Like so many politicians’ media events these days, the inspection by NSW Premier Mike Baird of the new bridge at Berry – part of the $580 million Foxground to Berry highway upgrade – was a high-vis affair. Fluoro vests and hard hats were the order of the day as the project reached its halfway milestone.
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What wasn’t visible was the federal government, which has not spent one red cent on the upgrade works between Gerringong and Bomaderry.
While it has thrown money at the Pacific, Newell and Bruce highways, the federal government seems to have drawn the purse strings tight when it comes to investing in the Princes Highway. Yes, it has spent $10 million on planning work for the replacement bridge over the Shoalhaven River but that is a drop in the ocean compared to the money the NSW government has ploughed into the highway.
The upgrade is the largest infrastructure spend on the South Coast: $340 million has been spent at Gerringong; $580 million between Foxground and Berry; $550 million committed to the Albion Park bypass and $19 million for planning the final link between Berry and Bomaderry.
So, on Tuesday – a red letter day for Kiama MP Gareth Ward who has pushed relentlessly for the highway upgrade, on occasion upsetting his federal colleagues – it was no surprise Gilmore MP Ann Sudmalis was absent.
Mr Baird told the accompanying media he would welcome federal assistance with the highway upgrade but made it clear he would not be holding his breath for it and the project would roll on regardless.
Mr Ward said he would be campaigning for dual carriageway between Sydney and the Jervis Bay turnoff.
He said the recent bipartisan commitment to upgrading Appin Road showed it was possible for Canberra to fund state road projects and that he would welcome federal assistance for the Princes Highway upgrade.
One of the key achievements of Mrs Sudmalis’s predecessor, Joanna Gash, was putting the screws on Canberra to part fund the Kiama bypass and the perilous Conjola Mountain stretch of the Princes Highway near Milton.
Both projects have significantly improved travel times and safety.
But in this election year both the Liberal and Labor candidates in Gilmore have remained steadfastly mute on the issue of highway funding. Is it a bridge too far?