Page 4237 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 23 October 2019
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includes planning for a bridge which will be the longest road bridge in the territory and will help to future-proof our city from congestion but also ensure that there is an opportunity for light rail to move through that corridor in the future as part of the city-wide light rail network.
The future duplication of Athllon Drive and the planning and duplication of William Hovell Drive, as well as augmentation of car parking at Cooleman Court group centre, are other projects that are helping to support the growth of our city and our road network. All of these investments include the provision of on-road and off-road cycle infrastructure as we strive to increase the opportunities for people to cycle or walk to work.
The government will continue to build new roads and connections around Canberra, and we want to make sure that our existing roads and intersections are safe and efficient across the territory as well. Only last week AAMI, the insurance provider, released their annual crash hotspot report, which backed our government’s investment in projects like the Monaro Highway to improve safety and speed by removing intersections, particularly around Hume. We also supported other key road improvements that we are making, such as the feasibility that we are doing on the upgrades to Hume Circle.
As members know, the Monaro Highway project will include the design and construction of grade-separated interchanges along the corridor around Hume, with the ACT government contributing up to $100 million. We know that we have the support of the commonwealth government on this project, because they are putting in $100 million today. The question is: will the Liberals support Ms Cody’s motion which calls on the ACT government to deliver this project in accordance with our plan? Let us hope they do.
It is disappointing that that project has not been supported by all members of this place. Ms Le Couteur has said in this place something along the lines of questioning whether this should be a government priority. But, given the report last week, I hope that she has the opportunity to reflect again on the importance of this project in improving safety and improving traffic flow in the Hume area. The two go hand in hand, because this is about removing intersections that are dangerous, and by removing the intersections we can improve traffic flow.
It is also important to realise how integral our roads are in supporting our public transport system. Our buses carry around 80 per cent of public transport customers in our city now which is less than six months ago, with our new light rail network starting, covering a network of 355,000 kilometres in services each week. The efficient operation of the road network is critical to providing fast, frequent and reliable bus services for Canberrans. Just one bus stuck in traffic can cause a delay for more than 100 passengers, so getting roads right, investing in roads infrastructure, is also about investing in public transport. It is the reason why our government is investing in upgraded roads throughout the territory to make sure that we have better runs for buses, particularly going through the city. Cotter Road is one example where we know that there is a bit of congestion, and with our fantastic new R7 and
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