Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I stood in this chamber a couple of months ago and said I would update the House on a plan to improve the Barton Highway in my electorate. I can report that we are making significant progress towards a staged duplication plan. To those who have questioned the need for another plan, I will clarify: there has never been a plan. There was a corridor identified for future duplication of the highway; there was no detailed plan to make it happen. That is why we have seen a series of bandaids applied to the road, with large sums of money being spent but with limited progress toward duplication.

I came into office last September and discovered, to my dismay, that we had to start from scratch. I secured from the Commonwealth and New South Wales governments a funding commitment of $300,000 and a steering committee of government and council delegates overseeing the plan. A consultancy firm has now been appointed to update that plan, to complete it. Our goal as a community is to develop a fully costed, detailed and staged duplication plan for the highway. When I say 'staged', this is not going to happen overnight and it is not going to happen all at once; it will be in bite-sized chunks. That is how we will achieve duplication of the highway.

Commuters along the Barton will know that upgrade works have recently finished on the southern edge of Murrumbateman and that work on the McIntosh Circuit upgrade near Murrumbateman is just beginning. These are part of the staged works that will improve the safety of the highway. The community that drives regularly along the Barton, whether it be for work or because they live locally, wants to see improvements that are getting us to our ultimate goal. When I prioritised this as one of the most significant issues in my electorate, I did so knowing the importance of working closely with key stakeholders and with the broader community and knowing the high community expectations.

A full-scale public consultation is underway for the next month, until 26 September. I am strongly encouraging my constituents to contribute. An online survey has already received a significant number of submissions. It invites people to nominate their greatest areas of concern about the highway. Community drop-in sessions will be held at the Murrumbateman Farmers Market and Murrumbateman hall on Saturday week, 13 September. A community information night will be held on 15 October at Murrumbateman Country Inn. The public is being openly encouraged to share their ideas, express their concerns and play a part in the framing of the improvement strategy. With the community's support and involvement, I am determined to continue shaping this process so that we have a plan that will progressively address our concerns.