MYEFO document shows $4.2 billion over four years to 2022-23
Transport infrastructure spending is being brought to bear on a sluggish Australian economy, federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has revealed in his Midyear Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO).
Frydenberg has been under pressure politically and from the Reserve Bank to lift government spending as economic activity subsides.
“The Government is accelerating and creating new road and rail projects to tackle congestion and to get people home sooner and safer,” the nation’s treasurer says as its first of three priority areas, the others being the drought and aged care.
“The total transport infrastructure investment will be over $100 billion over 10 years, including an additional $4.2 billion over the next four years.
“Over half of this additional funding will be spent in regional areas, giving a much needed boost to these communities.”
But how fast this spending comes into effect is already contentious.
The MYFEO papers state “funding for a package of measures for the Infrastructure Investment Program to accelerate critical infrastructure projects . . . is expected to increase payments by $750 million in 2019-20 ($4.2 billion over four years to 2022-23)”.
In action to mitigate the horror drought, he reveals in regional spending that $138.9 million in extra Roads to Recovery funding in 2020 for 128 local government areas most impacted.
While acknowledging that growth has slowed since the Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Outlook (PEFO), the federal government still expects a 2019-10 Budget surplus – at $5 billion, down from $7.1 billion – despite the extra spending.
Real GDP is forecast to be 2¼ per cent in 2019-20 and growth is expected to strengthen to 2¾ per cent in 2020-21.
Read about road spending pledges made earlier this year, here
The roads and rail spending component includes:
- $571 million for New South Wales to improve safety and efficiency for the Pacific, Newell, and Princes Highways
- $514 million for Victoria including immediate funding for the North East Link, Stage 2 of the Monash Freeway upgrade, and allowing for the completion of the Echuca-Moama Bridge in mid-2021
- $1.5 billion for Queensland including upgrades to the M1, Warrego, Cunningham, and Bruce highways, the Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 3A, and the North Coast rail line. The Australian and Queensland governments have also reached agreement on the delivery of the Melbourne to Brisbane Inland Rail
- $868 million for Western Australia including the early construction of the Bunbury Outer Ring Road, Albany Ring Road, Tonkin Highway Gap, and upgrades to the Karratha to Tom Price Corridor
- $327 million for South Australia, including the completion of the Darlington Upgrade and Flinders Link, and commencement of works on the Rural Roads Safety Package, the Victor Harbour Road Duplication, and the Eyre Highway
- $173 million for Tasmania including funding for the Port of Burnie shiploader and upgrades to the Bass and Midland Highways
- $147 million for the Northern Territory including upgrades on the Alice Springs to Darwin corridor, including the Mango Industry Road upgrades in Litchfield, and the Adelaide River to Wadeye Road corridors
- $30 million for the Australian Capital Territory to accelerate the Monaro Highway upgrades, including the intersection with Lanyon Drive.
The full MYEFO can be accessed here.