There is a positive outlook in 2016 for all industries involved in building infrastructure in New South Wales according to the State Division of the Institute of Public Works Engineering (IPWEA-NSW) whose members undertake the major capital works projects for the private and public sectors.
IPWEA NSW Chief Executive Officer, John Roydhouse, said the Federal Government is injecting billions into infrastructure programs and the State Government has announced its own $20 billion infrastructure program as part of the Rebuilding NSW plan which includes investing $6 billion in regional NSW.
Mr Roydhouse said the dynamic growth in infrastructure commitment has been reflected in bookings from overseas and across Australia for the IPWEA’s CIVENEX Expo to be held at the Hawkesbury Showground on May 18-19, which is the State’s major infrastructure show case.
He said Stage 2 of WestConnex, which will more than double the capacity of the M5 East, is beginning ahead of schedule because the Commonwealth is providing a concessional loan of up to $2 billion, on top of the $1.5 billion grant it committed for all three project stages.
“Road congestion costs Australia $16.5 billion in 2015[1] while also adding massively to city pollution levels. Such projects as WestConnex will help ease congestion and improve accessibility to workplaces for employees and delivery drivers. This is a win for lifestyle, cost reduction and the environment.”
These infrastructure projects will generate tens of thousands of jobs and spur economic growth in Western Sydney and the benefits will flow across the state and the nation long before the airport receives its first passengers in the mid- 2020s.
These expenditures will allow infrastructure companies to reallocate staff and equipment that were involved in construction for the resources boom to these major projects now that many mining projects have been completed while others have been put on hold.
