Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I've made building better roads and rail a priority since my election in 2016 so that families like mine can get home sooner and safer. I've fought to upgrade local roads, like Beerburrum Street in Aroona, Currimundi Road and University Way. I've fought to improve the safety of roads like Citrus Road in Palmwoods and Cooroora Street in Dicky Beach. I've fought to expand our network of walkways and cycleways in places like Beerwah, Battery Hill and Tanawha, and I've fought to connect the Sunshine Coast with $6.7 billion in major projects, like the Bruce Highway, the North Coast rail duplication, Steve Irwin Way, the Mooloolaba transport corridor and more.

In contrast, Labor slashed a number of vital projects, including future Bruce Highway upgrades. They slashed the Caloundra transport corridor upgrade and callously cut funding to the Mooloolah River Interchange, where over a hundred houses had been demolished to make way for it. Now, once again, the Sunshine Coast rail project is on the chopping block, despite record funding. If we kick it down the road for another generation, it'll only be more expensive. As a result, hundreds of thousands of locals will miss out on an Olympic-sized opportunity to transform the way we move on the Sunshine Coast. I call on all levels of government, every area of the community and all parties and persuasions to get on board with Sunshine Coast rail. (Time expired)