Stymied Senate still holding up roads
The Local Government Association of Queensland wants its road money, slamming a bickering Senate for delaying the vital funds.
LGAQ says $2 billion is at risk for councils nationwide, as political posturing builds an impasse between major parties in the Senate.
As the Senate stand-off continues, Roads to Recovery stands still and Australia’s roads degrade even further.
Local Government Association of Queensland President Margaret de Wit said she was extremely disappointed that Roads to Recovery had been caught up in the ongoing battle of wills over the Federal Budget, despite both the Government and Opposition supporting its continuation.
She said recent studies have shown that the shortfall in proper funding for Australia's 680,000 kms of local roads was about $12 billion each year.
“The beauty of Roads to Recovery is that it is a simple process and that means funds are spent efficiently. Councils determine priority projects under the program because it is accepted they know local transport needs better than any other level of government.”
“This argy-bargy over the Budget is not local government's fight. But we need this program to provide certainty for regional jobs and ensure ongoing maintenance of our roads.”