The 2015 National Local Roads and Transport Congress Congress concluded yesterday in Ballarat, Victoria.
The Congress was addressed by the Deputy Prime Minister, the Hon Warren Truss MP and the Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, the Hon Anthony Albanese MP.
In his ministerial address, the newly appointed Minister for Territories, Local Government and Major Projects, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, spoke of the need to harness technological innovation.
One of the key events of the conference was the release of ‘The 2015 National State of the Assets: Roads and Community Infrastructure Report’.
The report summarises data provided by 396 councils across Australia on roads and bridges, with 230 councils also providing data on all infrastructure, including buildings, drainage, parks, airports, water and wastewater infrastructure.
The report recommends an inter-governmental approach to addressing national productivity and infrastructure development.
Mayor Troy Pickard, President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), said, “Without an integrated plan that connects the national and state network to the local network, opportunities for strategic infrastructure investment and improved productivity will be lost. The Federal Government needs to address this issue.
“Additional investment in local roads must be part of the solution to increasing transport productivity on the nation’s transport network.”
On the back of the report, ALGA has proposed a Local Government Community Infrastructure Program of $300 million per annum for five years to fund the renewal and maintenance of existing community infrastructure and promote economic development opportunities, particularly in rural and regional communities.
Mayor Pickard said, “In every town and every community across the nation, Australians are using council-owned and managed community infrastructure such as public pools, libraries, children’s playgrounds, bike paths and sports fields.
“While some of these facilities are relatively new, many were built decades ago and require significant maintenance and upgrades. The 2015 National State of the Assets: Roads and Community Infrastructure Report launched yesterday estimates that 10 percent of this infrastructure is in poor or very poor condition and in need of significant renewal, with some infrastructure being physically unsound or beyond rehabilitation.
“A Local Government Community Infrastructure Program would provide the Australian Government with a similar mechanism to stimulate the economy as well as create 5000 jobs, greatly assist communities to attract and retain key workers in local communities and ensure fairness for all communities.”
The Local Government Community Infrastructure Program proposal was developed following nearly 1000 submissions of examples of declining community infrastructure to ALGA’s Community Infrastructure Ideas Register from councils Australia-wide.
