newy.com.au – The federal and NSW governments have announced more than $1.37 billion for upgrades to road corridors linking Newcastle to Dubbo and Armidale, aimed at improving safety and freight connections.
The Newcastle to Dubbo corridor will receive $520.8 million for work along the Golden Highway, John Renshaw Drive and Hunter Expressway. Another $849.8 million is earmarked for the Muswellbrook to Armidale corridor, including sections of the New England Highway.
Planned works include road and shoulder widening, intersection upgrades, turning and overtaking lanes, and new or improved rest stops and heavy vehicle facilities. Digital signs providing traffic updates and traffic monitoring cameras also form part of the package.
Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King said the Newcastle to Dubbo corridor alone would involve 59 projects. Early work has begun on the Golden Highway, including new line marking and the installation of traffic management signs at town entrances in Jerrys Plains, Denman, Sandy Hollow, Dunedoo and Dubbo.
“We expect all of these major road projects to be completed inside the next four years,” Premier Chris Minns said at the announcement in the Wallsend electorate.
The NSW government says the upgrades will be accelerated through its Project Swift initiative by reducing duplicated processes and allowing more work to proceed at the same time.
The two Hunter linked corridors account for most of the new Regional Corridors Upgrade Program, worth more than $1.74 billion. The Commonwealth will contribute $697 million and the NSW government $1.049 billion.
The remaining $375 million is for the Euston to Tocumwal corridor in south western NSW. The governments say the statewide program will support more than 1,000 jobs.
