The Andrews Labor Government’s annual regional road maintenance blitz has gone over and above its original target, delivering more than 1,500 kilometres of rebuilding and repair works across Victoria.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll said more than 1,100 maintenance and renewal projects have been delivered on the state’s regional roads since September last year, with an investment of more than $464 million supporting this work to maintain regional Victoria’s road assets.
From Mildura to Morwell, crews have worked tirelessly to rehabilitate, repair, and resurface some of the state’s busiest and more important transport and travel routes, including the Western Highway, Wimmera Highway, Hamilton Highway, Hume Highway, Goulburn Valley Highway, Bass Highway and Princes Highway East.
Works currently underway on the Loddon Valley, Melbourne-Lancefield Road and the Murray Valley Highway are set to wrap up shortly, signaling the end of the blitz which has swept across Victoria, guaranteeing smoother and more reliable journeys.
On top of these works, crews have also replaced more than 30,000 signs, inspected thousands bridges and culverts, mowed more than 30,000 kilometres of roadside grass and responded to hundreds of out-of-hours calls from the public.
These vital works are ensuring that Victorians stay connected to education, employment, family and friends, as well as connecting our manufacturers and producers with domestic and international trade markets.
The blitz has also helped to support the Victorian economy, backing more than 1,800 jobs on the ground and throughout the supply chain across the state.
There is more work to come on Victoria’s roads later this year, with $780 million invested in the 2022/23 Victorian Budget for maintaining road assets in the coming financial year – in stark comparison to the Coalition’s investment of just $493 million when they were last in office.
These works will harness the latest technology and methods to ensure that our road maintenance program delivers better results than ever before for Victorian road users.
Since 2014, the Labor Government has rebuilt and resurfaced 12,058 kilometres of roads across regional Victoria.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll
“Our regional roads are vitally important, whether you are dropping the kids off at school, spending a long weekend in country Victoria, or transporting locally grown produce to market – that’s why our annual road maintenance blitz is providing better journeys for all Victorians.”
“This year our hardworking crews have also worked tirelessly replacing signs, inspecting bridges and mowing thousands of kilometres of grass to ensure smoother, more reliable connections.”
Reviewed 01 June 2022