Ken Wyatt (Hasluck, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to continue my strong advocacy for local infrastructure projects. I invited Warren Truss MP, Leader of the Nationals and shadow infrastructure and transport minister, to Hasluck to view firsthand what is needed in my electorate.

The first site we visited was the Berkshire-Roe Highway intersection in Forrestfield. This project is one that I have been fighting to have fixed since I took the seat 18 months ago. There are two facets to this project that need to be done to alleviate congestion and danger to motorists. Firstly, the outdated and underused footbridge that spans Roe Highway needs to be removed. Heavy haulage vehicles transporting mining equipment and other manufacturing transportation heading north towards the Great Northern Highway just scrape under the bridge or, if they are too large, they are diverted through Forrestfield, a great inconvenience to the community, truck drivers and the shire of Kalamunda. The additional cost of raising the powerlines so the trucks can pass through underneath is borne by the industry.

Recently, there have been near misses, truck rollovers and accidents at the intersection, and this needs urgent attention. Secondly, the intersection needs to see Hale Road aligned and a better traffic management system implemented. I will continue to work hard behind the scenes to lobby local, state and federal government for action on this intersection.

As I have said in this chamber before, Western Australia shoulders the burden of the mining boom. Along with Queensland, it receives significantly lower amounts of the infrastructure spend. North of this intersection is another important infrastructure project that needs urgent attention and funding: the Lloyd Street extension in Midland. Extending Lloyd Street by building a bridge over the industrial zoned area to the south in Hazelmere creates more sustainable employment options for local residents removes commuters from the Roe and Great Eastern Highways and will encourage private commercial investment into the area. I took Mr Truss to meet with the CEO of the City of Swan, the mayor and deputy mayor and the CEO of the Swan Chamber of Commerce, so he could see firsthand how important this project would be to Midland. I thank them for their support. I will continue to work hard behind the scenes with my local and state government colleagues to help make this project a reality.

Finally, I took Mr Warren Truss to the Nicholson Road-Garden Street intersection. This is an ongoing issue for the people in Southern River, Gosnells, Thornbury and Huntingdale areas. Tens of thousands of vehicles use this roundabout every day, and it is notorious for its congestion when things are running smoothly, let alone if there is a minor accident or a freight train, which can cause up to a 10-minute delay. We were met at the rail line by the state member for Southern River, Mr Peter Abetz MLA, and the City of Gosnells mayor, Dave Griffiths. There we discussed the ongoing issue. When the shadow transport and infrastructure minister left at the end of the day—which was a long day—he was acutely aware of the importance of road infrastructure needs in Hasluck. The aforementioned projects are crucial to the ongoing prosperity of my constituents, and I will fight to see them realised in the future.