Page 637 - Week 02 - Thursday, 16 February 2017
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MS FITZHARRIS (Yerrabi—Minister for Health, Minister for Transport and City Services and Minister for Higher Education, Training and Research) (4.30): It gives me great pleasure to talk today on this MPI, and I thank Mrs Kikkert for it. All of us in this place take these local constituent issues very seriously. Probably no-one has such a wide view across the range of issues raised than me, in this really wonderful Transport Canberra and City Services portfolio which I have the privilege of holding.
This government has a very strong track record of investing in better roads and footpaths and active travel infrastructure across our city. Following Canberra’s very strong endorsement of our fully costed better roads plan at the last election, we are getting on with delivering on our commitments. It is often remarked, despite Mrs Kikkert’s speech, that Canberra does have some of the best roads in Australia. There is work to do, but this government is focused on ensuring that this remains the case.
Canberra’s road network is, of course, more than just the bitumen we travel on from day to day. It is our bridges, our paths, our stormwater drains, driveways, street lighting and expanding our increasingly growing cycle network. We have over 3,000 kilometres of roads to manage. Added to that we have 964 bridges, 2,400 kilometres of footpaths, more than 400 kilometres of cycle paths, 3,700 kilometres of stormwater infrastructure, 400 kilometres of on-road cycle lanes, 300 sets of traffic lights and over 79,000 streetlights, all maintained by the Transport Canberra and City Services Directorate.
The directorate manages the whole road network of the ACT, including arterial and local streets. Each kilometre of road and road infrastructure in Canberra is underpinned by more than road base; it is supported by a maintenance program that supports repairs and general maintenance through to complete replacement. TCCS undertakes a number of programs to maintain our road network, and safety is paramount. We prioritise our maintenance programs to ensure all Canberrans can travel safely on our roads.
In my capacity as health minister, people would expect me to say—and I have—that prevention is better than cure, but this adage applies also to my role as Minister for Transport Canberra and City Services. Prevention is better than a cure when it comes to the maintenance of any asset, as Mrs Kikkert also noted. Proactive scheduled maintenance is key to ensuring the highest quality of our roads.
Road resurfacing is an important step in maintaining our road network as it can extend the life of the existing road for between 10 and 15 years, keeping them safe and usable. The most cost-effective strategy in the long term is to invest in planned preventive maintenance to avoid as much as possible reactive, more extensive and more expensive repairs.
Resealing is the most commonly noticed roadwork activity in Canberra. It is often viewed by the community as an impost. Madam Assistant Speaker, I could tell you I receive a number of constituent inquiries about why a road where it looks like nothing is wrong is being resealed. I know now, after lengthy meetings with our very skilled
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