Planning is to begin on developing ways to cut Brisbane’s rapidly growing congestion levels. The Federal Government has stumped up the
Planning is to begin on developing ways to cut Brisbane’s rapidly growing congestion levels.
The Federal Government has stumped up the necessary cash to complete planning on the widening of the Gateway Motorway’s two “missing links”, Minister for Transport and Infrastructure Anthony Albanese says.
Planning, to be completed by June 2009, will look at how best to expand from four to six lanes the northern section of the Motorway between Nudgee Road and the Bruce Highway and the southern section between Mount Gravatt-Capalaba Road and the Pacific Motorway.
The $10 million federal commitment is on top of the $10 million the Bligh Government has invested in the study.
Albanese says the project “cannot come soon enough” as traffic levels continue to grow.
“Traffic on the northern section is expected to increase from 50,000 to 73,000 vehicles a day by 2012, while volume on the southern section is expected to jump from 72,000 to 94,000 vehicles,” he says.
The Rudd Government has also set aside $195 million for land acquisitions which may be made as part of the project.
“Completion of these ‘missing links’ will complement the Bligh Government’s $1.88 billion project to duplicate the Gateway Bridge and widen the Motorway to six lanes between Nudgee Road and Mount Gravatt-Capalaba Road,” Albanese says.