Treasurer Andrew Fraser said the building program – mainly roads, affordable housing and energy - is the government’s key weapon in creating and protecting jobs, and meeting the challenges of population growth estimated at an extra 100,000 people making Queensland home in the next year or so, he said.
Fraser said, “We are building or upgrading nine major hospitals across the state. We are spending $7.3bn on roads and transport infrastructure, and we are building more schools and more training facilities.’
As part of the $3.3bn roads program, $88m has been allocated to kick start the $320m Port of Brisbane Motorway project.
“This will almost double the length of the existing road, and run from Lindum Road to Pritchard Street, connecting to the existing Port of Brisbane Motorway bypassing a dangerous dog-leg corner on Lytton Road,” he said.
More than 40% of construction will be done by government owned corporations or other semi independent bodies and about 44% of the infrastructure spend will be on Brisbane projects. High profile ones include finishing the Gateway Bridge duplication and extending the southern section to Nerang.
Others include $197m to continue the northern Busway in inner Brisbane, $155.6m to fast track the rail line to Springfield, about 45km south west of the CBD and $20.3m to enhance the bicycle network.
Regional infrastructure spending includes $37.6m to duplicate the Forgan Smith Bridge in Mackay, $24m to develop the Cairns TAFE campus and $252.8m for hospital redevelopments at Rockhampton, Mackay, Townsville, Cairns and Mount Isa.
Also in Cairns, funding will go towards the council’s proposed cultural precinct that will strategically help position the area as key tourism destination and a place to do business, Fraser said. $40m worth of land will be provided, as well as an additional $2.5 million to progress a detailed planning study.
In Rockhampton funding of $5m will be provided to start design work on stage two of the Rockhampton Riverbank Redevelopment
