads. It's a devastating admission by the opposition that they are saying they cannot do both. In government, we are delivering both. We have put $2.2 billion of funding into the Suburban Rail Loop. We are saying to those outer metro areas of Melbourne: you should have an urban rail option. That is why we are partnering with the Victorian state government to see that project delivered. We are also delivering, as I said, extra funding to fix our regional roads in Victoria, and we are delivering. It is the Roads to Recovery Program; it is the Black Spot program; it is the new Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program.

They're just three of the many projects—and I note the interjections from the member for Wannon, who doesn't like being called out on the political rhetoric that we are seeing from those opposite. They are trying to drive wedge politics, which is either money for infrastructure in outer Melbourne or money for regions. In government, because we have members from the regions and the outer urban areas, we are doing both. We are working with local and state government to deliver both.

One of the other challenges that we have had in our area—and I am proud to say all three levels of government are working together—is rebuilding after flood events in 2022 and earlier this year. This is another fund that we are delivering. The Albanese and Allan Labor governments are working together to deliver the road and rail infrastructure that the state of Victoria needs.

Aaron Violi (Casey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Talking about roads in Victoria is very similar to talking about the economy. The Albanese government keep telling us how we've never had it better and the economy is flying, except every Australian is worse off today than they were 2½ years ago. That conversation is very similar to roads in Victoria. We just heard from the member for Bendigo about how great the roads are in Victoria. With all the money that's going in, we've never had it better when it comes to roads. That's news to my community. I was at the Lilydale show this weekend talking to locals—despite the heat, the rain and the storms that came on Saturday and Sunday, as they do in Melbourne—and roads was the second-biggest issue we heard about, behind the cost of living.

My community know all about the Albanese Labor government when it comes to road funding and cuts, because the community had $100 million cut from the Roads for the Community sealing program. That was a program that was going to seal 150 kilometres of road all across my community over 10 years. It was committed to by the coalition in 2019. It had bipartisan support. The then shadow minister for infrastructure, Anthony Albanese, committed to the program.

The program was being delivered on time and on budget, and the member for Hawke can continue to interject, because I know his community is concerned about roads as well. My community knows that that money was committed to by the then Labor opposition over 10 years. That project was being delivered on time and on budget. At Senate estimates, the department confirmed that the project was improving safety in the community, and it was pulled by the Albanese Labor government. My community knows all about the promises when it comes to roads and about the broken promises from this government.

We also understand firsthand why we need to continue to invest in roads. Unfortunately, the Melba Highway between Coldstream to Yea was, through the RACV My Country Road survey, voted as the most dangerous road in Victoria. As you go up that road, there's a significantly challenging intersection and a big sweeping bend at the corner of the highway in St Hubert's. Just recently, I was driving the road and essentially had the old wobbles from the corrugation on the bitumen road. It was a moment where I was lucky to keep myself safe on that road. It's a dangerous road as you sweep.

The speed limit on the road is 80 kilometres per hour, so the solution from the government is to put up signs slowing the speed to 40 kilometres per hour. That's the solution we get—not to actually fix the problem but to put a sign up warning Victorians, warning community members in Casey, to slow down to 40 kilometres per hour on a road that should be sealed. I've been working with the state member for Eildon, Cindy McLeish, to get that funding upgraded because it's a significant local road and a significant thoroughfare. People use that road for holidays with caravans, and lots of trucks go on that road. But the best we can get is a sign telling us to slow down from 80 to 40.

The Warburton Highway section between Seville and Woori Yallock was also near the top of that list of dangerous roads. As you drive along those roads you see the potholes that are continuing to grow bigger and bigger. If we're lucky, we get a patch job, and then the pothole just happens again as soon as it rains. It's going to get worse, as we know the road maintenance budget in Victoria was slashed by 95 per cent. At a time when roads are worse than ever, the funding is being slashed, which means the problem is going to continue to exacerbate. Every week my office gets emails and calls from residents that have been driving along, particularly at night, and have hit a pothole and got rim damage. They have no faith in the federal government actually funding it, because they know it has been cut before, and they have no faith in the Victorian Labor government delivering it.

Killara Road, as an example, is another project that shows the Victorian Labor government is unable to deliver projects. They've had that money to deliver that upgrade since 2019, and we're at the end of 2024 and we're still waiting for that project to start. That is the reality for the Victorian people, for the community in Casey. If we commit funding, Labor will do two things: they'll cut it or fail to deliver on the project.

The department has said that the works will start in early 2025, so I'll wait with interest to see whether the Victorian state government actually get on with it and deliver some safer roads for my community.

Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to thank the member for Wannon, my neighbour, for moving this timely and important motion about the state of roads, particularly in regional Victoria. Can I say how disappointing it is for me personally that so much of my electorate now falls within the electorate of Wannon. From Apollo Bay to Colac and from Forrest to Anglesea, these are some of the most incredible places across the nation, and the member for Wannon is privileged to have these communities in his electorate.

I know that these communities and the local councils that maintain the roads across south-west Victoria suffered a decade of neglect under the former Liberal government. After a decade of Liberal neglect, local councils have now received record funding in the past two years under Labor. We're delivering record increases to local council road infrastructure funding. We are progressively doubling Roads to Recovery funding to $1 billion per year, and we're increasing the Black Spot Program by $50 million per year to $150 million. This means that every single local council in Australia will receive more funding for local road infrastructure and maintenance under Labor—more money than ever before for local councils to spend on fixing potholes, improving our roads and making our thoroughfares safer to drive on, particularly in regional and rural areas. This is groundbreaking, and it stands in stark contrast to the Liberals in action.

The federal coalition will say they funded roads when in government, but the reality is that it was clearly insufficient, and it's taken the Albanese Labor government to bite the bullet and address the shortfall. For example, the Liberals should explain to my communities on the Bellarine in Victoria why they did not provide enough funding to get the Grubb Road upgrade in Ocean Grove off the ground. The former coalition government said they would upgrade it, but, as per usual, it was photo op first and community second. The former government underfunded the Grubb Road upgrade from the outset, so the project languished until the Albanese Labor government stepped in and contributed $2.2 million of additional funding. As of October, workers have been on the ground, getting the job done.

It's absolutely clear the Albanese government is investing in the Bellarine, Geelong, the Surf Coast and Golden Plains. We've also rolled out about $2 million in blackspot funding to improve road safety within the city of Greater Geelong in the last year alone. I'm advocating strongly on the point of Armstrong Creek, and it is up to the city of Greater Geelong. Because it is local roads, they can apply for funding. I'm wanting them to do more for blackspot funding, and to access some of the funding that the federal government has put forward. I'm pushing them to that in a rapidly growing area that does need attention. We included funding to upgrade the roundabout at Marshalltown Road and Bailey Street in Grovedale. The roundabout had been notoriously dangerous with many accidents just outside the busy Grovedale Primary School. Now, locals have a new roundabout with wombat crossings, a new road surface and street lighting.

We've also rolled out more than $1.3 million for road projects on the Surf Coast. This has delivered much-needed upgrades for the Esplanade, one of Torquay's busiest thoroughfares along the beachfront. We're also about to upgrade the intersection at Surf Coast Highway and Reserve Road, another much-needed project underfunded by the coalition. Importantly, we're about to kick off early next year on stage 2 of the Barwon Heads Road upgrade. This is in the heart of Armstrong Creek, Charlemont and Mount Duneed, and it's taken a Labor government working with the state to make this happen. This is a joint funding partnership, a $250 million project, that will duplicate this busy arterial road. The upgrade will make a massive difference to local workers, families and business owners travelling to Geelong and the coast, particularly during the busy summer months. On Saturday, we officially opened the Waurn Ponds rail duplication, with works now complete. This is an almost $1 billion project that will mean more trains on the line and fewer cars on the road. It is funded by the Albanese government and the state government.

In closing, after a decade of the former coalition government promising the world and delivering little, the Albanese government is doing the work needed.

Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Regional Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to commend my good colleague, the member for Wannon, for this very timely motion about how horrible the roads are. This government has done little—in fact, I would say it has done nothing to improve the safety of those who drive in my electorate of Mallee. Hardly a day goes by in my electorate in north-west Victoria where constituents don't complain about the state of the roads. Pick a highway or pick any road—the Calder Highway, Sunraysia Highway, Robinvale-Sea Lake Road, Henty Highway, Murray Valley Highway, Western Highway—they are all awful. Some ask if they can send the bill to the Victorian government for the damage to their vehicle, as the motion states, from driving at high speed to unexpected potholes on major roads. We're not talking back roads here; we're talking major highways.

The roads in Mallee are among some of the most dangerous in Victoria. I regularly drive the length and breadth of my electorate and see firsthand the state of roads that constituents are forced to use every day. The state of the roads beggars belief. There are sections of road in Mallee where the potholes are huge, and the bitumen is hanging on for dear life. I have even had a constituent tell me he toots his horn when approaching potholes to ensure there's not a mob of sheep in there. The safety of Mallee drivers is being compromised by the Victorian state government's poor management of regional road repairs. According to the departmental documents, there has been a 95 per cent reduction in essential road maintenance between 2022-23 and 2023-24 from nine million square kilometres to 422,000 square kilometres. I mean, seriously? Motorists in regional Victoria have been left to navigate a network of pothole-plagued roads that are not fit for use.

RACV's 2024 My Country Road survey shows that potholes and poor road condition are the biggest safety issues on regional roads across the state, with improving road surfaces a top priority. This issue is of immense concern to regional Victorians—like those who live in Mallee—as illustrated by the 75 per cent increase in responses to this year's survey alone and the finding that while dangerous driver behaviour was the top issue in 2021, now it's poor road conditions, which was rated as more than twice as important.

The findings of the Victorian state government's survey reinforce this fact, finding that 91 per cent of roads were in poor or very poor condition. The auditor-general investigated the $2.2 billion dollars the Albanese government had no hesitation in giving to the Andrews-Allan Victorian Labor government's pet Suburban Rail Loop project, which has blown out from an initial $50 billion to—if you don't mind—$216 billion, at last count. The auditor-general said, in September:

As at June 2024, SRL East had yet to go through the formal project approval process, and the department is awaiting a project proposal report from the Victorian Government. This process must occur before funding can be expended.

The Victorian government also quietly shut down Regional Roads Victoria earlier this year. Victorian Labor had launched the agency in 2018 with the promise it would ensure 'regional communities have the safe and reliable roads they deserve.' So what do you do? You just remove the agency, so nobody knows how bad the roads are. The Albanese government is 100 per cent responsible, hand-in-glove with the Victorian government, for the shabby and unsafe conditions of the roads in my electorate. They need to be held to account, and that is what this side of the House will do.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The audacity of those opposite to walk into the chambers and talk about the lack of road funding in Victoria is honestly astounding. Their own legacy is a stain on infrastructure development right across Victoria, especially for the investment in roads. When that lot was in government, Victoria drew the short straw. It was a government that the member for Wannon was not only a member of; he sat in cabinet making those decisions to cut the road funding.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That is not true. That is not true.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Buckle up, champ, because it's going to keep going. Seven per cent of infrastructure funding in your last term of government was all you gave Victoria. You, as in the government, promised $50 million for the Hume Highway upgrade, and where did that go? It didn't even last. It didn't last the press release.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You cut it!

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You never funded it. In fact, I will happily stand there and bring the letter, signed by Alan Tudge, that said he is taking away the funding for the Hume Highway. I look forward to the member for Wannon standing up and having to apologise to the House because he's misleading once again. You couldn't fund jack-all. You couldn't deliver a pizza. You could deliver a press release, but that was about it. You cut Black Spot funding in your last government. You cut infrastructure to regional and growing communities across Victoria. Whether it was their mistruths in the election campaigns about the Hume Highway or the Wallan ramps, everything was cut. Nothing was done. They didn't even want to deliver on Yan Yean Road. That left people in McEwen—whether it be Mernda, Wallan, Whittlesea, Kilmore or Gisborne—with deteriorating roads and dangerous driving conditions.

The only service they ever gave was lip service, because the now-opposition didn't spend a single penny on road maintenance. Where was the member for Wannon's outrage when his government cut and froze road funding. He didn't care about road safety in Victoria. This is just a political stunt to fill in time and hide the fact that they did absolutely nothing for nine years. He stands here with his manufactured outrage despite the Albanese Labor government increasing funding to $460 million, with a commitment for funding for black spots to increase every year. Only a Labor government can be trusted to protect the upgrade of Victorian roads and to give the people of McEwen a fair go.

The Albanese Labor government will make $4.4 billion available under the federal Roads to Recovery Program over the next five years. Under this program, Victoria will receive $895 million over five years. Before you get your calculator out, I'll save you time. That's $368 million more than Victorians will receive under than they would have received had we unfortunately kept Morrison as Prime Minister. When it comes to finding, as our veterans found out, those opposite only fund things that they think is a political advantage. That is why they never funded the Calder Highway, the Hume Highway and Watson Street.

The Albanese Labor government has shown its commitment by going on with projects we need in our community, like the completion of the upgrades to Bridge Inn Road in Mernda. It was finished well ahead of time because of governments working together and getting things done. We have made a commitment in this year's budget for an extra $437 million to the Suburban Roads Upgrade program. When the coalition was in government, they did the western one and the eastern one, but then they put the north and south together and only funded half of it. We came and fixed it. Of course, the silence is an acknowledgement that it was badly handled by the former government. We also have the Camerons Lane interchange in Beveridge, with the Albanese Labor government committing $900 million to get this done because it's 20,000 jobs and it's fixing up the Inland Rail, which they absolutely destroyed. It's great to have the Prime Minister and the minister for infrastructure talking about these projects and getting them done.

In recent weeks, we were joined at Wallan to discuss the Watson Street interchange, a project to ensure faster and safer access to the Hume Highway. Where was the $50 million promised by the former government? We know that the former deputy prime minister, Michael McCormack, wanted to fund it, but then he got rolled by his own back lot, and the money disappeared, so much so that Minister Tudge took the money out of the complex car park scheme and sent a press release saying, 'Oh, we're going to fund it.' But guess what? When we got there, the cupboard was bare, and Tehan and co had none—no money anywhere for road projects in our area. So I say to the member for Wannon: you should be sticking up for our state of Victoria. Do you remember what happened to your mate Joshie who attacked Victoria? You should stick up for Victoria and try and get things done. You sat there in cabinet eating your triangle sandwiches and having your cups of tea and did not support Victorians. You should be ashamed!

Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Community Safety, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I congratulate the member for Wannon for putting this motion up. It's so sad that basic road maintenance in Victoria can't be completed on time. There are potholes everywhere. It all goes back to the way the Albanese Labor government is mismanaging so many things, particularly road funding projects. I can give some perfect examples. We have the Dandenong Ranges, which covers Casey and La Trobe. And places like Cockatoo, Gembrook and Emerald are in very dangerous situations when it comes to bushfires. There aren't many ways to get out of those places. The main way out is using the Wellington Road. So, in 2008, when I was first elected, we put funding into putting overtaking lanes on that road. Sadly, the Yarra Ranges Council decided the overtaking lanes would be deferred. The reason they were so important was that, if there was a bushfire, people needed space to get out of the hills. Sadly, I lost my seat in 2010. The very last thing I did, though, was write to the transport minister, Anthony Albanese, and pleaded with him, 'Do not divert the funding.' As soon as the Labor government came in, the funding was diverted. Going forward into the future to 2018, we recommitted the funding of $100 million to that project to duplicate lanes. What happened again? Labor got into power, scrapped the funding and deferred it. Wellington Road is such a dangerous road. There have been so many serious accidents there and a number of fatalities, and the funding is being diverted.

When it came to another project we had, the sealing of the Dandenong Ranges, $300 million was committed for the Yarra Ranges Council and Cardinia Shire Council. Again, when it comes to bushfires, if people need to get off and it's smoky and dangerous, people who live in areas in the city might not realise that the curbs on the side may be half a metre deep. If a car goes into that, they're not going to get out, and it's going to jam up the traffic. Again, the Albanese Labor government cancelled all those projects, so Cardinia Council and Yarra Ranges Council are absolutely furious.

I'd like to tell you about the waste of funding regarding the Clyde Road upgrade which is going on at the moment. Five years ago, the Liberal government committed to an upgrade there. When we got Casey council road engineers to give us the cost, it was $70 million. Then the state Labor government said, 'Take it or leave it—$250 million.' Obviously they had to look after their mates in the CFMEU, but we're talking about a 900-metre section of road from the train line going over the Monash Freeway that has now blown out to $250 million. For every one metre, it's $250,000 just to duplicate it. Admittedly, there are extra costs when it comes to the on-off ramps and also going over the Monash Freeway, but the price is so much higher than what the engineers at Casey actually submitted.

Then we've got the same when it comes to the Pakenham roads upgrade. The Liberal government got funding for Racecourse Road and McGregor Road. This was a project in the vicinity of $100 million. Now that's blown up to $400 million. It was again take it or leave it.

If people want to know how bad the roads are in Victoria and why, it's because there's been a 90 per cent reduction of road funding repairs by the Allan Labor government. Sadly, when it comes to the Albanese Labor government, it has been diverting good road projects and not investing in local councils to actually keep the maintenance of roads, whether it be in electorates like mine or the member for Wannon's. That's why the member for Wannon, like me and the member for Casey—those outer suburban electorates—and the member for Flinders, considers road funding to be so important, and the Albanese Labor government has completely failed.

Sam Rae (Hawke, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Liberal Party never miss an opportunity to play politics with an important issue. They have a long and storied history of cuts to all essential services. Australians know it. It's their brand. They do the cuts every time they come in. They cut everything. Road funding is no exception to this. They have cut road funding in regional and outer suburban areas over and over again. Roads are vital to the daily lives of Australians. They connect families. They support businesses. They ensure that we can all travel safer to work and get home again. In my electorate of Hawke, one of the fastest-growing regions in the country, this is particularly true.

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 13:18 to 16:00