Published on Friday, 17 November 2023 at 8:55:45 AM
The Shire of Murray welcomes the statement made by Minister for Transport, Hon. Rita Saffioti MLA that Pinjarra Heavy Haulage Deviation project will go ahead.
Earlier today, the Australian Government announced it will withdraw $200 million in funding for the project. Since then, the Cook Labor Government has confirmed it will proceed with delivery of the Pinjarra Heavy Haulage Deviation.
Shire of Murray President, David Bolt, welcomes Minister Saffioti’s announcement.
"We were incredibly disappointed by the announcement to cut the funding made by Infrastructure Minister Catherine King’s department after it had already been approved at both the Federal and State level,” said President Bolt.
“Equally confusing was the statement the project did not demonstrate merit, lacked any national strategic rationale, or did not meet the Australian Government’s national investment priorities.
“As a major component linking the South West and Perth Airport via the South Western Highway, this project will provide significant improvements in safety and efficiency for trucks and road users, creating social and economic opportunities for the local community, broader South West Region and the State,” he added.
The Pinjarra Heavy Haulage Deviation project has been in the works for over a decade, initially raised as a priority by the community in the 1990s.
In 2017, the Shire of Murray held a referendum to understand support for the deviation project. At that time, 84.6 per cent of the community supported the deviation project.
In 2018, $27.5 million funding was allocated from both the Australian and State Government to construct stage one of the project. This would have involved linking Greenlands Road to PinjarraWilliams Road.
Due to the likely impact of increased traffic on South Western Highway and Pinjarra Williams Road, for Stage 1, the project was delayed. Subsequently, $250 million was obtained by Australian and State Governments to build a full deviation.
“With our population growing and traffic use continuously increasing, the issue is only getting worse with each passing year of delay. Last year, there were 795 heavy vehicle movements daily – up from 690 the year the referendum was held.”
“This project has been a priority for us for many years. I look forward, along with the rest of our community, to seeing further details of budget funding and hearing further about project delivery timeframes so there are no further delays to this vitally important piece of the State’s transport infrastructure,” added President Bolt.
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