WA roads slated for $1.4bn upgrade

A record $1.38 billion funding will be spent over five years to upgrade roads across Western Australia as part of a renewed agreement between state and local governments.

The State Road Funds to Local Government Agreement was today signed by the state government and the WA Local Government Association.

It aims to give councils a guarantee that 20 per cent of the revenue collected from the state’s vehicle licence fee collections will be allocated to local roads.

The state government claims the latest investment would give a $353 million increase compared to the previous agreement, with $253 million to be invested in local government roads this financial year.

The 20 per cent figure is a 7 per cent drop from the 27 per cent return WALGA proposed, according to its Advocacy Positions report published in August.

However, WALGA president Karen Chappel said the association and local government welcome the commitment by the state government to enter into the sixth State Road Funds agreement.

“The agreement is a vital source of funding providing certainty for local government and the communities they represent, for the term of the agreement,” she said.

“The new State Road Funds to Local Government Agreement strengthens the partnership between the two tiers of government and the shared effort to improve and maintain the state’s local road network.

“In addition to the commitments to improve road safety, with the aim of saving lives, there are some important social and environmental commitments in this agreement, such as increasing Aboriginal employment and the use of recycled materials in road construction.”

The agreement was first negotiated in 1995 and the overall funding for the recent agreement has been built on the previous five, the state government said.

This financial year's estimated $253 million funding will be broken down by regions with the state’s metropolitan area receiving the biggest slice at $92.5 million.

The state government allocated $35.9 million for the Wheatbelt, $30.5 million to the South West, $22.4 million to the Mid West/Gascoyne, $20.8 million to Goldfields-Esperance, $13.1 million to the Great Southern, $8.8 million to the Kimberley, and $7.4 million to the Pilbara.

Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said the agreement brought a renewed focus to access roads for remote Aboriginal communities with $2.5 million allocated for this financial year.

“This agreement will ensure we continue to maintain and improve Western Australia’s road network with a record amount of funding for local roads,” she said.

“The new Agreement has a strengthened focus on road safety objectives to align with the National Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030, and to deliver outcomes aligned with the State’s priorities of increasing Aboriginal employment and use of recycled materials in road construction.

Under the recently-signed agreement, local government-managed programs will receive 67 per cent of annual funding in direct grants, road project grants, State Black Spot allocations and remote Aboriginal access roads.

Main Roads-managed programs, including bridgeworks, traffic management and pavement markings, will receive the remaining 33 per cent.