Fifteen new road safety projects are about to start rolling out across South Australia as part of the first tranche of a road safety package worth more than $100 million, designed to reduce road trauma and save lives.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Michael McCormack said tranche one works would start imminently and be completed by June to improve safety and support jobs as soon as possible.
"This funding is part of our national $2 billion Road Safety Program and will deliver much-needed lifesaving upgrades including shoulder sealing, rumble strips, works to prevent head-on collisions and barriers to prevent run-off-road crashes," the Deputy Prime Minister said.
"The Federal Liberal and Nationals Government will always do everything we can to ensure all South Australians make it home sooner and safer at the end of every road trip, no matter where they live."
Premier of South Australia, Steven Marshall, said getting funding flowing and shovels in the dirt on road safety upgrades across the state was going to create jobs and save lives.
"Getting work underway on these projects now means we are delivering safer roads and supporting around 500 local jobs through economic stimulus at a time it is needed most," Premier Marshall said.
"My Government is pleased to be partnering with the Australian Government to get this more than $100 million in funding out the door to improve the safety of our road network and reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries occurring on our roads."
South Australian Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Corey Wingard, said South Australians would soon start feeling the difference this funding will make on the state's roads.
"If there is one important New Year's resolution I encourage all South Australians to stick to this year, it's to ensure they do their bit to promote road safety so we can all get home safely," Minister Wingard said.
"Crashes happen because people can make mistakes, but these life-saving road safety investments will reduce the impact of those mistakes."
Assistant Minister for Road Safety and Freight Transport Scott Buchholz said road safety was a key priority for the Australian Government and this investment was all about ensuring Australians can get home sooner and safer.
"As a former transport operator, I know what it's like to travel long distances on all sorts of regional and urban roads and of course the difference treatments like shoulder sealing, rumble strips and barriers can make to drivers' peace of mind in preventing crashes," Assistant Minister Buchholz said.
"You just can't put a price on what safer roads and driver peace of mind means to commuters, which is why I am proud to be part of a Government that takes road safety very seriously."
The Australian Government's funding for the Road Safety Program is subject to 'use it or lose it' provisions and will deliver life-saving treatments on regional roads across SA while also supporting local jobs and providing a welcome boost to local economies.
The 'use it or lose it' provisions require states and territories to use their notionally allocated funds within a timeframe, or the funds can be reallocated to projects in other jurisdictions.
In total, the Australian Government has committed $83.7 million and the South Australian Government a further $20.9 million to fund the state-wide upgrades under this first tranche of the program.
