Image: Denys Nevozhai on Unsplash
The Australian Government has announced a significant boost to the Roads to Recovery program, with $4.4 billion allocated over the next five years to support local road construction and maintenance by local governments. This increase was outlined in the 2024-25 Budget, with the program’s funding set to progressively double to $1 billion annually.
Increased Funding by State:
- New South Wales: Councils will receive $1.2 billion over five years, an increase of $461 million.
- Victoria: Councils will receive $895 million over five years, an increase of $368 million.
- Queensland: Councils will receive $895 million over five years, an increase of $353 million.
- South Australia: Councils will receive $395 million over five years, an increase of $153 million.
- Western Australia: Councils will receive $643 million over five years, an increase of $278 million.
- Tasmania: Councils will receive $143 million over five years, an increase of $60 million.
- Northern Territory: Councils will receive $128 million over five years, an increase of $55 million.
- ACT: Will receive $70 million over five years, an increase of $30 million.
“Councils across Australia have consistently asked for more support to better maintain and upgrade their road networks, especially with the severe weather events that have heavily impacted local infrastructure in recent years,” said Regional Development, Local Government and Territories Minister Kristy McBain.
“We have listened to local councils’ calls for more support and will significantly increase the funding available to them – making it easier for councils to progress priority road projects that their communities are calling out for.”
Additional Programmes:
- Black Spot Program: Funding will increase from $110 million to $150 million per year to improve some of the most dangerous road locations.
- Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program: $200 million will be available per year, which is $50 million more than the two programs it replaced.
- National Road Safety Data Hub: An additional $21.2 million is committed to improve data collection.
- National Road Safety and Awareness Campaign: An extra $10.8 million is allocated to boost road safety awareness.
The federal government asserts that the increased funding will allow local governments to plan for long-term maintenance and upgrades of their road networks with greater budget certainty. Funding for each local government area is determined based on factors such as population and road length, ensuring it is distributed where it is most needed.
Local councils are now being advised of their increased funding allocations, as part of the government’s broader initiative to strengthen investment in local roads across Australia.
