The Australian and Western Australian governments are fast-tracking 69 new road safety projects, thanks to a $100 million joint funding package to enable upgrades to be completed in the 2021-22 financial year.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Barnaby Joyce said this announcement builds on the joint funding already announced under the Road Safety Program to support the accelerated delivery of 69 road safety projects in the state.
"This brings the Australian Government's total commitment to WA to over $230 million through our $3 billion nationwide Road Safety Program," the Deputy Prime Minister said.
"Our Government is committed to keeping our communities safe, while securing our economic recovery - because investing in these infrastructure upgrades and jobs now will lay the foundations for a better future tomorrow.
"The funding supports the fast roll-out of life-saving safety works on rural and regional roads, and is another example of the Australian Government working to reduce the number of Australians missing around the dinner table due to tragedies on our roads."
WA Minister for Transport and Planning Rita Saffioti said the projects are helping reduce fatalities and serious injuries on our roads, while also supporting job creation and the local economy.
"Upgrades include delivering critical road widening, shoulder sealing, rumble strips to alert drivers they are moving out of their lane and wide centre line treatments on high-risk roads across the state," Minister Saffioti said.
"The new projects being rolled out across the state will support around 470 jobs, bringing much-needed opportunities to the regions.
"These works will reduce crashes, while also providing a much needed boost to local economies and supporting local jobs. With these new projects, up to 7,000 kilometres of regional roads will have been given these much needed treatments by mid-2022."
Federal Assistant Minister for Road Safety and Freight Transport Scott Buchholz said road safety was a key priority for the Australian Government and the Road Safety Program had so far provided just under $1.5 billion for crucial road safety improvements and shovel-ready construction activity nationwide.
"Making our roads safer is a critical component of our work to reduce deaths and serious injuries on our roads and move towards achieving vision zero - that is zero deaths or serious injuries on our roads by 2050," Assistant Minister Buchholz said.
"We are also investing significantly in other life-saving road safety initiatives including the Black Spot Program, Targeted Road Safety Works initiative and the Road Safety Innovation Fund.
"This additional funding complements that work, resulting in an even greater roll-out of improved infrastructure and roads that are building a more resilient Australia."
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 and protect vulnerable road users across WA, 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.
For more information, visit www.officeofroadsafety.gov.au.
