Buswell allocates $35m for safer roads

Transport Minister Troy Buswell has announced $35 million to fund 31 road safety projects across the state over the next year.

Mr Buswell said $32 million would be spent to improve roads to reduce the occurrence of single-vehicle run-off crashes and crashes at major intersections.

“The program provides funding for safety treatments along lengths of roads and roadsides, such as bitumen sealed shoulders with audible edgelines; additional passing lanes; and the reconstruction of sections of highway to make them wider or straighter to improve safety,” Mr Buswell said”

The Minister said $193million had been provided under the program in the past six years.

“In recent years, this program has been important in enabling improvements on regional road links such as the Brookton, Muirs, Bussell and South Western highways,” he said.

Bridge projects first received funding under the program in 2010-11, and will again receive $3million this year.

Of the 31 projects, 28 are located in regional areas.

Details of the 2011-12 safer roads and bridges program are below:

Great Southern
• $2million for Stage 1 of improvements to South Coast Highway in the

Great Southern between Manypeaks and Howie, over four kilometres
• $600,000 for further improvements to Muirs Highway in the Great Southern. Works include reconstruction and widening in sections over eight kilometres, and the application of the final seal to already completed sections.

South-West
• $1.5million for widening and sealing shoulders and installing guard rail on the Roelands Hill section of Coalfields Highway, over nine kilometres
• $200,000 for improvements to 2.77km of Bussell Highway, Cowaramup to Burnside Road
• $70,000 for Stage 1 of improvements through the Bramley Forest section of Bussell Highway
• $1.7million for improvements to the Chambers Road to Island Brook section of Bussell Highway
• $500,000 for Stage 2 works on Bussell Highway through Bramley Forest
• $500,000 for pre-construction work associated with improvements, including a passing lane, over four kilometres of Bussell Highway between Carbunup and Chambers Road
• $100,000 for shoulder and sealing works on South Western Highway, Greenbushes North Stage 1
• $3.8million for improvements to the Manjimup to Vasse highway section of

South Western Highway, over 14km, including an intersection upgrade at Yelverton Road
• $250,000 for construction of passing lanes and other improvements on the Dowdells to Waterloo section of South Western Highway, over more than three kilometres
• $500,000 for the Greenbushes North Stage 2 improvement work on

South Western Highway
• $1.8million for reconstructing and widening works on South Western Highway Donnybrook Stage 2
• $1.2million for improvements over 24km of the Pinjarra-Williams Road, between Marradong and Quindanning
• $300,000 for pre-construction works to improve the Cape Naturaliste to Yallingup section of Caves Road
• $400,000 for pre-construction works associated with the planned traffic roundabout at the Cape Naturaliste-Caves Road intersection at Dunsborough.

Gascoyne
• $3.6million for seal widening and other works on North West Coastal Highway from Yannarie River to the regional boundary.

Mid-West
• $80,000 to realign a 400m curve on the Mingenew-Morawa Road.
• $250,000 for seal widening and shoulder improvements to various sections of the Mingenew-Morawa Road
• $1.8million for improvements to sections of Indian Ocean Drive over nearly five kilometres
• $150,000 for staged improvements to the Wubin-Mullewa Road.

Goldfields-Esperance
• $1million for seal widening and shoulder works on nearly 14km of Great Eastern Highway.

Kimberley
• $600,000 for seal widening and drainage works on various sections of Great Northern Highway.

Wheatbelt South
• $2million for partial realignment and seal widening to 4.5km of Brookton Highway on the section known as ‘Nicholl’s Curves’
• $1million for staged improvements on various sections of the Gorge Rock-
Lake Grace Road, between Lake Grace and Kulin.

Wheatbelt North
• $2million for construction of a passing lane on Indian Ocean Drive.

Pilbara
• $500,000 for the staged improvement to the Port Hedland Road-Cooke Point Drive intersection
• $1.5million for gravel resheeting on various sections of the Marble Bar Road.

Perth metropolitan area
• $200,000 for pre-construction work associated with the installation of wire rope barriers over various sections of Graham Farmer Freeway
• $1million for ongoing improvements to pedestrian facilities on various urban highway and main roads
• $900,000 to expand the installation of uninterruptable power supply technology at various signalised intersections.

Note:  An amount of $3million has also been allocated to allow planning and preconstruction activities for various bridges across the State.