Federal government to invest additional $13.6 million on road safety in Victoria this year
More than 30 local government areas in Victoria will see road safety improvement under the federal government’s Black Spot funding.
Federal infrastructure and transport minister Darren Chester and Victorian Black Spot Consultative Panel chair Andrew Broad announced $13.6 million to upgrade 50 dangerous sections of road across the state this year.
The funding is part of Coalition’s Black Spots Programme that will spend up to $684.5 million from 2013–14 to 2020–21.
“The Coalition government is getting on with building safer roads right across the nation through our record $75 billion investment in infrastructure, with 2017–18 set to be the single largest Commonwealth infrastructure spend in our nation’s history,” Chester says.
Citing Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE) research, Chester says black spot projects reduce the chance of accidents and fatal crashes by up to 30 per cent.
“I’m passionate about reducing road trauma and the Black Spot Programme is a crucial part of improving the safety and efficiency of roads right around the country.
“By fixing and upgrading road locations where crashes are occurring through safety measures such as traffic signals and roundabouts, we are helping to make our local roads safer for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.”
Representatives from the, Victoria Police, VicRoads, the Victorian Transport Association (VTA), Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV), and the Municipal Association of Victoria are on the panel that reviews priorities for the programme.
Broad says the 50 black spot projects being funded across Victoria will contribute towards reducing road toll.
“Funding has been allocated to road locations that have been identified as high priority, with ten fatal and 221 injury crashes recorded at these sites,” Broad says.
“Locally, we’ll see $70,000 from the government go to Mildura Rural City Council to help them upgrade the roundabout at Fourteenth Street and Etiwanda Avenue.”
View the full list of projects here.