Regional Road Funding In Focus Ahead Of State Budget

In the lead up to this week’s release of the State Budget, Member for Cootamundra, Steph Cooke called upon the NSW Labor Government to invest in the safety and connectivity of local towns and villages by ensuring rural and regional roads throughout the electorate and receive their fair share of funding.

“Our roads are the backbone of the community; it’s how we get to work, school, medical appointments, how we socialise and keep in touch with friends and family,” Ms Cooke said.

“It is with this in mind that I have advocated for our region, to ensure the Roads Minister fully understands and appreciates the need for funding for the repair and maintenance of our local roads, in order to ensure the safety and convenience of our community members.”

During a recent sitting of NSW Parliament, Ms Cooke gave notice of a motion, calling on the parliament to recognise the fundamental role regional road networks played in connected local communities, and enabling economic growth.

“Small road maintenance projects can drive big benefits for safety and the economy in the bush, so ensuring our local councils have the resources to deliver safe roads is vital,” Ms Cooke said.

“My notice of motion called on the parliament to recognise the need for road funding to help ensure the safety and productivity of our rural and regional communities.”

Ms Cooke said the motion called on the government to liaise with local communities during the development of its various Strategic Regional Integrated Transport Plans, which the government has committed to using as a blueprint for the roll-out of large-scale road infrastructure projects.

“I recently joined with mayors and GMs from Cowra, Temora and Narrandera for meetings with the Minister, who heard directly from them about their roads wish-list,” Ms Cooke said.

“The Minister spoke with the councils regarding the development of the government’s Strategic Integrated Transport Plans, walking them through the process of ensuring their projects are in the mix when it comes time to allocating large-scale infrastructure funds.

“I will certainly continue to advocate fiercely for funding for our electorate, and encourage all residents to lend their advocacy to projects in their area, by lodging submissions of support when the time comes to do so.”

• Topics:

• Politics
• Road Safety
• Public Works