Rick Wilson (O'Connor, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On Friday, 14 March I was very pleased to join the Minister for Transport the Hon. Warren Truss and the Western Australian Premier the Hon. Colin Barnett in announcing a $67.1 million upgrade to the Great Eastern Highway between Walgoolan and Coolgardie. The Great Eastern Highway is the main road freight artery between Western Australia and the East Coast as well as being a critical corridor for mining equipment and supplies for the Eastern Goldfields, centred around Kalgoorlie. The planned upgrades, which include some realignment, widening the road to nine metres with a one-metre shoulder and the construction of three overtaking lanes between Coolgardie and Bullabulling, have been identified as a priority by the main roads department for over 10 years—these upgrades are long overdue.

Coolgardie Shire President Mr Mal Cullen—who attended a site inspection with me, the Parliamentary Secretary for Transport the Hon. Jim Chown and the member for Eyre the Hon. Graham Jacobs—said he believed the project would significantly improve the economy for Coolgardie and would certainly be a boon for local businesses. The major benefit for the residents of the Goldfields will be improved road safety on a stretch of road that has seen far too many fatalities. I thank Minister Truss for his support for this project and the government for the $42.1 million commitment to this vital infrastructure upgrade.